Birmingham School of Acting (formerly known as Birmingham School of Speech Training and Dramatic Art (B.S.S.T.D.A) , and then as Birmingham School of Speech and Drama (B.S.S.D) ) is a drama school

Drama school

A drama school or theatre school is an undergraduate and/or graduate school or department at a college or university; or a free-standing institution ; which specialises in the pre-professional training in drama and theatre arts, such as acting, design and technical theatre, arts administration, and...

 located in Birmingham

Birmingham

Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

.

It was founded in 1936 by Pamela Chapman and became a faculty of Birmingham City University

Birmingham City University

Birmingham City University is a British university in the city of Birmingham, England. It is the second largest of three universities in the city, the other two being the Aston University and University of Birmingham...

 in 2005. In September 2006, it moved from Paradise Place to a purpose-built state-of-the-art facility at Millennium Point in the city's Eastside

Eastside, Birmingham

Eastside is a district of Birmingham City Centre, England currently undergoing a major redevelopment project. The overall cost when completed is expected to be £6–8 billion over a period of ten years which will result in the creation of 12,000 jobs. 8,000 jobs are expected to be created during the...

 area. In 2008, it became a school of the university's Faculty of Performance, Media and English

Faculty of Performance, Media and English

Faculty of Performance, Media and English is the newest faculty of Birmingham City University, established in 2009...

 (PME).

Two higher education courses exist with a range of part-time, summer school and short courses for adults and children. The three-year BA (Hons) Acting course and the one-year Diploma course are accredited by the National Council for Drama Training

National Council for Drama Training

The National Council for Drama Training is a partnership of employers in the theatre, broadcast and media industry, employee representatives and training providers....

, and the school itself is a member of the Council of Drama Schools.

Alumni of the school include Nicol Williamson

Nicol Williamson

Nicol Williamson is a Scottish-born English actor who was described by English playwright John Osborne as "the greatest actor since Marlon Brando".-Early life:...

, Tom Lister

Tom Lister

Tom Lister is an English actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Carl King on the British soap opera Emmerdale.-Background:...

, Catherine Tyldesley

Catherine Tyldesley

Catherine Tyldesley is an English actress, known for portraying Iris Moss in Lilies and Eva Price in Coronation Street from 2011.-Background:Tyldesley is from Walkden, Greater Manchester. She attended St...

, Rachel Bright

Rachel Bright

Rachel Bright is a British actress.-Career:Bright graduated from the Birmingham School of Acting in 2007 and has since been based in London...

, Barbara Keogh

Barbara Keogh

Barbara Keogh was a British actress who is possibly best remembered for playing Lilly Mattock in the BBC soap opera EastEnders, as well as playing various roles in comedy sketch-show, Little Britain....

, Luke Mably

Luke Mably

Luke Mably is an English actor, best known for playing Scott Lucas in Sky One's Dream Team, Prince Edvard in The Prince and Me and White in the 2009 thriller Exam. He attended the Birmingham School of Speech and Drama.-Movie career:Mably portrayed White in the thriller Exam under the direction...

, James Bradshaw, Stephen Laughton

Stephen Laughton

Stephen Laughton is a British playwright. He was raised in Stourbridge, Worcestershire. He attended the Birmingham School of Speech and Drama, before completing a master's degree at the Central School of Speech and Drama. Based in London, he started his career as an associate producer and worked...

, Anna Brewster

Anna Brewster

-Acting career:Anna has appeared in the films Anita and Me, Mrs Henderson Presents, Hippie Hippie Shake with Sienna Miller and Cillian Murphy and How to Lose Friends & Alienate People...

, Jimi Mistry

Jimi Mistry

-Early life:Mistry, was born in Scarborough, Yorkshire, England to an Indian Hindu father and an Irish Roman Catholic mother. He was brought up a Roman Catholic and attended St. James' Catholic High in Cheadle Hulme before his family moved to Cardiff where he attended Radyr Comprehensive School...

 and Nicholas Gledhill

Nicholas Gledhill

Nicholas Martin Gledhill is an Australian film and stage actor.Gledhill was born in Sydney to parents Bobbie Gledhill and Arthur Dignam. He grew up in Glebe, Sydney and went to school at St Andrew's Cathedral School...

Courses

The school offers a range of full-time and part-time courses:
Full-time
*BA (Hons) Acting (3 years)
*BA (Hons) Community and Applied Theatre (3 years)
*BA (Hons) Community and Applied Dance Theatre (3 years)
*BA (Hons) Stage Management (3 years)
*PG Dip/MA Acting (1 year)
*PG Dip/MA Professional Voice Practice (1 year)
*MA Acting: The British Tradition (1 year)

Part-time
*Creative Drama 10 week Adult Course
*Effective Communication 10 week Adult Course
*Performance Certificate (Introductory & Advanced) 30 week Adult Course
*Stage Combat 30 week Adult Course
*Creative Drama & Effective Communication Under 18 years
*Acting Summer School Adult & Under 18 years

Staff

• Principal: Stephen Simms
• Course Director of BA (Hons) Acting: Daniele Sanderson
• Course Director of BA (Hons) Stage Management: Jacqui Findlay
• Course Director of BA (Hons) Community and Applied Theatre / Dance Theatre: Hannah Phillips
• Course Director of PG Dip/MA Acting: Lise Olson
• Course Director of PG Dip/MA Professional Voice Practice: Alex Taylor

External links

• Official site