CLASS ACTS: IN DEFENCE OF A DRAMA-SCHOOL EDUCATION
G.B. Shaw’s pithy line, “Those who can, do; those who can’t, teach”, is sometimes unkindly applied to acting teachers. Peter Feeney, who wears both hats − actor and teacher − shares his thoughts on the benefits of training, especially when it involves coaching by working professionals. He discusses drama schools — good and mediocre — and the importance of choosing one that’s right for you.
I recently had a chat with Mike Hosking on his Newstalk ZB breakfast show, about some personally career-threatening comments about acting teachers that Anthony Hopkins made in a British GQ magazine interview.
Here are some of them: “Don’t waste your money. They’re failed actors that set themselves up as gurus… There’s one very well-known actor with an acting class here in Los Angeles and he’s the star of the show! And all these other students sitting around paying their fees and he’s the star! He’s on stage with them, interrupting them, being rude to them. No, you don’t do that.’
Ouch.
Two-time Academy Award recipient Hopkins has got to that enviable time in his life and career where he really doesn’t care what people think. Secretly, I happen to agree with a lot of what he has to say.
All aspiring actors are going to find themselves in front of a teacher, even if only briefly, and to some extent Hopkins is right: not all drama schools are created equal. Some are inhabited by second-rate teachers, who will never connect you with the industry at large. There’s even an argument to be made that the schools widely regarded as the best — the likes of RADA and NIDA — maintain their reputations because they get to pick the most talented applicants, who would have great careers anyway.
Even so, the experience of an actor at a top school may not be a happy one. Phoebe Waller-Bridge, creator of acclaimed dramedy Fleabag, entered RADA thinking she was quite a good actor and emerged at the end of her study with no confidence — and years of unemployment ahead of her.
One of the first lessons a graduate has to unlearn is obedience. Three years spent, consciously or not, trying to please teachers — even without the teachers’ active connivance — can stifle initiative and rebelliousness. But actors need those qualities — a kind of personal fire. You must follow the dictates of your own creative compass. Teachers should be there to enable you to find your path, not pile barriers in your way.
Of course, not every student has the experience of Waller-Bridge. Kiwi Lisa Chappell was already an accomplished TV actor when she was directed in a play by Elric Hooper at Christchurch’s Court Theatre. It was an eviscerating experience, as her lack of theatre technique was laid bare. So she made the decision in her late 20s to study with the brilliant and compassionate Dean Carey at the Actors Centre in Sydney. She went on to win the lead in Australian TV show McLeod’s Daughters, which brought numerous acting accolades. Lisa now teaches, between acting gigs, at my school, the Actors Lab Studio in Auckland.
There may well be time-serving or second-rate teachers, but drama schools will still offer a continuity of work — a vital experience in an uncertain profession.
I’ve talked to working actors who have praised their acting school of yesteryear, even though it was not considered top tier. The secret is to research carefully until you find a school that’s right for you.
Hopkins takes a shot at the LA ‘guru’-based teaching model and I’m right behind him on this one. Typically, the school is led by one charismatic individual, a Lee Strasberg or Ivana Chubbuck, and is usually built around some supposedly infallible technique or system.
I’ve moved decisively away from the conceit that I know everything about acting. At my own school we have a variety of teachers and offer a range of approaches. No system is infallible, no matter how much we want it to be. You can do everything right and still fall on your face. There’s no ‘right’ way to act. There are good bits in all the techniques and approaches. You need to cherry-pick those that work for you — and ignore the bit that says you’ll never be good enough.
You’ll know from your years of high school what a difference a great teacher can make. That drama coach might be a ‘failed actor’, but it may also make them a more insightful teacher.
One comment of Hopkins really hit home to me. If most teachers were once actors, at heart wouldn’t we still crave the limelight? The danger is real, as Hopkins says, that we may behave like “the star of our own show”.
As far as possible, we teachers must remove our egos from the room. This is also why I’ve determinedly stayed in the acting game, even as I’ve moved into other areas of creativity, such as writing and directing. By continuing to audition and act, I’m constantly reminded of how difficult the job is. I remain humble and empathetic to my students’ struggles.
It’s also why, at my studio, we bring in working professionals, such as Lisa Chappell and Joel Tobeck, to teach. These individuals are dedicated actors, without inflated egos. They are constantly in the fire of acting battle, and this makes them humble — and supremely relevant — teachers. As one of my students told me recently, “They provide the feedback and engagement that nourish our acting nerve centres.”
What, then, is my advice to aspiring actors? Commit. Do classes. Create work. Keep marching.
It might be difficult, but you must put the cart before the horse — you have to back yourself before anyone else will, before your talent is obvious. If you can do something else that makes you just as happy, do it. But never stop acting because you want to, only because you have to (thanks, Joel).
Peter Feeney has been a professional actor since 1994, working in theatre, TV and film. He is director of the part-time boutique acting school, The Actors Lab Studio, based in Auckland. Peter’s book Acting and How to Survive It is available from bookstores throughout NZ, Amazon.com.au, UK Book Depository and via his website. Peter is currently running a Kickstarter campaign to raise the money needed to finish postproduction on his TV show Blind Bitter Happiness. Here’s the Project page.
