Drama training to halt drain of talent from region

NEW DRAMA courses are being launched in Bradford in a bid to persuade budding actors they do not have to leave Yorkshire to get drama school-style training.

Bradford College hopes its two new specialised degree-level courses – in acting and musical theatre – will halt the drain of drama talent from the county.

The HND (Higher National Diploma) courses have been designed by the college’s drama lecturer and professional actor Tom Aldersley, who was driven to introduce them by personal experience.

The lecturer, who in soaps

and , is from Skipton but had to move away from home to find the right training.

“I had to leave Yorkshire and go and live in Manchester for my training and it has always been a bugbear of mine that there wasn’t anything suitable closer to home,” he said.

“I have used my experience of not just being an actor for 15 years but of having taught at other drama colleges and universities to create courses that are practical, vocational and that will give students the skills and experience that employers want.

“The new courses will effectively create a drama school-type course over two years here at the college and I hope it will attract local talent for whom the cost and practicality of moving away from home, especially to the capital, is a barrier to entering the industry. We should also be attractive to students from further afield too as Bradford is a very affordable city.

“The college has offered performing arts courses for many years but not with the chance to specialise like this before.”

He said the courses were much more vocational and the training was all about making the students industry-ready and them proactively getting work.

“As soon as the students start they will begin developing a professional portfolio and their final performance will be a showcase to industry professionals including directors and agents,” he said. The courses are via the Northern School of Creative Industries. has appeared