Pro's and Con's of going to a Drama school vs going to University

It has been a hard decision in deciding what route to pursue after I leave college. My initial thoughts were that drama school can be very competitive in terms of entry, and the hours focused on doing drama would be far greater than what you would receive at a university. At a university, you have a diversity of people on different courses to socialise with in halls, and where the hours aren’t so heavy you will have more free time to work in the comfort of your room and you can relax with friends. University can also teach you life skills, whereas Drama school primarily prepares you just for the profession, i.e.; receiving agents and putting on productions where agents are invited to watch. Whereas, university offers you to study an area specific, for example; Drama and film is the profession I want to work in, I will then study that at a university and just that. In addition, I am also very interested in Music, so I can join social clubs where I can socialise with people of similar taste and interest. Now that I have researched, it has opened my eyes into the range of positive and negative points that apply to both Drama School and University. When you value up pros and cons, it’s then easier to narrow down the suitable path you may choose. 

A drama school can be entirely “independent”, or in can be a drama based institution which can be joint with a school, college or University. Whether the institute is part of a university or not, the higher education will still be validated by universities. Because then they won’t be authorised to provide people with a degree. In the eyes of the academic hierarchy, drama schools are below universities, although they normally provide students with graduate and undergraduate programmes. The coaches make sure that you soak up as much of the opportunities to train as an actor as much as possible because the scale of the training you will receive at drama school is not nearly as detailed and as vigorous elsewhere. It seems that you are remain within the institute from eight till five pm; Monday to Friday. You study theory in the morning and then after lunch you put all the research and studying into practice. When you are not rehearsing in your free time you will be catching up with homework, research and essays. You cannot afford to take time up because one day training will consist of research and practices over the course of a nine hour period , so that will be a lot of training and information distributed missed. It is clear to see that the training’s outcome will be that you will become a much disciplined individual because of the intense training. You must limit yourself to partying and drinking your time away; find the balance between staying on top of work and letting your hair down. However, it is advised that you spend the majority of your time training than going out as you can’t afford to lose out on research; they adhere to a heavy schedule. At drama school, you train in body, vocal and movement exercises to warm you up. You use your whole body when you act, be it facial expressions gestures and you must be able to channel all of the outward energy in to embody the character but then channel the inward energy out to play put on a good performance. Dedicated actors, don’t over play yet don’t underplay their characters because it takes a lot of effort to portray characters naturally hence why you need to do diction practises, pronouncing your vowels and consonants with clarity you need to know how loud your voice can go and how quiet it can go so you get the fine balance of your stage voice and know when to amplify it. 

 In comparison, a “university of acting” doesn’t exist. The programme, whether acting or theatre, will provide a three year training course and at the end a Bachelor of arts or a Bachelor of fine arts degree when you have reached the end of the journey. In the UK, the degrees cannot be labelled a “Drama school” because the government have a strict policy of what can be labelled so. They will 

just be labelled BA acting. Unfortunately, a degree from a well-respected Drama school completely cancels out a degree received at the end of university. The course is split into two modules. The theory modules cover history of theatre, influential theatre practitioners and key ideas. You get taught about notable practitioners like Brecht and Stanislavsky in higher detail and how particular themes are presented on stage such as political statements sexuality and gender. The roles in studying drama are more varied when studying at university. There is no specific; you can become a playwright, director, be involved in stage management other than just acting. The module also covers devising, technical theatre and physical theatre. Some courses may even offer opportunities of; clowning, puppetry, stage design, stand-up comedy. So it is evident that Universities opens up more doors to different involvement in the field of drama. The way it is taught is through lectures, seminars, practical workshops and in some cases rehearsals lead by a member of staff. You are assessed through the means of written exams, project work and performances. You may have to write essays research reports or log you work electronically. This is similar to the amount of work you have to complete at drama school, but the intensity of the amount is not nearly as much. Contact hours vary between each university and their modules. Roughly, you receive 20-25% studying theory and 75-80% practising what you have been taught, in groups or independently. It is expected of each student to study around 35-40 hours a week, which is equivalent to 9-5 five days a week. A university allows you to go down many different path routes within the main area of study; for example, “Drama with Film” some are theoretical studies of other people’s films and other modules teach you screen acting or filmmaking (behind the scenes) or “a joint honours Drama and English degree” which sounds more academic when you enter the field of work and allows the student to studies plays and scripts. 

There are a list of funding issues involved when applying to a University. There are economic struggles as the income received from the growing amount of students applying to the courses under the new fee regime, could help fund the provisional side of the costs, but there are still capital and infrastructure costings which is required to help the UK give a good quality experience. There are struggles for universities in England as public funding sources are relied on the most to support the growing amount of students. Because of this there may be an increase in higher education budget which is separate to the student loan which can result in department cuts if there isn't sufficient amount of funding. The government face issues with the loan system, seen as there are far more people applying to University. 

But even if these issues are faced, at our age, we will have more of a chance getting a place at university than at a drama school. The average cost of audition fees are about 50 - 65 pounds; if you go through the UCAS system which requires a maximum and minimum amount of five spaces of university/drama schools to apply to. This will then amount to 250 - 325 spent on just auditions alone, and there isn't even a certainty on receiving a place at a drama school; to spend over 200 pounds worth which could be wasted if you don't even gain a place is an issue which lower class, and even lower class people who could possibly even afford the amount have to face. 

The advantages of training at Drama School are;

-Most valuable degree in the industry

- Best training one can receive to be an actor

-Importance in meeting professionals and forming connections. 

- Final performance attracts agents. 

- Agents and casting directors value clients more with drama school training more. 

The disadvantages of training at Drama School are;

-Very busy schedule and a high amount of homework

- zero time to audition for outside work to support yourself finances.

-No preparation for the business and marketing side of drama

- Very difficult to be accepted 

- Additional training may still be required post graduation.

The advantages of training at a university are;

- Not such a busy schedule and workload

- There is more time to audition for extra acting jobs on the side-line

- You get to experience a real student's life

- May be a good introduction into the acting world

- Much easier to get accepted 

The disadvantages of training at a university are;

- Poor acting training

- Degrees are pretty worthless in the industry

- Little chance to get connections 

- Same cost as Drama Schools

- A significant amount of post graduation training is still required 

To conclude, as much as the university route is looked down upon, personally I would prefer to go down that path. The university I favour out my five choices is Royal Holloway and since being to view it, the training that you will receive seems very professional and well delivered. It is very practical based so you will spend a lot of time with the tutors, similar to that of a drama school. If University finances, in terms of tuition fees, are the same amount as a Drama School now, personally that doesn't draw me back because there will be no difference; the only difference is that Royal Holloway doesn't do auditions so no need to worry about additional fees. There are a fair amount of people who became successful after training here too. Royal Holloway have great facilities for Drama with Film ; having screen time and a professional television studio, and Television and film is the path I hope to proceed down .  

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Monologues

As we are fast approaching to audition at drama schools, or in some cases a university which will require an audition, we each have to prepare two contrasting speeches. One being classical e.g ; Greek plays or Shakespeare,  and one being modern/contemporary which must have been published post the year 1960. I chose to perform the pieces of ; Twelth night by William Shakespeare and Eight by Ella Hickson. They are both strong characters from strong plays. They are very different characters to play , but I would say the characters are both the same in age but their objectives are different and setting in which they are in are both dissimilar. 

Jude - Eight 

In Ella Hickson's play there are eight monologues which are performed in sequence, forming the whole play. They each have a completely different character in the scenes , and each monologue has a different story to tell. The way the play is performed , before it even begins the audience all choose which monologues they would like to watch. The character who I will be portraying , Jude, speaks about the fact his dad sent him to the south of France to better himself in masculinity. His father is shown to be quite bigoted because it always seems to be what he wants for his son, and his views  seem to grate on his son rather Jude agreeing with him. As the monologue goes on, it is clear that Jude enjoys his trip to France even if he is reluctant to admit it because he doesn't get on with his father. As much as he dislikes his father, the reasons Jude's father sends him to France was to find a level of maturity , and he mentions about France having great women. All these points that Jude knocks his father down for , he ends up making these pointers his ambitions without realising that's what his father has been telling about. He wants to be "independent" and find "great women". This is a good portrayal of how teenagers typically don't want to listen to their parents as some view their parents as being old , but sometimes their points are valid. But I enjoy playing this character as it shows his resentment of his father and then straight away into comedy - its a level distribution of both. 

Sebastian - Twelfth night 

 Sebastian is described as quite a self righteous character. It is evident when he is wondering where Antonio has got to because he needs his problems consoled. In the scene he is trying to prove his sanity and believes the only logical reasoning to his deliriousness is the accident he had when we woke up on the shores or Illyria. Yet, everyone seems to believe he is mad so his objective is to prove that he is not. The way I play him , is that at the beginning, he is obviously ecstatic when he believe that he isn't going mad, he then composes himself and speaks about how Antonio has an eye out for him and the shipwreck has blinded him to the fact the he could be possibly going mad , and the others believe this too. Then he realises this isn't the case , and is now dumfounded because the whole situation is confusing to him still. The character is interesting to play because there is a combination of excitement and frustration emotions which he experiences and I find it fun to completely show the high energy that his is feeling to the change of emotion through the speech.

15/11/2019 - Monologues performed at Young Actors Theatre Islington

I performed the monologue from Twelfth Night playing Sebastian. I thought it went quite well, I performed it to my best ability. The constructive criticism I received from David Schaal would be to play the states higher. I really need to embody and take in what's happened. I have a good intellectual understanding of the text and what is happening, but I need to build a closer emotional connection with the character and bring more energy. It was quite an interesting experience because, even if it was a relaxed, than that of a professional audition - it gave us all a taster of what will come if we audition at drama school, and it actually was less daunting than I had imagined.  

Skills Audit

Over the past year I feel that I have developed a range of skills since studying at Westminster Kingsway. To be able to perform well and truthfully within your character, there are a set of skills one must have. For example ;We practice during rehearsal times, vocal exercises. This consists of  ; E, A, I, O, U pronunciations which refines clarity within your speech so you sound clear. It help with skills like , "diction", because you want the audience to hear you clearly. It's no use , being a decent actor , but your audience cant make out what you are saying, you want to sell the story to them and your talent. 

 I am quite a confident actor. I know I have certainly grown in confidence since starting the course this time last year. I like to take on a challenge, and it pushes me outside my comfort zone because yes you are on stage, but your taking form of a character, so if the character you are portraying is quite eccentric then you have to put a side a section of own self to the back of your mind, and become a different person that isn't you. I am quite a loud performer, which out of all the skills I have , would probably be the best one. It isn't about trying to be louder than the rest of the cast, or the one that gets heard over everyone else, because then you wouldn't be cooperating well with the other performers and would make the actor seem selfish and self centred. There is a fine line between cockiness and confidence , however. Being loud helps the audience with hearing the story. It also aids with showing that you're brave , which is quite an important trait when it comes to confidence. When I had started,  my nerves somewhat  caused my legs to stiffen, resulting in my walk look less natural. However since practising standing in neutral has helped my balance and helped my walk look more natural, because it had looked like I couldn't bend at the knees. It was just a nerve thing, but I have channelled that out , and I'm more used to performing in front of larger audiences now. I am good with dynamics and proxemics. I don't like standing in just one spot, I like to use the whole space. when performing on stage you bet loads of space to have your character being focused on. why waste all that space by standing in one spot, off stage its rare you get a lot of stage to perform in, especially in class. 

I am a very determined actor. when I get there, I know where I want to go with the characters I play. I experient playing the scenes differently during rehearsal, trying different ways of how the scene could go and if one is successful I stick to that because when reading about the characters initially I know immediately, roughly where this could go but the rehearsals help deciding the final destination. knowing that the set of skills we are required to have, is needed to progress onto drama school or university, I have a drive for expressing the skills I know I have. Sometimes, I used to get comfortable playing characters with the same qualities, but I feel that I have shown my development of characterisation, because not everybody is the same. If you have researched your character and given them a back story for the circumstances that they are now in the play, then it helps to form characteristics that they may have. Rehearsal techniques like hot-seating really does help because you find out more about the character through the type of questions that asked, and the answers you think of; the questions help you think more and delve down the path you want your character to go, and then it will help become them. 

Sharons lesson - 19th/09

The fundamental skills that we learnt today was knowing the importance of punctuation within a text or speech. It isn't the case of knowing what the punctuation is, but why it's there; the coma's are so that it allows you to perhaps change reaction adding naturalism to your performance. The full stop allows the actor to perhaps take a breather between lines and not rush them. one of the most important aspects to drama is that you must take your time while saying your speech. Its supposed to be an emotional and natural conversation essentially with the audience, they wont get any of that if you run a way with your words. 

Sharon was helping us prepare for our monologues and led a few helpful techniques for rehearsing monologues. As it is our final year at college, we are learning monologues so we can perform at auditions. The first exercise we did was saying only the first word of each sentence. Then we reached the end of the monologue we said the last word of each sentence. This helped to learn our monologues better; now you know when you begin your sentences and when to stop them. when you know when you start/stop you know where to place your breaks so you can take in the moment, feel like you're there at the scene and not on stage. It also shows you what words you must emphasise to add the realism of your speech. The next exercise we carried out was running up to someone when saying a sentence then saying the next sentence with a slower pace, then repeat till you finish the monologue. This conveys the energy you need to fill in that given sentence so you feel all the adrenalin rush when you are saying the line and it feels natural in that moment feeling the feelings in that moment, and then the ultimate switch and come down when they are more calmer taking in what they are saying. 

overall, they are good rehearsal techniques because even if tackling the true meaning of Shakespeare is hard, by reading and half interpreting the text and knowing what lines to emphasise, you will understand the text and character more clearly. It appears more natural and the audience will understand it better because they understand through emotion than the actual text itself. 

25/09/19

Today we played a warm-up exercise which experiments with physical theatre. One person from the class stands in the middle of the circle. Sharon/Shenagh would say become a washing machine, (you would have to do the action of a washing machine and do the sound). Then anyone can walk into the centre and act out a scene with multiple people playing different everyday objects. Next we all became the scenery of a park. I chose to be a swing and joined up with one person who was playing a tree so , with their hands in the air I was holding onto them looking like I was swinging. 

We then got back into the circle and studied the "quality of mercy is not strained " from the Merchant of Venice. What I believe is happening is that a woman is at trial begging that she be forgiven by what she has been prosecuted against. She believes that the prosecutor is getting a bit above his station and that his "temporal power" will soon wear off - yet should let mercy overcome him instead and set her free even though she knows deep down that wont happen. For what she has or hasn't done it is shown that he will "play god" when deciding whether she will be sent down or freed. They are Jewish whom are prosecuting against her , and for me this mirrors the biblical story where Jesus, who was starting Christianity, was prosecuted by the Jews because by calling himself (Jesus) the messiah they thought he was going up against god. She believes that god has mercy and that he should do too, but his simple request at his will and doing could send her down for something she may not have done. 

We then studied an extract the play " East " by Playwright Steven Berkoff . 

It set the scene where two parents were telling their children of times of better; as they were describing the children and parents both become the scene with tableaus and miniature scenes for example, "rollercoasters" or "ghost trains" to describe the funfair the parents enjoyed themselves at.

Berkoff's techniques are more pantomime-esque because when you play his characters you tend to understand the characters from the outside-in. You play them big and their inner emotions are shown from the inside by playing them from the outside. Its a useful technique because when someone's emotions are played melodramatically you can entertain the audience while they may also feel sorry for the characters. in contrast to previous practitioners that we have studied, like Stanislavsky, He teaches actors to explore the characters emotion from the inside-out. this is where naturalism comes into acting because you take the depth of the characters emotion and shine it to the audience through the outside. The characters appear like a lamp of motion essentially , the lightbulb (internal emotion) is inside the lamp and the lamp shade (your body and skin) protects it. But when it clicks within the actor that what they are feeling is true to the character's and in that given circumstances the light will shine through and show the audience the raw emotion , same way how no matter if the lampshade protects the bulb, the light will still flood through when its switched on.