Full-time, 1-Year Acting Programme
NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR 2012-13
Prospectus
Welcome to the AMTA of London where we prepare you to enter the profession!
Our school is headed by North-American Kenneth Avery-Clark, whose recent West End credits include Sweet Charity,The Producers, The Drowsy Chaperone, Ragtime, The Music Man, and 125th Street. He has assembled some of the top West End, film and TV actors, and directors to teach at the academy. In addition, he has teamed up with his American counterparts to take all acting students to Los Angeles for additional training during the one-year programme.
If you are looking for a degree or foundation programme this is not for you. This is a professional development programme which prepares you for the industry in one year. Only those who we believe will work at the end of year's training with us will be accepted. This is a fast-paced programme and we demand results. We make no compromises - instead, we run our school with a 'no pain, no gain' attitude and push you (in a positive way) for the results we know you want.
WHY STUDY ACTING AT AMTA?
This programme is designed for those who want an intensive year of practical-based training by current industry professionals. Students must have an acting background to be selected for this programme. As this training is compacted into one year, students must have the required discipline to work at a fast pace and to hit performance targets as required.
Our mandate is to provide students with the opportunity to learn from those who know what it takes to make it in this industry today! Times change and so does the profession so it is important for you to learn from people who are where you want to be! Students will travel to Los Angeles half-way through their year to train with our American counter-parts, who equally know what it takes to make it in Hollywood. The result is that our students will have a well-rounded wealth of knowledge so they are prepared for wherever their career may lead. The programme is strong on performance. During the 6-term year students will perform at the end of each term.
Although there will be an end-of-year performance for industry professionals, we do not feel that the traditional ‘showcase’ highlights our student’s talent. So, in addition to the end-of-year presentation we will ensure that agents and casting agents are constantly seeing and getting to know our students throughout the year.
Although the programme is based in London we put a strong emphasis on American styles but also American values. We believe that anyone can reach their dream goals if they are surrounded by the right people, they train hard and that they are pushed. But most importantly they need to PERFORM. We are of the opinion that you learn by doing.
YOUR YEAR WILL INCLUDE:
Core Acting: Eliminating bad habits, centering and clearance, understanding who you are, learning how to make bold choices.
Uta Hagen, Meisner, Stella Adler, Stanislavsky techniques and understanding
Shakespeare, Chekhov, and Restoration
Speech, Dialects and Accents (strong emphasis on RP and American)
Sight-Reading for Theatre/Film/TV and Radio
Stage Combat
Actor’s Movement: Alexander Technique
Dance* Singing* Technique - including singing and an introduction to musical theatre
*Students will be asked at the audition to sing a short song unaccompanied but as this is an acting programme being a strong singer is not important, it is merely to give us an idea of where you would fit into our programme, if selected.
Vocal Technique – The differences in singing vs. speaking and how to take care of your voice
Body Conditioning
Improvisation
Character Study
Cold reading at Auditions
Classical and Contemporary Drama
Comedy and Farce
Presenting Skills
Acting for Commercials
Monologue preparation
Overall Audition Technique
Modern American playwrights; Arthur Miller, Neil Simon, Edward Albee, David Mamet and Neil Labute
The Business of Acting
CV writing/Photograph Selection
Hair, make-up and dress
EXPECTATIONS
Principal Kenneth Avery-Clark (recently appeared in the West End production of Sweet Charity) will connect you with an amazing line-up of tutors and guests who are 100% committed to get you where you want to go. We expect the same level of commitment from all of our students. Lateness is not tolerated, project deadlines are to be adhered to and full dedication to the programme and tutors is a must. We accept people based on talent AND their desire to succeed. This is a highly competitive industry and part of our job is to get you ready for it both technically and psychologically. We take a more American approach to training (no pain-no gain) in order to give you the best shot possible when you leave us.
TERM DATES 2012-13
Term 1 – 17th September (6 wks)
Term 2 – 5th November (6 wks)
Term 3 – 7 January (6 wks)
Term 4 – 25 February (5 wks)
Term 5 – 15th April (6 wks) Term 6 - 3rd June (5 wks)
QUALIFICATIONS AND FUNDING
You will receive a certificate of completion at the end of the programme. This is a unaccredited programme and will not count towards a degree. It is an industry-based training programme and tutors are selected based on their accomplishments and their ability to teach students the latest techniques to help them get where the tutors currently are - on stage! We do not offer in-house funding and it is the responsibility of each student to raise the fees for the programme through personal loans, donations and fund-raising. We do however offer a payment plan (see tab above labeled 'fees') and accept all major credit cards.
HOW DO YOU GET IN?
You need discipline and determination! We will help you get where you want to go but we can't do it for you. This is an extremely cut-throat, competitive industry that will not COME to you! You get out what you put in. You have one year to be the best that you can be. We will push you but you need to show us that you CAN be pushed. In the application (see APPLY tab above) tell us what you have done so far, what you plan to do and what this industry means to you.
AUDITIONS
Auditions run from January-August.
Our total fee for training is £11,500 for the year, which includes EVERYTHING - full-time training in London, one week of intensive training in L.A, flight to L.A. and tickets to shows). You will also receive acting training daily in our own studios centrally located at Old Street, Central London. You will be taught by CURRENT industry professionals from the West End and L.A. and also have the opportunity to be represented by our OWN agency when you complete the programme. What’s more, you don’t have to put down the whole fee at once. We are one of the only drama schools in London that allows you to pay in monthly installments! Our aim is to offer EVERYONE the chance to get high quality training regardless of background or financial status.
COST