|
Good my lord, will you see players well bestowed? Let them be well used, for they are the abstract and brief chronicles of the time; after your death you were better have a bad epitaph than their ill report while you live... Take them in.
- Hamlet to Polonius
A successful actor requires versatility, truthfulness, openness, vulnerability and common sense, intelligence, imagination and industry, generosity, courage, vocal and physical skills and a secure technique. These are the qualities NIDA sets out to develop.
- Tony Knight, Head of Acting, NIDA
NIDA trains exceptionally talented people for careers as performers in the entertainment industry. The school accepts up to twenty-five students into the Acting course each year. In addition to basic skills classes in Voice, Movement and Music, they are introduced to a variety of acting "methods" and encouraged to develop their own individual approach over the three years of the course.
Bachelor of Dramatic Art (Acting)
DURATION
The Bachelor of Dramatic Art (Acting) is a three-year, full-time course.
AIM
The Acting course prepares students for a career as a professional actor by providing a practical approach to acting in theatre, film, televison and radio.
APPROACH
The course provides a practical approach to acting in theatre, film, television and radio. Students are given broad training in every phase of the actor's art.
Students are taught a range of vocational skills and the ability to apply these skills with imagination, intelligence, integrity and empathy.
The course's strong focus on craft and imagination develops the students' personal work methods and expressive communication skills, while using the tools of improvisation and spontaneous activity to enrich the imagination. In addition to skills classes in voice, movement and music, students are introduced to a variety of acting "methods" and are encouraged to develop their own individual approach over the three years of the course.
The course is concerned with developing two complementary aspects of the actor's art: craft and imagination.
Craft is that part of the actor's art which can be learnt by practice, guidance and technique. It involves the development of a personal work-method, as well as expressive communication skills. It also involves a commitment to professional discipline and the process of individual development through group activity and constructive personal objectives.
Imagination is that part of the actor's art which cannot be learnt, but which can be continually enriched by improvisation and spontaneous activity, by observation and awareness, by contact with all the associated arts and by exploration of the creative impulse.
ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS
Applicants seeking admission must:
- have reached the age of 18 before the commencement of the course (in exceptional circumstances this may be waived)
- hold a Higher School Certificate or its equivalent from any State or Territory in Australia or overseas (in exceptional circumstances this may be waived)
- show at an interview a high level of intelligence, practical ability, artistic sense, authority, tact, potential and motivation
- be fluent in spoken and proficient in written English language (equivalent to an overall band score of 8.0 IELTS).
All subjects are compulsory. NIDA students are required to complete a confidential health questionnaire to demonstrate their medical fitness to undertake the course and to assist NIDA in its duty of care to students.
The primary criterion for admission to the Acting course is evidence of an applicant's talent and his/her potential for making a career as a professional actor in the arts entertainment industry.
For more information about applications click here.
FIRST YEAR
First year work deals with the technical skills of voice, movement, music - emotions and intellect. All skills classes are linked with the acting classes, which emphasise open communication and the exploration of each individual's personal resources. Students are expected to suspend previous acting habits and seek to develop a personal, organic work method.
Text analysis, Alexander Technique, story-telling and a broad-based study of theatre history are also part of first year work. General Studies introduces students to aspects of contemporary culture.
First year work concentrates on acting, improvisation and rehearsal. Students work on self-devised pieces as well as rehearsed readings of new plays by members of the NIDA Playwrights Studio. Film and television exercises are conducted in acting for the camera, as well as classes in how to operate cameras, lighting, sound and editing equipment.
First year subjects are Acting 1, Voice 1, Movement 1, Music 1, History of Theatre 1, General Studies, Play Production 1, and Professional Development 1.
SECOND YEAR
First year work is extended and developed. Students continue to evolve individual work methods approaching character in action as they work on increasingly complex texts. Skills such as singing, make-up, dialect and various forms of dance are added to the course. Study of theatre history, literature and language and Alexander Technique continues.
Students also participate in practical workshops involving works by Shakespeare, Chekhov, comic and musical scene work and film and television exercises in acting for the camera. Each student presents a self-devised individual movement piece.
A variety of styles of plays are rehearsed and performed before public audiences.
Second year subjects are Acting 2, Voice 2, Movement 2, Music 2, History of Theatre 2, Play Production 2, and Professional Development 2.
THIRD YEAR
The third year of the course enables students to consolidate and refine individual work methods. There is a reduced timetable of formal classes, with time provided for private tutorials and greater emphasis on rehearsal and performance. There are also classes in theatre, film and television audition techniques. Students develop their own repertoire of audition scenes.
Advanced film and television exercises and workshops are held at NIDA by industry professionals and visiting specialists and at the Australian Film, Television and Radio School (AFTRS) with AFTRS students.
Third year is organised to prepare students for the profession. Contemporary, classical or physical theatre productions are rehearsed and presented to public audiences. Professional directors, producers and agents are invited to productions and to audition showings. They work with students whenever possible.
At the end of the teaching year, a professional orientation course focuses on the practical realities of the entertainment industry; how to enter the profession and build and sustain a productive career.
Third year subjects are Acting 3, Voice 3, Movement 3, Music 3, Screen Studies, Play Production 3, and Professional Development 3.
Title of Qualification: Bachelor of Dramatic Art (Acting)
Head of Course: Tony Knight
Commencement Date: Tuesday 27 January 2009
Age: 18+
Tuition fees: Annual tuition fees must be paid on or before the course commencement date. For more information please refer to the Fees section of the website
Location of Course: NIDA
Contact Details:
215 Anzac Parade
KENSINGTON NSW 2033
Tel: +61 2 9697 7600
Email: contact form
Applications: If you are thinking about applying for entry into the Acting course, please refer to the Applications section of the website
Acting Course Information PDF
Career Snapshots of a Range of NIDA Graduates PDF
Short courses in Acting are also available through NIDA Open Program
CRICOS Provider Code: 00756M
|