Talent and enthusiasm are essential elements in an actor’s life, but they will take a young performer only so far along the path to a professional career. Instruction and guidance are crucial for a child’s professional growth. These are three ways to train with different specific benefits. A combination of all three introduces a young performer to a mix of different acting environments and encourages diverse skills.
Weekly group classes are an investment in your child’s artistic future and a useful tool to reinforce acting basics like listening and reacting. Group classes give your child the opportunity to make friends, and they also make a rewarding influence in all areas of your child’s life.
Weekly classes provide the consistency and repetition that builds a foundation essential for young actors. Start with an ongoing, age-appropriate class. Before signing your child up as a student, ask to audit the class to make sure it is the right fit for your child.
Private coaching is ongoing training that’s essential to help a child develop specific skills that might be overlooked in weekly group classes.
Regular individual coaching gives a student the teacher’s undivided attention. A private coach will be familiar with your child’s strengths and know how to improve their weaknesses. Private coaching offers a personalized environment in which a young performer can feel safe and free to express themselves.
Workshops are a good way for your child to flex certain performance muscles and a great refresher to help your child improve familiar areas of performance. They are also an opportunity to learn a new skill usually taught by an expert in a specific field. One valuable thing about workshops is that they provide an environment that pushes the performer to perform their best before a group of strangers.
Workshops can take the form of audition workshops, one-day on-camera classes or musical theater boot camps. They are like spicing up an exercise routine, but they can’t take the place of ongoing training. Ongoing study is the key to developing skill and nurturing passion.