Choosing your career path.
Hello performers! It is so great to be back writing to you with another blog. This month, with exams coming to an end, we thought we could discuss ‘Where to next?’. If you love your theatre classes, and are thinking about pursuing a career in the Performing Arts industry, then read on!
Before going into any more detail for this month’s blogs, we wanted to make it clear that if you don’t know what you want to do in life next, then do not worry – it is perfectly fine. In the last year, 32% of 25- to 44-year-olds have considered a career change[1] and there is no rush in deciding. So it is not unusual to see your guardian change career path. Most advice people give is study what you love. Nowadays, most colleges and universities make it easy to switch courses if you even have a change of heart after deciding.
There are a variety of things you can do after your GCSE’s, alongside coming to The Performance Studios at the weekend, to get more involved in theatre (and it doesn’t even have to be in singing, dancing, or acting). Whether you decide to study drama, music, or dance as an A-Level, or take a BTEC in performing arts; we at The Performance Studios have put together a short guide to some of the best places to venture to next!
If you are wanting to stay more local to Lancaster, Preston College offers a great Performing and Production Arts course, or you could also check out LIPA (where Miss Ciara studied) for their courses in creative arts training. BTEC courses allow you to develop key skills in performing arts, and gain hands-on experience, meaning you will be able to pursue a career in the industry once your course is finished! UCLan (where Miss Amy studied) in Preston, is also great for theatre degrees and rank in the top 5 in the UK for performing arts.
Other Musical Theatre Colleges further away from Lancaster may include Bird College, Italia Conti, Laine Theatre Arts, MADD, Performers College, Stella Mann. Deciding on where to go all depends on the type of theatre performer you want to become, and if you want to specialise in a particular art form. You may choose to take a Diploma in Professional Musical Theatre or a Diploma in Professional Dance; there is so much breadth when studying performing arts! To study performing arts at a degree level, places such as LAMDA, RADA, and Royal Welsh College are all great Acting Conservatoires. If you want to specialise in dance there are places such as Addict Dance Academy, Jelli Studios, Urdang or Wilkes.
If you decide that musical theatre isn’t for you, but you would still love to be a part of the performing arts industry, there are many courses in subjects such as Digital Design and Production, Theatre-Making, Stage Management, Filmmaking, and Costume that are available at Lancaster & Morecambe College, UCLan, and other nearby education facilities.
You may also decide that going to college or university isn’t for you, and you would prefer an apprenticeship. This is a paid employment where you learn on the job, leading to a nationally recognised qualification equivalent to either A Levels or a degree. There are a variety of apprenticeships available in the theatre industry, such as a camera prep technician, costume performance technician, creative industries production manager, or a props technician apprenticeship. The National Theatre offers apprenticeships, alongside work placements and a young technicians course to allow you to get involved.
If you don’t want to commit to an apprenticeship because you are more unsure of what it is you want to do, an internship might be more suited to you. There are several internship opportunities available within production companies, theatres, and performing arts organisations that may include tasks such as backstage work, fundraising, box office, marketing, or stage management.
Searching for ‘the next steps’ can be a daunting experience, even if you know what you want to do there is often an overwhelming number of things to do. Our best advice would be to just take the first step and believe in yourself.
If you aren’t involved with performing arts, and would like to be, then please contact Miss Ciara via email on: [email protected] as we would love to have you as part of our TPS community!
Or alternatively book for a free taster class at your nearest studios here.
Until next time performers,
The TPS team x
[1] https://www.apollotechnical.com/career-change-statistics/#:~:text=years%20of%20age.-,How%20many%20jobs%20will%20the%20average%20person%20have%20in%20their,people%20have%20completely%20changed%20fields.
Written by Millie Barnes : Dance Tutor
