Family income dictates what theatre classes we can afford

We are very much an “acting” family. Both DC are very good all round performers. DH is the chairman of a large city theatre etc. DS was in various tv shows and movies when he was younger. You are right in that the parental commitment is massive. I’ve spent many many days waiting around. It isn’t compatible with having g a job. The parents (almost always mothers) were mainly at the extremes of income groups - either clearly completely loaded and therefore not working or clearly not working but without very much money at all. It was an odd dynamic. It’s the same with competitive sport. It takes over the parents lives as much as the kids.

You needn’t worry about the college situation too much. There are definitely performing programmes who care far more about natural talent they can shape than a long list of previous training. If his secondary school offers drama, music, or dance at GCSE, he can take as many of those as the schedule allows and that will help prepare him.

Have you asked for a short meeting to discuss your situation with someone in charge where you DS does his Saturday class? I don’t think there is anything to be gained by keeping it to yourself that DS really wants to take this all more seriously. You need honesty and advice in planning what will work best. I would ask for that meeting and prioritise the ballet class, as PP have mentioned. Explain the goals your DS has and ask for their advice on achieving them, with the set budget. This isn’t a ridiculous request at all. It may be that your school offers scholarships, as many are not advertised and aimed at retaining talented students so they can increase numbers getting into work or colleges. The dance world is also a great place for bartering skills. Is there anything you could offer to trade for the ballet class? Admin work, social media help, sewing, photography, chaperoning - all sorts of things like that can be a useful swap, especially if the help can be given in the same time you would ordinarily be waiting around for DS to finish his class.

If he really wants to get working toward these goals now, there are ways to train for free online, either by watching and following along with YouTube content or joining something like a Facebook group that has live singing sessions. Think about how space in your home can be used so he can stretch and train at home. He wouldn’t need a full floor space like in the studio, but a place where he could use the back of a chair or a railing as a barre and have enough room to kick in all directions would give him a world of opportunity to pick up skills and get those muscles used to this sort of thing. It’s not as direct as being in class with a teacher to point out what to change, but it is better than nothing and can get him used to terminology and key positions so he’s not a fish out of water at college.

All the best to him.

Training schools like StageBox, Spirit Young Performers etc have scholarships available. If you leave reasonably close to any of their location (Spirit is London only) then worth taking a look.

DD trained for years in MT, but none of the places she went (all audition entry) ran expensive shows on top of fees, and you had to audition for roles in the videos... it went to the person they felt performed best in the audition, it wasn't done on whose turn it is or how many classes you attended. Sometimes the lead roles were more for dancers, sometimes more for singers.

If he's serious, I would prioritise a ballet class over end of year shows. You don't need competitions or acro either.

You don't say how old he is, but it's basically pointless having an agent between ages of 12 and 16 (or if interested in MT... 21....) as there are no roles and what there is will go to a 16+ who doesn't need a licence or chaperone - so don't worry on that front. My DD (14) has an agent, but they realise she's in dead-zone and there's nothing around, so we are treating 12-16 as years to focus on training and GCSEs. With the current situation in the US and all the strikes, I can promise you that he's not missing out on anything.

It's many moons ago now but all the people I know who went to conservatoires and drama schools weren't the ones who were the 'in' students in a certain musical theatre group. They were very talented and had a range of experiences across different local groups, for example they'd do school or college productions, then sing with a local (often adult dominated) Gilbert and Sullivan society, or take on chorus roles in local operatic societies. They'd do National Youth Theatre or Saturday school youth programmes at music/drama school.

Times might have changed but the favourites from a local musical theatre group didn't seem to count for much

We were in a similar position. You could drop the Saturday classes and switch to ballet/jazz classes now. Does he go to a good secondary school that does gcse and a level drama? That might be enough drama for him and you can save the money for where it’s more needed

@wendall456 How old is he? Have you looked at NYT?

Agree, and there may be local organisations which run intensive shows in school holidays and have funding if show fees are unaffordable, National Youth Musical Theatre and National Youth Theatre also offer assistance with funding for their courses.

My ds helps run a theatre group that put on 2 performances a year and also puts a performance forward for the National Theatre Connections Festival every year. They only do drama, no musical theatre or anything. They have had several kids going on to drama school over the years. They all tend to have A Level Performing Arts, but not all. Drama schools are good at spotting talent.

Don't go to any classes where the main parts are allocated on attendance alone.

Have you looked at your local theatre? Many have excellent youth groups.

If he’s genuinely talented he’ll probably be ok. How old is he? At secondary school there might be more opportunities for performing/singing. At my school there are various choir groups and school shows. It sucks, but it’s how the world is unfortunately. Most top rugby and cricket players went to private school, the boys in our local county cricket team all have private coaching. My dd dances a lot and those who can afford tons of privates do better at comps. They can also afford more expensive costumes/tutus which all add the overall look. I hate it too, but it won’t change. Life is not fair or equal. How good is his dance? Could he maybe audition for panto next year? You don’t need an agent for that. Most rehearsals are after school/weekends. Could anyone else help with lifts to/from during the run? It’s quite a short season usually.

£200 to be in a show! If it helps there’s no way I’d even be able to afford that. We do musical theatre and they perform twice a year. The annual cost of the lessons is under £200, shows are free.

At my daughter's theatre school the lead roles go to the right person for the role.

If it's really the case that your son's school looks at number of classes not talent then I would switch school

But it would suprise me if that was the case as the show is their "showcase" - they are surely going to want it to be as good as possible.

So my background is that I send to run theatre classes, my Dh is a singing teacher & he progressed to teaching at several leading drama schools/Mt colleges. my daughter also went to MR college/drama school.

most young people auditioning for drama school will have had some training. Very few will be truly triple threat, most will be actor singers or dancer singers. Very few will have had agents. Those who are successful as children often have something that’s wanted in children (usually looking young/being short). That doesn’t necessarily carry over into adulthood.

in terms of dance ballet is incredibly important but many bits especially uallybwill nit have studied ballet prior to drama school. Boys are given more leeway (there are fewer f them than girls). In the absence of ballet make sure his MT dance class incorporates a good proportion of jazz technique.

private singing lessons are great, they are likely cheaper through school as some schools subsidise them. Just make sure it’s a good teacher who understands MT technique not just classical.

i assume his MT classes include a good group drama session. In the lead up to auditions you might consider some extra 1:1 monologue prep but that also depends on what he chooses to do at 6th form. You don’t say how old he is but maybe start preparing in Year 12.

Acro is not necessary.

When I ran classes shows were included and we prepared for them in the 3 hours. My son however joined a youth theatre/amdram group. costs were not too high and the youth theatre audition everyone on a fair basis.

my husband sees many students audition for drama school who have not had as many opportunities. The panel are very good at sussing out talent and potential.

Tons of children will be in his position now. Drama schools will accept them if they have the talent. I hope he gets in.