How to Get the Most Out of Theater Lessons

Now that you’ve been taking theater lessons for a while, it’s important to make sure you are getting the most out of your experience as possible. The Showtime class will give you the tools to reach your goals , but the next step is up to you. Here’s the secret to success: participate with full effort and full intention, every class. It’s human nature that once we slip into a routine, we don’t always show up with all the energy we had at our first class. But for acting, it’s extremely important that you learn to harness that energy and bring it to each theater lesson.

The way we teach you acting skills is through hands-on activities, but your level of participation in those activities is in your control. We will always encourage you to try each activity, but we understand that acting can be scary, and we will never force you past your level of comfort. You have to decide for yourself how far you are willing to stretch yourself. Many students come to class and engage in the activities, but they have trouble getting past the fear of performing in the larger-than-life way that theater demands. What can you do to avoid getting caught in this scenario? Try your best to push past the fear and perform all out, every class, and in every activity, every chance you get.

If you can perform without fear, your teacher can help you even more. The more you can open yourself up, the more of your abilities the teacher can see. This helps your teacher coach you on what you’re doing well and see the gaps that we still need to work on. You’ll also find that the activities work better for you, and you’ll have more success in them. Our teaching techniques are specifically designed to pull you out of your shell, and the more you allow that to happen, the more successful you can be. In turn, your confidence will also grow faster. You will begin to see all that you are truly capable of.

The skill to participate fully and without fear will also help you as you progress in your abilities and begin to audition for shows, if you so desire. A great example of this is a dance call in a musical theatre audition. Dance calls are the part of the audition where you learn choreography, and everyone auditioning is asked to perform the choreography they just learned. If you identify as more of an actor and not as strong of a dancer, dance calls can be extremely intimidating. However, non-dancers will often still get cast in musical theatre productions because of their confidence and willingness to perform all out in the dance call. The more sure of yourself and your performance that you seem, the better chance you have.

Start practicing this skill now. It may take some time, and it will take effort consistently, but if you can commit to participating with energy and intention each week at your theater lesson, you will improve more than you can imagine. Not taking classes yet? Try a free acting class with us!