Arts & Entertainment
Unique acting conservatory at Foothill
One of the best bargains for theater training in the Bay Area, and well-kept secret that's now starting to leak out, is the Foothill Theatre Conservatory, located right here in the mid-Peninsula.
Founded in 1991 on the Foothill College campus in Los Altos Hills, the Foothill Theatre Conservatory is a program for serious acting students of college age and above. Set up as a two-year program, the Conservatory provides complete actor training for 30 students who attend classes from 1:00pm - 5:30pm, Mon-Fri, during the regular school year, which is in session from September to June. Conservatory students study acting for stage and camera, voice, movement, literature, directing, make-up, and stage management. Special seminars and classes focus on stage combat, period style, mask work, various dialects, and Commedia Dell'Arte, which is a traditional Italian physical comedy technique.
Audition-only Admittance
Admission to the Foothill Theatre Conservatory is by audition only. Students are asked to perform two contrasting monologues. An essay and letters of recommendation complete the application. The conservatory is selective. Out of the 60 or so who audition each year, about 15 are admitted. The conservatory faculty places value on having a variety of life experiences in the student body. The age of the conservatory students ranges from 18 to the late 50's with the average age in the 30's. How advanced does the actor need to be to enter the Foothill Theatre Conservatory?
Many take more classes
"More than half our students go on to advanced theatre training, said Bergmann. We send a lot of students to more advanced theatre programs at places like Julliard and UCLA. And they come back to visit us and tell us that they're getting an amazingly similar education there that they got here at Foothill."
"But we work with each individual to decide their next step after graduation, whether it's university, or an acting training program, or going straight into the professional world. We encourage most conservatory graduates to finish their undergraduate degrees. Personally, I think it's a wise thing to do."
Production is an integral part of the Conservatory program. There is a student acted and directed one-act play program each spring. Each fall Conservatory students produce and tour a children's show to local Bay Area venues. In addition, there are student written, directed, and performed "Brown Bag" productions each quarter.
Audition information
The cost for attending the Foothill Theatre Conservatory is about $250.00 per quarter, a huge bargain compared with the cost of most acting conservatories. Auditions for fall admission are held in the spring on specified dates in May and June. For more information about auditions, or guidelines in selecting and preparing audition monologues, call the conservatory at (650) 949-7053.
Based upon an article originally written by John Angell Grant from the Palo Alto Daily News.
