4 answers
Lillian
Student
Fayetteville, Arkansas
3
Questions
Asked
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What is a good college for acting/performance arts?
I wanna act :)
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4 answers
Paul Goetzinger MPA
Academic and Career Consultant and Freelance Writer
751
Answers
Seattle, Washington
Updated
Paul’s Answer
Three of the best ones are New York University (NYU), USC and UCLA.
Kat Morgo
Theater coach/ instructor
1
Answer
New York, New York
Updated
Kat’s Answer
Your question is a very good one. The first question you’ve got to ask yourself is what kind of school would you like to attend? Would you like to earn a bachelors of arts degree with a theater major or would you like to attend a bachelor of fine arts degree -acting. With a bachelor of arts degree with a major enacting, you’ll be taking a wide range of courses. You will be attending a school where although you are a major, arts are not the singular focus. At schools such as these there is You will be receiving more of a well-rounded liberal arts education . Admission to the schools are not only based your acting potential rather they will be reviewing your grades, test scores and other criteria. Or would you rather attend a conservatory program? A conservatory program 9/10 of your coursework deals with your craft as an actor . To be admitted in the school, you must pass an audition which weighs highly in your ability to be admitted to the school . I have an I have attended both types of schools The amount of focus that is needed for a conservatory school is substantial . If you were absolutely sure that acting is what you wanna do then I would say audition for a conservatory school . Attended Carnegie University for a year as an undergrad, and then I received an MFA from UCLA as a graduate student in the theater . Both were excellent schools. There are some excellent state schools with conservatory programs that are much less expensive than private Conservatory programs (NYU. CMU, Syracuse University ) yet just as highly respected . Check out the programs at State University of New York purchase and New Jersey’s Rutgers university . Types of schools can prepare you for a professional career although the conservatory school is preparing you for only a professional acting career. Of course you can go onto choose any career that goes without saying.. Attending a high ranking, acting school in someways does lead to success in the business, especially if you start out in New York. A few of my fellow graduates from UCLA began their careers at the New York Shakespeare festival. All of my graduate class immediately received agents after graduation. However, when I was out in LA with a very small part on a television show, I was asked by another performer, so what did that degree get you? Even in these days of YouTube and instant fame I do think proper training is essential . If you wish to work in the theater, then I think training is a must.
Decide liberal arts degree or conservatory.
Look up well, regarded state and private schools for acting.
if the schools require you to audition choose to monologues, these monologues must fit your personality and you must be able to perform them like nobody else.
Realize that acting is a subjective art, and that you and yourself are unique, and therefore you can succeed.
if you need a suggestion of mother-in-law and scenes, you can always get in touch with me.
Kat recommends the following next steps:
Betsy Walters
Technical Writer
25
Answers
Raleigh, North Carolina
Updated
Betsy’s Answer
Lillian,
You want to act? So act.
Get into as many plays locally as you can. If you go to a college for acting, you'll have to audition. So practice auditioning. Ed Asner once told Toby McGuire, "don't let the grass grow under your feet." Meaning act and then act and then act some more.
There's Julliard in New York City, there is a great program at NY University. The University of North Carolina is also an excellent school. UNC Greensboro has a good program and UNC-Greenville is where Sandra Bullock went (for a little while). The University of North Carolina School of the Arts is a top-ranked creative and performing arts conservatory in Winston-Salem, N.C. I'm not trying to get you to move to North Carolina, we just have some great acting schools. You can get a good theater/acting education at UNC-CH and Duke as well. I think UCLA has a great program. Northwestern University in Wisconsin has produced some very successful actors.
Or you could skip college and go to a professional acting school like the one I went to (I did get a college degree before going) the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theater. And the American Academy School of Drama is another top professional school. Both are in New York City, NY.
Search the Internet and read about these schools and others and see which one might appeal to you.
And, break a leg!
You want to act? So act.
Get into as many plays locally as you can. If you go to a college for acting, you'll have to audition. So practice auditioning. Ed Asner once told Toby McGuire, "don't let the grass grow under your feet." Meaning act and then act and then act some more.
There's Julliard in New York City, there is a great program at NY University. The University of North Carolina is also an excellent school. UNC Greensboro has a good program and UNC-Greenville is where Sandra Bullock went (for a little while). The University of North Carolina School of the Arts is a top-ranked creative and performing arts conservatory in Winston-Salem, N.C. I'm not trying to get you to move to North Carolina, we just have some great acting schools. You can get a good theater/acting education at UNC-CH and Duke as well. I think UCLA has a great program. Northwestern University in Wisconsin has produced some very successful actors.
Or you could skip college and go to a professional acting school like the one I went to (I did get a college degree before going) the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theater. And the American Academy School of Drama is another top professional school. Both are in New York City, NY.
Search the Internet and read about these schools and others and see which one might appeal to you.
And, break a leg!
Thank you so much, Betsy!
Michelle M.
Entertainment Industry
1914
Answers
Updated
Michelle’s Answer
Hello, Lillian !
Great question ! Since you are in junior high school or high school, the best way to introduce yourself to acting would be to audition for your school plays. Most of the time when people watch actors, we are in a very relaxed state so it can be misunderstood as something that is very easy to do. It will be important for you to examine your goals and mission for being an actor because you should have a deep seeded passion for it, let nothing get in your way to stop you and possess the will to make the sacrifice of time, energy and possibly working sporadically. If this is not what you had in mind, then there are always other careers that can bring you in contact with the entertainment world.
Make a list or write an essay about or list the reasons why you want to become an actor. I knew I wanted to do acting when I was six and knew exactly why. The larger than life story telling was high on my list as were other reasons. But you need to put purpose to whatever it is that drives you towards this career. Once you have that assessed, it will carry you through all your training, education and performances. That being said, I would definitely suggest getting your Bachelors Degree in it. Since the return for your education in Theatre or Film may not be that great (and I say may not be) you are going to want to do this as low cost as possible and that means going to college in Arkansas. While you study in your home state, you can figure out if you want to move to Los Angeles or New York to pursue your career after graduation. I went to both cities. I advise going to Los Angeles first. Both cities are very expensive at this time, however.
There's not much weight actually put on "good" or famous name schools for a degree when it comes to acting. The better the school, the location to New York or Los Angeles just means you would have better opportunities to meet more people. There's also much more work in those two cities, too. Colleges in both cities are very expensive and so is housing.
The college I advise that you attend would be the University of Arkansas right in your town of Fayetteville. This will save you a lot of time and money. Theatre professors are professionals that have either a Masters or Doctorate degree and extensive acting history and other subjects based on what they teach. So go for an orientation at the college and hang out in the Theatre Department, talk with theatre students and get a lot of information so you can make a decision if it's what will work best for you. People don't always study to be actors in famous schools. It's all going to depend on networking, making contacts and making a continual commitment to the craft and let nothing get in the way to stop you.
For famous name colleges for acting, you will have to audition to be accepted into their theatre program or film program, but University of Arkansas does not mention having to audition and being accepted. It's a direct enrollment and you can start right away. This is something important to consider if you don't want to wait around to be accepted somewhere with no considerable experience in acting. University of Arkansas makes sense to me. The tuition for you would be really so much less than a famous name school. The choice is up to you.
So right now you can take that first step in your school and go for an orientation at the University of Arkansas to consider future enrollment. If you have any other questions, definitely come back to Career Village as we would be glad to advise you further. Best wishes in all you do !
UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS DEPARTMENT OF THEATRE https://catalog.uark.edu/undergraduatecatalog/collegesandschools/jwilliamfulbrightcollegeofartsandsciences/theatrethtr/
Great question ! Since you are in junior high school or high school, the best way to introduce yourself to acting would be to audition for your school plays. Most of the time when people watch actors, we are in a very relaxed state so it can be misunderstood as something that is very easy to do. It will be important for you to examine your goals and mission for being an actor because you should have a deep seeded passion for it, let nothing get in your way to stop you and possess the will to make the sacrifice of time, energy and possibly working sporadically. If this is not what you had in mind, then there are always other careers that can bring you in contact with the entertainment world.
Make a list or write an essay about or list the reasons why you want to become an actor. I knew I wanted to do acting when I was six and knew exactly why. The larger than life story telling was high on my list as were other reasons. But you need to put purpose to whatever it is that drives you towards this career. Once you have that assessed, it will carry you through all your training, education and performances. That being said, I would definitely suggest getting your Bachelors Degree in it. Since the return for your education in Theatre or Film may not be that great (and I say may not be) you are going to want to do this as low cost as possible and that means going to college in Arkansas. While you study in your home state, you can figure out if you want to move to Los Angeles or New York to pursue your career after graduation. I went to both cities. I advise going to Los Angeles first. Both cities are very expensive at this time, however.
There's not much weight actually put on "good" or famous name schools for a degree when it comes to acting. The better the school, the location to New York or Los Angeles just means you would have better opportunities to meet more people. There's also much more work in those two cities, too. Colleges in both cities are very expensive and so is housing.
The college I advise that you attend would be the University of Arkansas right in your town of Fayetteville. This will save you a lot of time and money. Theatre professors are professionals that have either a Masters or Doctorate degree and extensive acting history and other subjects based on what they teach. So go for an orientation at the college and hang out in the Theatre Department, talk with theatre students and get a lot of information so you can make a decision if it's what will work best for you. People don't always study to be actors in famous schools. It's all going to depend on networking, making contacts and making a continual commitment to the craft and let nothing get in the way to stop you.
For famous name colleges for acting, you will have to audition to be accepted into their theatre program or film program, but University of Arkansas does not mention having to audition and being accepted. It's a direct enrollment and you can start right away. This is something important to consider if you don't want to wait around to be accepted somewhere with no considerable experience in acting. University of Arkansas makes sense to me. The tuition for you would be really so much less than a famous name school. The choice is up to you.
So right now you can take that first step in your school and go for an orientation at the University of Arkansas to consider future enrollment. If you have any other questions, definitely come back to Career Village as we would be glad to advise you further. Best wishes in all you do !
Michelle recommends the following next steps: