Drama School Elitism
Hi everyone! I have a bit of a ~*controversial*~ post today, so lets get into it...
As you all know from my "about me" page and previous posts, I am a musical theatre student, as well as just a major musical theatre fan in general. As I want to go into higher education, quite likely to a university rather than a drama school (as this post will explain), I have done lots of research into what is the best way to get into the industry.
So, lets start from the top. The biggest (and arguably the "best") musicals and plays that are performed in the UK are on the West end. For a performer, the West end is often the ultimate goal. And what's the best way to get on the West end? Have a top class agent. And how do you get a top class agent? Well, the best way is through an end-of-year agency showcase. BUT, to be part of an agency showcase, you have to have gone to a drama school that HAS an agency showcase. (In case you were wondering, most universities don't have agency showcases.) So therefore, to be part of an agency showcase/to get an agent... you have to have gone to a drama school. See where I'm going with this?
To go to a private drama school/have private training (i.e not through UCAS), you need lots of money. Many drama schools have fees up to £50,000 for a degrees and diplomas.
Examples-
Arts Ed- £14,260 per year = £42,780 for 3 years.
Mountview- £13,750 per year = £41,250 for 3 years.
Oxford School of Drama- £15,675 per year = £47,025 for 3 years.
Laine Theatre Arts- £14,450 per year = £43,350 for 3 years.
Cygnet Theatre- £22,500 for 3 years.
London School of Musical Theatre- £14,650 for 1 year.
The MTA- £14,000 per year = £28,000 for 2 years.
This is excluding accommodation and living costs.
"Well, can't you just get a scholarship?", you say? Yes, you can get scholarships, and that's great. But they are ridiculously hard to come by, and I've been told countless times by industry professionals that boys tend to get the scholarships to drama schools, to even out the gender ratio in musical theatre.
Now, you may be going, "but there are drama schools through UCAS!", and yes, there are! Again, great. But as someone interested in musical theatre, after researching on UCAS, I discovered there are only 4 drama schools that do musical theatre. Yes, 4. That's it. GSA and Trinity Laban for straight Musical Theatre degrees, Bird for Professional Dance and Musical Theatre, and Central for Acting (Musical Theatre). So, if you aren't at an intermediate level in most types of dancing, that's Bird out the window. And if you don't want to focus on acting, say goodbye to Central. So now we have two drama schools left that are through UCAS.
If you are a musical theatre student, or are just interested in the industry in general, you will know that drama schools are incredibly hard to get in to. Only having two options for musical theatre makes it even harder. That's why it is so unfair that private drama schools are often very expensive. If places such as Arts Ed or Mountview were through UCAS, it would make drama school more accessible for people like me, who can't afford to pay nearly £50,000 for a degree, let the added cost of accommodation.
Now, lets go on to talk about universities. Again, from my own research, I have discovered that only 8 universities (excluding institutes/colleges) in the UK offer a 3 year degree in musical theatre. This means that even getting a place at a university is hard, just not as hard as getting into drama school. However, doing a musical theatre degree at university will not give you the same training as a drama conservatoire, it will not give you an agency showcase, and it will not give you a "name"- by this I mean you will not have the benefit of being able to say you trained at "so and so". And as you all know, the industry as all about image. For example, if you audition for an agent after finishing a degree at say, the University of Portsmouth, and you have a similar look, build, age, experience, talent etc. to someone else who is auditioning for the same agency, who has graduated from Arts Ed, who is more likely to succeed in getting an agent? That's right, the Arts Ed graduate. Why? Because of the name "Arts Ed". And it is incredibly unfair and elitist.
I love performing. I love singing, and dancing, and acting, and everything else that goes along with it, and I can't imagine not doing it. It's all I want to pursue and it's not right that it's unlikely that I'll get the opportunity to do that to the best of my ability. I am auditioning for musical theatre at universities, and although I don't want to jinx anything, I have been told that I WILL get in. But is that enough? All the hard work in the world won't change the fact that I have "University of BLANK" as my training as opposed to "BLANK Drama School".
Many people will likely disagree with the fact that I feel that drama schools are inaccessible, and elitist, but seeing as this post is full of research and facts, I find it hard to dispute. If you feel differently to me, please tell me why! I'm always happy to hear other peoples opinions, and maybe from your own experiences with uni/drama school, you can explain why you feel differently!
If you've made it through this incredibly ramble-y post, thanks for reading. You're fab!
Abbie Xx
