Welcome to the Actors Centre website, full of news and events and of course, the chance to book classes and theatre tickets online. We really welcome your feedback on what you’d like to see on the site to help you make the most of your membership.
Message from our Artistic Director
This Spring the Actors Centre is programming an exciting range of new workshops to enable you to expand your craft and inspire yourself with new challenges.
For those wanting to explore some 20th Century Classics, Nick Bagnall will be leading an intense and exhilarating workshop on Samuel Beckett, while Gari Jones will take an in-depth look at the work of Harold Pinter. There will also be opportunities for you to work with some of our most promising young theatre directors including Joe Hill-Gibbins, associate at the Young Vic and Lorne Campbell of Greyscale.
If your focusing on TV and Film this Spring, why not try a workshop with one of our new TV tutors? Paul Annett’s Succeeding on TV, David Tucker’s 19th Century Period Drama and Audrey Cooke’s Multi-Camera workshops are a few to choose from, and make a welcome addition to our wide range of TV workshops.
Anne Walsh is back with her Confidently Speaking workshop and Yvonne Morley returns with her popular voice class, Building Character Voices. Casting Director Sarah Hughes is offering a number of new workshops looking at different aspects of the casting process and Janie Frazer will lead another Casting for TV Q&A. There are also great opportunities to work on Musical Theatre performance and auditions with Gareth Valentine and Mary Hammond, and for those of you wanting to develop and perform your own work, don’t miss Kevin Tomlinson’s Create Your Own Show. These are just a few of the classes we are hosting this Spring. To view a full list of classes coming up click here. To view a full list of classes coming up click here.
We also have information on yet more of our supplementary projects, including -
PITCH AND PLAY
The Actors Centre is delighted to announce a new and exciting networking event for actors and theatre artists.
We have invited twenty key directors, producers, writers and literary managers who have profile and influence in the London theatre industry and who are engaged in generating new work.
We are offering twenty places to Actors Centre members to spend three minutes talking to each of them on Monday 15th February from 6pm. That’s three minutes to talk about yourself, your ideas, a project you want to pitch, a company you’re a part of, or find out about what’s coming up and what’s creating a buzz in the current London theatre scene.
At the end of the three minutes, there’s a suitably theatrical sound effect, cueing the actors to get up and move on to the next table. No cv’s or headshots allowed, but you can pass on a business card or a memorable object.
It’s like an artistic version of a speed-dating event, where you get to hone your elevator pitch and connect with as many movers and shakers as possible in a short space of time. At the end of 70 minutes the event turns into a general freeform mingle in the bar.
Book your place now for £10 and do a month’s networking in the space of an hour and a half! Any profits from the evening go straight to the Actors Centre Development Fund.
Confirmed participants include
Artistic Directors Lisa Goldman (Soho Theatre), George Perrin (Paines Plough/Nabokov), Neil McPherson (Finborough), Steven Atkinson (HighTide Festival)
Literary Jack Bradley (Sonia Friedman Productions), Tara Wilkinson (Bush Theatre)
Writers Alecky Blythe, Deepak Verma
Directors Toby Frow, Phil Willmott, Gbolahan Obesisan
Producers Jeremy Meadow, Gabby Vautier (Young Vic), Olly Royds (PW Productions), Ed Collier (China Plate), Annette Mees (Coney)
To book for the event, download the booking form here and submit your details by 12 noon on Friday 5 February. The Membership Department will pick the 20 participants by drawing names from a hat and confirm those selected by email on Monday 8 February.
NEW WEEKLY WORKSHOP LAUNCHING JANUARY 28th
MICHAEL FERGUSON
Putting in the Hours - a new weekly workshop in screen performance
In order to excel in any field of human endeavour, it ’s necessary to accumulate about 10,000 hours of practice. That’s what they say and it’s probably true.
There’s no doubt that commitment and opportunity produce superior skill, but where can trained but inexperienced screen actors get an opportunity to put in ten, let alone ten thousand hours of experience in front of a camera? These innovative workshops are specifically designed
to help members improve their screen skills and to gain experience and confidence.
During these record-and-review sessions, participants will film two short sequences and discuss the playback with an experienced director or tutor.
This is not a drop-in class. Texts with character and background notes will be emailed to signed-up members the day before each session and obviously, because each workshop is limited to four participants, a high standard of pre-learning, punctuality and commitment is essential.
As a launch offer, five sessions may be booked for the price of four.
Michael has over 40 years’ experience as a director and writer of broadcast television drama, and has produced many well-known programmes, including EastEnders, Casualty and The Bill. In 2002 he established and headed the Film and Television training department at the ArtsEd School of Acting.
The Actors Centre’s dynamic and innovative programme dedicated to discovering and training fresh acting talent from minority and underrepresented backgrounds is back! This year Talent Boost 2009 will hit Cardiff, Leeds, Glasgow and Belfast to train and promote new and diverse screen actors.
To find out more, and download an application form, click BBC Talent Boost project.
AUDITION BOOTCAMP
An intense five-day course for those who are considering a career in acting and want to prepare and hone their audition technique.
The week will offer a range of workshops giving an invaluable grounding in vital skills required for auditions and ongoing training.
For more information and an application form click here.
EUROPEAN ACT
We are proud to announce a brand new initiative we are launching in conjunction with RADA and the International Institute of Performing Arts: European Actors Continuous Training will be the first ever international training certificate for professional actors.
Bringing together a host of dynamic teachers and coaches, sited in three great cultural capitals and designed to give the actor access to new international networks as well as the best in cutting edge skills development, European A.C.T will be one of the most ambitious and prestigious programmes we have ever run.
And if you want to find out more about the amazing story that brought the Actors Centre into being and its extraordinary development,check out the fascinating film we made to mark our 30th Anniversary, in which Julie Walters, Simon Callow and a host of other supporters talk about what the Actors Centre means to them. To read more about our 30th Birthday click here.
