Sears & Switzer
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So, how do you find a great acting class?
and you should know the rest of the quote. Warning: Yes, there are BAD acting classes. To become an actor is to embrace poverty, so don't waste your money. Be careful out there!
The Toronto Association of Acting Studios, Theatre Ontario [416 4084556] and the Acting/Modeling Hot Line [416 9773832] http://www.amisontario.com/ have issued some serious warnings recently about businesses that are after your money as a performer. As one of the oldest and most established private acting studios in Canada this seemed to be something important for us to address as Sears & Switzer. We helped write the Code of Ethics on the TAAS brochure and are very concerned about this trend in our business. This article lets us answer the questions that YOU SHOULD ASK. [Yes, these are Toronto-centric questions but they are adaptable to any major city. If you're out of town feel free to send us information about your experiences in New York, London, LA, Vancouver, etc. We'll pass it on.]] Try these questions... ARE YOU A MEMBER OF THE TORONTO ASSOCIATION OF ACTING STUDIOS? Anyone can open an acting studio.. And you can't tell from their style or the stuff on their brochure whether or not they really have any business doing this kind of work! T.A.A.S. membership offers you some assurance through a peer review process that they are at least a legitimate studio. Of course there may be some good teaching events that aren't TAAS-sanctioned, but since there are a number of fine TAAS members why risk anything? You can pick up the latest TAAS brochure at our studio, or at Theatre Ontario. or hit the websites, linked on our resources page. As Sears & Switzer, we've been active, enthusiastic members of TAAS for many years. Here are the TAAS "questions to ask" [WITH OUR ANSWERS in the brackets]:
And our favourite questions! Ask your agent, ask a casting director, ask Theatre Ontario, ask Equity or ACTRA... Most important of all ASK OTHER ACTORS. Listen to the word of mouth from your fellow performers. They will help you avoid classes that are a waste of time and money. We're proud of our "Name" out there on the street. Ask almost anyone in the business about Sears & Switzer and you'll find we're well-respected. The quoted references on our brochure are just a small part of our reputation. We've been teaching for a long time and some of our students have done very well. BUT we don't like to claim that actorXYZ "studied here" since maybe they were going to make it no matter what happened to them. [even if they’re getting 20 million bucks per picture!] he real stars who've come through our studio are the working actors who have built the theatre, film and television talent pools in our community. HOW MUCH will it cost? As Theatre Ontario points out in their guideline for choosing an acting class, "Think twice before parting with a huge sum of money. An exorbitant fee does not mean better instruction." YOU DON'T NEED TO SPEND A LOT ON CLASSES TO GET GOOD TRAINING.
We try to keep our class fees as low as possible, while maintaining the highest possible quality. We remember what it's like to be trying to pay for classes as a performer! Our classes average ABOUT $16/hr. depending on level, and NOT COUNTING EXTRA OUTSIDE CLASS TIME THAT WE USUALLY OFFER TO ALL CLASS PARTICIPANTS. [More for private work of course... private audition counseling is $50.00 to $100/hr per session, variable] See our class listings for details.
WHO WILL TEACH YOU AND WHAT HAVE THEY DONE? Has any other university, theatre school, or professional facility ever used your services as a teacher ? Our studio was established in Toronto in 1978. We taught the first film acting classes ever offered by Equity Showcase [the professional actor's post-graduate workshop] and were on their faculty until we opened our full-time studio. We were on the faculty for the Canadian Screen Training Institute's SIFT courses from 1989 to 1997. We were faculty for Theatre Ontario's Summer Courses from 1979 to 1997. We have been quest artists, performing, directing and teaching at universities, studios and theatre schools all over North America. THE FOUNDERS TEACH ALL CLASSES... no apprentices or substitute teachers. THE BOTTOM LINE IS, “WHY DO YOU THINK YOU CAN TEACH ACTING? WHAT ARE YOUR CREDENTIALS?” Amazing but true... there are a number of "acting" instructors currently teaching in Toronto who have never worked a single professional union gig! ACTORS TEACH ACTORS BEST! Ask them if they are members of ACTRA, SAG or Canadian Actor's Equity. There are a couple of decent non-union actors around in the academic or community theatre, but that doesn't seem to be much of a basis to train others as a career. Of course, some great acting teachers are Directors, or Casting Directors and may have never been working actors... So ask them about their directing background, and their professional experience or training. It's your money and your time. This is a practical art form. Just taking a whole lot of acting classes doesn't qualify you as an appropriate instructor. Your instructor should have actually "done it" as a director or actor, with some degree of professional success. OK, what about us? What's our Training and Experience? Theresa and David have both been experienced, honoured, professional actors. [Our Equity and ACTRA memberships are now over 30 years old now... Ouch] And we were busy working actors in every area of the business including the classical repertoire, children's tours music theatre, improvisational theatre, television, feature film, radio, voice-over, etc. We've performed everything from Shakespeare to Dario Fo, from Tennessee Williams to Shaw, from Pinter to stand-up comedy. We have performed all over the world from Japan to the North Pole, from the Caribbean to Great Britain. As actors we paid our dues with lots of freelance acting in the regional theatres and on many national tours around Canada. We were quite successful as the theatre comedy team of Sears & Switzer, with a number of successful long running theatre shows, a regular CBC-TV series spot, and years of touring that took us from the Fringe of Edinburgh to the downtown Toronto theatre scene. We also have significant academic and conservatory-level training, including our university degrees focusing on the dramatic repertoire, with specialized training in education and a wide range of performance techniques. Our professional experience in film and television includes our award-winning work as directors, writers for TV series, documentaries and commercials, and as casting directors. We've even worked as casting directors, film and video editors, and as broadcast consultants. We are still actively involved in production and creative work in film, television and theatre. Most recently we wrote and created the concepts for the Sound & Light shows on Parliament Hill and in PEI. Just to share an immodest moment: we are thrilled to let our website visitors know that we won one of the TOP awards for the best live festival event produced anywhere in the world Together with our team at AVH live communications and the NCC, we won the Grand Pinnacle Award from the International Festival and Events Association. What will the course include? See course descriptions. WHO STUDIES WITH YOU? Remember, choosing an acting workshop involves two decisions for you... are the instructors capable of delivering intense, accurate, prepared material?... and are the other actors in the workshop going to push you? You don't want to study with a bunch of untalented or unmotivated fellow students who picked the place out of the paper. You'll enjoy the mix and talents of the other actors in our classes. WHAT ABOUT YOUR FACILITIES? We have been told that our studio is one of the most attractive, professional and best-equipped private conservatories anywhere in the world... we have invested a lot of thought, money in the space you will enjoy working in. We've all taught classes in church basements or somebody's living room. Don't judge your class by the facility. The work is what counts. But the fees you pay should reflect the lower overhead of a non-professional space. HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN BUSINESS? It isn't always a guarantee but if a studio can make it through the first couple of years then they may have something that the marketplace [meaning you...] might want. Studios are more apt to take your money and run when they are NEW and have nothing to lose... Our studio was established in Toronto in 1978. HOW MANY ARE IN THE CLASS? Acting training takes a clear teaching plan designed for the size of class. There is no "right" size. Some of the really hot New York classes can number more than 100 participants and observers. But can you learn anything when there are too many of you in one room? The key question is what does the coach or teacher plan to do with you. So, ask directly about numbers, then compare quality and price. Try the studio out and see if it works for you! At SEARS & SWITZER We are very strict about numbers. We often carry waiting lists for our classes that are twice as long as the class list. Almost all of our classes run with a student:teacher ratio of about 8:1. On the other hand, our fundamental class has been designed to operate as a large, friendly, introductory style class of 24 students. We have carefully planned each class so that it will work for you... We don't allow any auditing of classes at our studio. We think that acting can't be learned by watching... you have to do it, not just think about it. Try one of our lower cost classes and see if we are the right place for you. We also evaluate YOU to be sure that you're right for our more extensive classes. The bottom, bottom line? YOU USUALLY TRUST "WORD OF MOUTH" MORE THAN ADVERTISING. Study with the coaches that other actors trust and recommend.
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E-mail: mail@searsandswitzer.com Your comments and suggestions are always welcomed. All EDITORIAL content is copyright SEARS & SWITZER PRODUCTIONS 2009 ©
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"A fool and his money..." 
ESPECIALLY BE CAREFUL OF ANY CLASS OR SEMINAR SOLD IN A HOTEL OR CONVENTION STYLE FORMAT. THEY AREN'T ALL HORRIBLE BUT THEY AREN'T ACTOR TRAINING!