Teaching acting classes and drama camps can be a great source of income for actors between gigs. Many actors have regular teaching positions to keep them afloat. But not all that can do can teach. A bad teacher can have a lifelong impact on young people, both regarding their training and their psyche. If you’re not sure if teaching acting is for you, or if it’s something you would like to get into, here are some things you may want to consider.
Why do you want to teach acting?
Knowing why you want to teach is very important. Fundamentally, teaching is for other people. So if your motivation is self-centered, it won’t work. Be honest with yourself. If your answer is “it’s just a paycheck,” there are plenty of (better paying) gigs with low to no risk of shattering young actors’ self-esteem. If you see teaching as a reflection of your worth, your skill, or if you’re just trying to climb the ladder at whatever theater you’re aligned with, you’re not serving your class. You’ll burn out quickly, and you won’t be able to give the students the kind of ego-less focus they deserve.
Are you good at teaching acting?
Many people are brilliant actors and can’t teach for the life of them. It takes more than just being good at the subject you’re teaching. You have to be able to communicate a variety of learning styles, and each step of the process. You have to have the patience to meet people where they are and recognize what progress looks like for them.
This is not to say you have to be a brilliant teacher instantly. Many things you can only learn on the job. At this point, I have taught, directed, and coached all ages from preschool to adult and I still wince at some of my early blunders. The important thing is being able to learn from your mistakes and having the drive to be better next time.
This is another time to check the ego at the door. A good teacher must be able to take full accountability for their mistakes. If you’re consistently blaming the lack of progress on students, you should be questioning if you’re communicating effectively.
Do you actually like teaching acting?
It’s ok if you don’t! It doesn’t mean anything about your skill as an actor. But teaching can be a frustrating, thankless, exhausting job with a meager paycheck, and unless you actually enjoy it, it will get old very quickly. Good teachers like teaching.
Once you know if you actually like teaching, find your limits. Teaching is something I genuinely find fulfilling, but I know my best age groups are 3rd-5th grade, high school, and adults. While I can and have taught kids younger than eight, it’s just not my best work, and I burn out quickly. I am also fully aware that I could never teach children full-time. I’m excellent in contained spurts– I can go all day for 3-4 week camps, or I can teach classes that meet a couple of times a week. But right now, that’s my limit. Teaching will likely always be supplementary for me, and that’s fine.
Find the thing that lights you up
My absolute favorite thing as a teacher is making Shakespeare accessible to people who have never worked with the text, or who feel intimidated by it. That sort of work is exciting and replenishing to me, and I could go on forever. A close second is coaching monologues and audition pieces. Knowing what I love helps me curate the work I take on, which keeps things sustainable.
Make it about the work, not about the students
I could (and probably will) write a whole separate article on teaching tips, but if I had to give just one, this would be it. With acting especially, too many instructors make it personal. Self-worth and identity get easily tangled up in acting progress, and it can damage the actor, the teacher, and the work. Each student’s success will look different. You have to invest in the learning process, rather than a preconceived notion of what the final product will look like.
Teaching has brought me a lot of joy over the years, and certainly helped me be a better actor and director. As long as you’re entering into it responsibly and with clear sight, it’s an excellent way to work in your field. Just keep challenging yourself, and make sure you keep learning as well.
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