what is the best school of acting in london?

Answer 1

RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts) has a good reputation, as does LAMDA (London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts). Central is also consider quite good, as is Mountview.

Different schools specialise in different areas, so take a look at their courses and the content of them to see if that's what you wat before paying to audition. For example, if you want a straight acting course, then don't waste time and money auditioning for a course which has elements of musical theatre in it.

What I'd advise is looking up where your favourite actors trained, and then you'll have an idea. You can usually do that on www.imdb.com or on their own official websites.

Answer 2

Well it is a tough and competitive business, but at least you already have a lot of experience :) The best place to find agencies is online. Just make sure to do your research and only apply to legitimate agencies. To apply to an agency you will need to submit professional photos and personal information. If an agency likes you they will contact you and interview you. Then they will decide whether or not they are going to accept you into their company. If you are considering moving I highly suggest Southern California. Places like LA and Hollywood are the place to be if you want to act in TV shows and movies. New York is the best for theater and musicals. I wouldn't move to london. There are opportunities there, but nothing like NY and CA. Regardless of your decisions, it will take hard work and a lot of time. Overall it's a risky business, so be careful! Good luck :)

Answer 3

Any schools that are in "The Conference of Drama Schools" are good and are probably the only drama schools worth attending.
http://www.drama.ac.uk/

Schools that I'd recommend based on experiences of friends and observing where working actors studied while I worked in an arts centre for three years;
Mountview has a good reputation for Musical Theatre.
Central for "straight" acting.
East 15 is in Essex but is also probably one of the very best in the country.

Drama schools are hard to get into and are very expensive. The alternative is to study acting at university but it's harder to break into the industry when you finish than if you'd attended a drama school. Some Universities however have very good relationships with television channels. For example Salford Uni in Manchester has good connections with Granada Television and I have friends at Middlesex uni who have already started doing small bits of TV work through studying at the uni.

Answer 4

Different schools are suitable for different trainee actors. RADA, LAMDA and Central certainly have the best reputations going back over the years but they might not be the 'best' for you. East 15 (Loughton), The Drama Centre (Chalk Farm), Rose Bruford and Mountview and others also have their fans but again it's horses for courses.

In the end the best school is the one that's right for you.

Answer 5

I went to Sylvia Young Theatre school in the Ladbrok Grove area as a kid (for want of something better to do on a saturday morning).
Amongst many other things (Sylvia has a huge contact pool), we got to be the audience for Live and Kicking, the kind of thing I was trying to avoid!

Simon was the best teacher that I had- his classes were also the most expensive. Its been a while since those days but dont feel your being ripped off by the higher priced classes- they have better tutors.

Central school of speech and drama in Swiss Cottage has a more rigid criteria- you have to prove you want it to those guys.

Otherwise theres one in Essex who's name escapes me..

Answer 6

The Central School Of Speech and Drama is generally considered to be one of the 'big 3' with LAMDA and RADA. It also started offering related qualifications and speech therapy many years ago, and are seen as a bit more 'political' and 'serious' than the other two (as opposed to glam 'starry' types- Joan Collins started at RADA, for example- it is doubtful she would have fitted into the Central style of training/philosophy). Acting training at Central will also involve more extensive study of speech and voice than the other school (although all reputable schools will offer this) due to the fact CSSD pioneered speech therapy, hence the 'speech and drama' in the name.

Laurence Olivier was their most famous graduate ...so they aren't exactly runners up to LAMDA/RADA, more a different style... but many, many more 'serious' actors started at Central.

Answer 7

There are plenty of Saturday morning drama classes for young people. also Youth Theatres, but RADA (in the Gower Street area) and LAMDA (in Hammersmith) and Central (Swiss Cottage) are the big three. Mountview has its adherents but it is in suburban North London/

For short courses try the Actors Centre in Covent Garden.

Answer 8

It really depends on how much you're willling to pay.

These are some I've heard of:
Stagecoach
Centre Stage
Sylvia Young's

Answer 9

definetly the silvia youth theatre school, i know a few people in there at the moment and the progression from when they first left home to how they are now is unbelievable.

Answer 10

Eastenders