F.A.Q.'s
GOT QUESTIONS? The below article answers many questions about our mission, focus and goals. Immediately following the article, are most often asked questions.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NURTURING THE ARTISTIC SPIRIT
WRITTEN BY CHRISTOPHER LENTZ, 2006
Several times a year, the lobby of Gateway Playhouse is filled with nervous smiles, and excited energy. No, it isn't the first night of a show. It’s the start of a Gateway Acting School session, and it’s just as important as an opening night. Many of the youngest, and cutest, participants in this proud and successful program have never set foot on a stage, nor do they know stage left from stage right. They come to the Acting School to have fun and to learn more about performing. What they don’t know is how much they’ll learn about themselves at the same time.
Since Gateway Playhouse began, training has been an integral part of the property and its history. Robin Allan, who, amongst other things, runs the current version of the school, tells of a time when many of the performers on property were here to learn. “There was a school right at the beginning. My mother taught class, my aunt and uncle. Most of the actors at that time…were apprentices who were training. They took classes in the morning, did tech work in the afternoon, and performed at night, and that was early Gateway. So I guess it is sort of living in the grass here.” It not only lives in the grass here, but in the buildings, stages, and energy of the terrain.
Currently yearly classes are held on the Gateway grounds, teaching children ranging in age from 6 to 18 years old acting skills and life lessons. It’s this emphasis on actual training that sets Gateway Acting School apart from other schools in the area. At Gateway, the point of the class isn’t to put on a show at the end of the session. Rather, the Acting School focuses on giving students a set of skills which they can apply in any situation. Preparing actors with the ability to jump into any situation and give their all is more important to Ms. Allan than a one time performance. “[Acting is] a skill. It’s a skill that’s tough to define, because it is not entirely physical. Through dramatic study, you train the heart and the mind and the body to all work together, it becomes sort of effortless and can be applied to any genre of performing. Whether it be a straight play, a sit-com, a children’s theater show or a musical, you can be a fairy princess, or a kid whose parents are getting divorced…you can be anything because you have learned to pull the truth of the circumstances from within.” She stresses that training is important for everyone interested in performing, even those who posses a remarkable gift. “There are kids who seem born to entertain, but those kids still need skill training. They know how to do one thing, and if they train, they’ll know how to do anything.”
The kids in the school are gaining valuable experience in the ways of acting, but also in the humanity it takes to create believable characters and enact real life situations on stage in order to reach an audience. “Even if you don’t do this in your life, dramatic study does add to what you give to the world as a person, because it adds to you an insight and awareness that you can apply in life situations. It’s nice to see kids growing up being able to give in that way,” comments Ms. Allan.
Helping students achieve the best that they as individuals can, isn’t always easy. Ms. Allan relies on an excellent staff filled with industry professionals, and familiar faces, recognizing that the students need an outward eye that has seen more than just the shores of Long Island. “We need good teachers of drama, and good directors, and I consider this school to have several of them. On of my earliest students, who started when she was 12, is now a casting director in New York. She is able to give wonderful direction and guidance to actors who read for roles for her. Because of her training, and because she is sort of a born teacher I feel privileged to have her teaching in the school now. She’s a product of what we’re all about, a great example.”
And how is the training going these days? Recent success stories include students who have landed major roles on Television shows, national commercials, and more. But to Ms. Allan, monetary gain isn’t the point of the school, and it’s not the greatest measure of success. Though she responds with a shining grin at the mention of their many achievements, she also cautions that in today’s world “a lot of the focus is geared towards material success. Everyone is shooting for the stars, and there isn’t a lot of focus on the art of it. The beauty of performing, the sharing and giving that happens between an actor and the audience. When kids take acting classes, they realize that it is an art form; it is unfortunate that most public schools do not have programs that are geared in this way. The focus is normally on the productions, staging and superficial emphasis. School Drama programs are not formulated as the music programs are or fine arts, and that’s a shame.”
Ms Allan knows how valuable the program at Gateway is- for that reason and is also grateful to have such a beautiful property and a business that already has a fifty plus year history, to give the school its backbone. The heartbeat comes from her and you can see it when she speaks of the hours she spends teaching and coaching, which she says, aside from moments with her family, are her most favorite hours spent in a day. “Not only the work is rewarding, but it’s great to see the creative spirit emerge. It does enhance a person, they learn how to communicate better, they learn how to listen better, they have more of an ease with social interactions, they pay attention to what their behavior is and in doing so, realize their responsibility in the world, as a human being.” They may not know it, but this is the goal with each child that walks into the lobby on their first day of Acting School. Not just to make them into better performers, but into better citizens as well. With their nervous smiles, and excited energy in toe, these little ones walk into class for the first time, and start down a well traveled road at Gateway, towards a more open and committed future on stage and in life.
LOTS OF QUESTONS ......
Is there a show that you "put on"?
There is an open presentation within the last class of each session, where family and friends can view progress and class work, which changes with each level of study. We also offer production classes, but in these classes, we present an informal presentation of the work, and put emphasis on the craft and not a the final product, in and of itself. At Gateway we provide real skill training. We do not focus on a product, that may or may not allow all members of the production a fair amount of training. We'd rather have each individual student shine in their own scene, monologue or song
Can my child audition for a Main Stage show?
When we produce shows on our Main Stage, that require casting children, by this, we mean children's roles, such as the young roles in Annie, or Sound Of Music, we audition our students first and then open the auditions to the public. Our Main Stage is a fully professional theater that employs members of Actors Equity and Musicians who are members of Local 802 and Directors and Choreographers that are members of SSD&C. Adult roles are cast from the talent pool in Manhattan. For example, if we were presenting GREASE, or JOSEPH, or even HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL, we would cast the roles in Manhattan. Professional actors would be cast, not local high school aged performers.
Is there an opportunity to perform?
In the summer we do present one musical on the Main Stage fully performed by students and also hold open auditions for our Summer Children's Theater productions. When there are children's role in our Main Stage professional productions, we do hold those auditions locally. For those interested and through our long standing contacts within the industry, children being groomed in the school will have opportunities to audition for legitimate projects in Manhattan as the specific cases arise. This is not advertised, but is an opportunity that has often been available to our diligent and capable students. Please read the web page on our success stories.
Where do we go from here? Can my child get an agent?
We do offer a SHOWCASE program sporadically when we have enough competitive and dedicated students to show to our Agent and Casting Director contacts. We present those who have great potential for competing at a professional level to Casting Directors and Agents in Manhattan in the Spring. It is a very limited program. In 2010 and 2011 we offered a workshop where kids were coached and readied for viewing and critiquing from Manhattan agents, casting directors and managers. This year, we are holding a combined talent contest and workshop in July. The page devoted to that is here: Talent Search. There are opportunities on an individual basis depending on our contacts and what projects they are working on and the ability and specific qualities and abilities of our ongoing students. Our director, Ms. Allan, will often recommend students to casting directors who call her when they are searching for particular types of kids. As far as where to go from here, we formulate the school to have many levels of training. Those who are already working in the industry take class as well as those who hope to be. We have cold reading classes for those who are auditioning. We have a college entrance audition class for High School Seniors looking to get into great drama programs. We have had a good success rate in placing many of our students in prestigious colleges/universities and many with scholarships. Since the college prep program was begun, we have had a high success rate in placing our dedicated students in great schools, many with scholarships including: to SYRACUSE, CARNEGIE MELLON, DEPAUL, MARYMOUNT MANHATTAN, S.U.N.Y PURCHASE, NYU, and EMERSON, NCSA, BOSTON CONSERVATORY. UCLA, MUHLENBERG, WESTER MICHIGAN, and SUNY FREDONIA. We have had several students fortunate enough to book jobs as well. You can read about this on our success stories pages.
If my child took one session of classes, should she/he move up for the second Session?
We like kids to take a class for at least a year or two before they feel ready for a more advanced level. Some students progress at a more rapid pace, which is decided by the staff here at Gateway.
My child took a theatre games class but all they did was play games? Is this acting training?
Training is very difficult to describe, but our class descriptions should give you some idea of our dedication to the craft of acting. The craft is learned by performing simple exercises that become more and more complicated as the skill level increases. These exercises are called games as well. If your child is having fun, most likely they they are enjoying the games, and unbeknownst to them, are gaining acting technique along the way. If your child gets into a college drama program, they will be playing the same games to the tune of forty to seventy thousand dollars a year.
Is Gateway a Community Theater?
No. This is a common misconception for those who are not familiar with how the professional theatrical industry works. The origin of the community theater, which had its start many, many years ago in various towns across the nation, was to provide an artistic performing outlet for members of a community. Many of these community theaters gave back to the community by awarding scholarships to youngsters. The community group, the Bellport Playcrafters, do to this day! This is a wonderful thing for the community. These troupes were normally called “Any-town USA” ( insert a town name ) Community Theater. No one mistook these groups for professional theaters. Over the past twenty five years, many community theaters have cropped up on Long Island, but they do not call themselves community theaters. They use members of the community, and theater is thought of as fun, or a hobby. They also use youngsters, sometimes charging them for participation and then charging for tickets, where the youngsters are performing at a cost to their families. Because they do not bill themselves as community theaters, it makes it very confusing for those new to the area, when they see listings for local theater and can't differentiate, without in fact attending a production and seeing the difference. Attending a local theater amateur production, the public will see performers the wrong age or type for roles, with no credentials, many of them with little or no skill, sometimes a taped musical track instead of a live orchestra, and no professional direction or choreography. Not knowing that this is actually an amateur theater, many folks may bypass Long Island venues altogether, thinking that all theaters on Long Island are the same. This Fall, we were approached to be included in an article for a major publication called "Making it in Long Island Theater." We told the well meaning reporter that making it in "Long Island Theater" is not an article we could be included in. If you are making it in Long Island Theater it is almost guaranteed that you will not be performing at Gateway. Our Main Stage actors come from Manhattan 99% of the time, chosen from our lengthy audition processes which involve agent submissions and open calls required by Actors Equity, the Union of Professional Actors.
What kind of Theater Is Gateway then?
The common thought for theater novices is that there is Broadway, the occasional National Tour that comes through, and everything else is local Theater, with varying degrees of longevity and excellence. This is not the case. Gateway is a part of a network of professional theaters that stretches coast to coast. We all hold auditions in Manhattan where tech and creative staff is hired. Peer theaters across the nation that are in the same category of business; The St. Louis MUNY, MO, Stages St. Louis, MO, Northshore Music Theatre, MA, Maine State Music Theatre, ME, Theatre by the Sea, RI, Ogunquit Playhouse, ME, Forestburgh Playhouse, NY, The Cape Playhouse, MA, Casa Manana, TX, Pioneer Theatre, UT. There are less than a handful of professional theaters on Long island; the relatively new John Engeman Theatre in Northport, The Bay Street Theatre in Sag Harbor, the illustrious John Drew Theatre in East Hampton and The Gateway. We and our fellow professional theaters fall under the professional theater category with Manhattan royalty companies that lease shows for production. These royalties cost Gateway and professional theaters, a substantial amount of money to present each individual show. An amateur theater pays amateur rights, like a school would. Schools and community theaters are all handled by the amateur departments of these companies at an astronomically lower rate. This is only the beginning of the differentiation. Gateway employs members of Actors Equity, The Society of Stage Directors, Local 802 Musicians and other unions for designers. Gateway maintains housing for hundreds of employees who do not live in the area, including interns from colleges across the country. Gateway productions are reviewed in the New York Times. Performers who have Broadway credits perform in our productions.
Is it detrimental for a child to perform in Community Theater productions?
It depends on what you and your child are looking for. Many times students look to community theater to have a chance to perform in a show, which they can only do here at Gateway if the show has a particular role for a child or teenager, or if we are running a student production. The push for kids to perform at any cost, often without the right technique, or forfeiting technique or class time, has affected our business and our Acting School. Kids want to be in shows, and we do not always offer this. We feel strongly that performing in shows, puts the cart before the horse, for those who would like to be trained to do this as a career. Would you put your child in toe shoes, before they have learned second position? Technique in acting is not as physical or as easily discernable as it is in dance or in painting let's say. But it's there. And it's necessary. Again, if the goal is to have fun, there is no harm in participating in amateur theater and school shows. But as far as career bent youngsters, there is no room on a professional actors’ resume for community theater or amateur theater credits; they are not recognized in the industry. We have had students, who have missed class because of rehearsals for school shows or community theater, and when they return, they are either not better off, or worse because of missed technique and skill training. Think of a ballet dancer, who stops class to perform at a dance club, or replaces dance classes with cheerleading, (which is great in itself, but not if they want to perform with the American Ballet Theater.) The basics may still be intact when they return to ballet training, but those finely tuned nuances and sharpened skills will require re-training. It is hard to fully inform you on this without sounding negative. Please understand that this advice is coming from the director of the school division that has sat next to Ron Howard and Rob Reiner and given Leonardo DiCaprio his first big break in a network series. Again, it really depends on what you are setting your sights on. If your child wants to have fun and perform in amateur theater, we are not discouraging it, but we want you to know the difference. Your child may make new friends, they may gain self esteem, and this in itself is something worth considering. They will not be working or learning with professionals and they will not begin their theater education with the right focus. Our students, with consistent study, do perform in our Main Stage shows as their level of ability increases. Working on productions with people who are in the Industry, that do this for a living, is an experience that is invaluable. The networking, contacts and input that these professionals provide our students, is immeasurable. The students that began here when we began the current school division, at elementary and middle school ages, are all working in the professional Industry. There are a couple that sought other careers, but many of them are now Equity and SAG members, one is with the Billy Elliot Tour, one is in California performing in a new show, one can be seen in the film, "We need to talk about Kevin" in a scene with Tilda Swinton. One has his doctorate, having gone to grad school at Stanford on a full scholarship. This is what we hoped for when starting the school. It is now coming to fruition for these kids, their dedication to this art form and consistent study provided by their family. The teachers employed by the our school have up to date knowledge of the industry, most are working in NYC full time and spend their off time teaching for us. Many of our teachers are Equity actors; we also have casting directors on our teaching staff, college drama professors, and industry directors. All of our teachers hold degrees in Theater or in a related field.
To give you a well rounded look at this, Manhattan agents will submit their clients to be seen by our director, Robin Joy Allan, when she is casting Gateway’s Season in NY. Some of their younger clients will be students they’ve picked up from College and University BFA program senior showcases in the Spring. A hand full of these kids will be kids that Robin and the staff teachers at Gateway have coached to get into those prestigious schools. We know what it takes to work in the Industry, to get into a highly competitive school, to audition prepared for Broadway show. For those career bound, and those looking to have a new experience, or enjoy a new art form, Gateway looks at this training seriously and approaches it with respect.
If my child was in his/her school plays, or community theatre productions, should he/she take Advanced Placement classes?
As mentioned above, not likely. We do audition new students for upper level classes if they are interested. Some students have a natural gift. School plays are not training, however. The participants do attain experience being on a stage, but more often than not, the habits they pick up, from teachers who are not properly educated and fellow performers who may not be there for artistic reasons, sometimes social, have to be undone in our classes. There is a tendency to superficial acting/facial expressions, extraneous movement, wrong emphasis in the school type setting. Most school play and community theater directors are not professionals. Sometimes they have had no theatrical background. There are exceptions in some school districts, where students are fortunate to have real artists teaching them, but not many. We are always amazed that the gym teachers/coaches are always prior athletes, properly educated in the sport field, and yet the teachers assigned to produce/direct the school plays have virtually no criteria to meet when chosen for the task. Why is this? We already know there is a lot of focus and emphasis on sports in schools and that is where the money is spent. That's great, if you're an athlete. But, what about a performer/director/choreographer/ comedian/ or perhaps even an editor or a cinematographer in the making? How are all of these kids nurtured, who should have the opportunity to make as much of a valuable contribution to society as a developing football player? That is why there is such a need for proper training in this field. This study lends itself to all aspects of the arts, and bleeds into other areas, human behavior awareness, tolerance, communication skills, cultural understanding, historical perspective, visual awareness... which brings us to. ....
Why study the performing arts when it readies you for a career that may never happen?
Don't let anyone fool you with outdated theories on arts study and careers. Long ago, maybe sixty years ago when kids were in school, it was a fact that there was little work and very low pay work associated with the performing arts. Families discouraged the arts as a form of higher education study. But the old saying, go to college for a back up degree, has has become a thing of the past for many, in our present environment and society. A college education is very important...for social skills, change of environment, expansion of one's own personal horizons, life long friendships, a liberal arts education, for discovery of studies and interests that you may never have the opportunity to find on your own in the world. You may be inspired to change your focus, dreams, aspirations based on the experience with a particular teacher, group or emphasis of study. You will most definitely become a more well rounded person, who can use your new found knowledge towards your art form. We always encourage our kids to go on to college, and not New York or LA right away for a shot at a quick success story. However, you don't have to have a major in economics or political science to fall back on if you don't become a "working actor," unless of course, you want to major in those things. Yes, it will always be a crap shoot.... stardom, riches and fame. HOWEVER, not finding work in the field of entertainment is a thing of the past. If your child has an artistic leaning and is not only bent on performing solely, training in the performing arts, can give them another sense, basically, a fine tuned eye, heart and mind, a more equipped set of communication skills, with which to enter many many fields associated with entertainment. With some further study in the specific fields, young adults can turn into writers, editors, work in art departments, casting, make-up, costumes, work as grips, sound engineers, builders, agents, managers, work in advertising departments, development departments, become copywriters, script consultants, anchormen/women, talk show hosts, network executives. Have you ever stayed through an entire credit list after a movie or television show has ended? Count how many people are employed. It's a staggering amount of people. Most to all of these people are paid very very well. If it's only performing they have their hearts set on, in modern society, waiting on tables is not the only option! Let's face it, today your kids are computer savvy. Some of them are talented with graphics, flash animation, and photoshop. Some of them are already budding photographers and videographers. They can always support themselves by designing and maintaining web sites, data entry, photography. They, can work in a myriad of different offices and production companies and be using many skills they already possess, while waiting for those auditions. There are other jobs to procure as a means of sustenance, while pursuing a job in the performing arts. Do study the performing arts if that is where your passion lies. You never know where it will lead, when you follow your heart.
Click here to be added to our mailing list.
