hey

hi i’m picking my gcses soon and i want to be an actress as i really enjoy acting and i’m pretty good at it any suggestions

Reply 1

Aminah T

I would suggest picking drama as a GCSE option :biggrin:

Reply 2

lilyhundre

Original post by Aminah T

I would suggest picking drama as a GCSE option :biggrin:

anything else aswell as drama??

Reply 3

redmeercat

You want to do well in Eng lit too, and potentially history so that you can understand setting better.

Reply 4

Aminah T

Original post by lilyhundre

anything else aswell as drama??

Probs history and another performing arts subject e.g dance, Music etc

You can use this to help you choose:
https://www.ucas.com/ucas/after-gcses/find-career-ideas/explore-jobs/job-profile/actor

Hope I helped :biggrin:

Reply 5

itscourtchicks

You will gain the most opportunities for acting outside of school: drama classes, drama youth programmes, dance classes etc. And definitely singing lessons.

In terms of academics, definitely choose your Drama and Music, if offered by your school. Also join the school drama club, mentoring scheme, dance club, poetry class etc. Maybe also take art as well, but I don’t think you need this as a GCSE qualification.

Always be on the lookout for opportunities to improve your portfolio: small stage productions at your local theatre, volunteering to act in you friend’s film project, helping at kids drama lessons etc.

Reply 6

lilyhundre

Original post by Aminah T

thankyou now i know a little more about this :]

Reply 7

Moonbow

Original post by lilyhundre

hi i’m picking my gcses soon and i want to be an actress as i really enjoy acting and i’m pretty good at it any suggestions

Hello!
I used to be an actress as a child :smile:

I would recommend balancing this out with another career, as the acting jobs can be few are far between. It is quite a hard industry to break into as well, so you will have to be patient and have another steady income to fully support yourself. I would look into agencies too. The quicker you get on their books, the more jobs and credits you can collect, which can make it much easier to get the next role :smile:

If you have any further questions on this please don’t hesitate to ask!

Reply 8

ClaudiaVan

Hi!

As a theatre arts teacher specialising in tech and applied theatre production who’s gone through the whole drama education system I would recommend:

Drama: Learn basic techniques, learn about plays and playwrights/genres and develop skills in collaborative working.
English Literature: Reading plays, scripts and writing and understanding context is very important- will give you that background knowledge as a foundation.
Media: Acting for screen, understanding context whilst looking at real world issues- May be worth doing as it gives you a chance to extend your knowledge and apply it- especially with covid and remote learning and acting- virtual performances and knowing how to film yourself is important.
Music or dance: Being a double or ideally triple threat is what most places look for- showing you are adaptable and also these classes will teach you composition and choreography skills- key to acting and theatre/TV in general.

These are my recommendation :!

Have a look at joining a club on the outside too- doing local plays or shows to get you on a ring of the ladder in the I distr to work your way to the top!

It’s always good also to have a back up: that’s why being a triple or do me threat is a good idea as you have another skill to fall back on!

Most of all, enjoy it! :smile:

Reply 9

lilyhundre