VOICE / MOVEMENT / TEXT / ACTING WITH THE CAMERA / CLASSICAL TEXTS / MUSICAL THEATRE / CONTEMPORARY WORKS
The Acting program is a rigorous and immersive training program that exposes the emerging artist to a wide array of theatre styles and approaches. Through core training in voice, movement, text, and music the actor builds a foundation of classical technique to support the development of their own artistic expression. In a personalized setting, students are guided and challenged by influential artists of contemporary theatre. The Acting program supports powerful and independent artists by developing each actor’s awareness of their own unique artistic process.
Alisa Palmer is an internationally trained award-winning theatre director, playwright, dramaturge and theatre producer. Her work crosses genres, including the classics, contemporary plays, creation projects, musicals and operas. Ms. Palmer's work is characterized by vivid performances, a bold use of music, powerful visuals and a passionate commitment to the body politic. She is the recipient of numerous awards and has premiered and toured original and provocative theatre creations for over twenty years.
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ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS
You must be at least 18 years old as of December 31 of the year of entry at NTS.
APPLICATION
Fill out the online application form and pay the registration fee before January 31. We’ll be in touch to let you know about the next steps.
TUITION FEES
2019-2020 School Year
Canadian Citizens and Permanent Residents: $4,950
Foreign Students: $9,900
Money should never be an obstacle to talent. NTS can help you pay for your studies.
AUDITION
Auditions are held in major centres across Canada. For the initial audition, applicants are asked to prepare two short monologues that must not exceed two minutes each, one from the classical repertoire and one contemporary monologue. Classical monologues must be chosen from the list provided by the School.
AUDITION TOUR
Here are the 2019 audition dates by province:
Toronto: March 11 to 15
St-John's: March 26
Halifax: March 27
Fredericton: March 28
Charlottetown: March 29
Winnipeg: April 1st
Saskatoon: April 2nd
Calgary: April 3rd
Edmonton: April 4
Vancouver: April 5
Ottawa: April 8
Montreal: April 9 and 10
** Dates may change. We will be in touch with applicants who completed their registration to confirm their audition date.**
International candidates and those living in remote areas may send in a video audition.
CALLBACK WORKSHOP
A number of candidates are then selected for a callback workshop held in Montreal or in Toronto, during the second week of May. The callback is a series of classes and workshops typical of the training at NTS. It is led by NTS faculty members and professional artists.
International candidates and those living in remote areas may send in a video audition.
In this video, Déjah Dixon-Green (Acting, 2017, Scarborough, ON) explains how her training at NTS is relevant to her work at the Stratford festival.
The arc of training begins with the basics including the actor’s presence, self-awareness, active listening, and builds to the exploration of text with a focus on an understanding of action, character and story.
Over the course of the year, students move from classroom exercises, to studio presentations to full productions with a focus on repertoire designed to stretch and hone the actor’s craft and range. Content includes naturalism, period immersions in Chekov and Shaw, contemporary Canadian theatre, musical theatre projects and Shakespeare in production.
The third and final year of the Acting Program is a full season of productions in the School's theatre, the Monument-National. This includes the premiere of an original ensemble creation piece, two productions on our largest stage and two world premieres of plays written by graduating playwrights. All productions are guided by prominent Canadian and International directors and coaches.
Djanet Sears
Playwright, director, and actor
Harlem Duet (1995), her most critically acclaimed work, won the Governor General's Literary Award (1998), four Dora Mavor Moore Awards and the Floyd S. Chalmers Award (1998) for outstanding new play. A later production of the play for the Stratford Festival marked another historical watermark as the first play written and directed by a black woman with an all-black cast to be presented at the festival.
David Latham
Veteran director who has worked in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the U.K., and the U.S. He has worked as Theatre Training Consultant at Stratford Festival for 14 seasons.
Eda Holmes (Directing, 1996)
Artistic and Executive Director of Centaur Theatre, she has worked regularly as a director at the Shaw Festival, Tarragon Theatre, Canadian Stage, the Grand Theatre, London, and more.
Read the Frequently Asked Questions
CONTACT OUR REGISTRATION OFFICE
514-842-7954, ext. 134
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