East 15 Acting School
 Hatfields House, Loughton Campus | |
Other name | East 15 |
|---|---|
| Type | Public |
| Established | 1961 2000 – merged with University of Essex |
Parent institution | University of Essex |
| Director | Dr Chris Main |
| Location | , , UK |
| Affiliations | |
| Website | www.east15.ac.uk |
 | |
East 15 Acting School, sometimes known simply as East 15, is a drama school based in Essex, England.[1] The School provides vocational conservatoire training in acting, specialist performance disciplines, theatre directing, stage management and creative producing.[1]
The School was established in 1961 by Margaret Bury, a member of Joan Littlewood's Theatre Workshop. Theatre Workshop's guiding principles continue to inform East 15's teaching and productions today.
East 15 offers a number of undergraduate and postgraduate courses across two campuses, located in Loughton and Southend-on-Sea. Its degrees are awarded by the University of Essex, with which it merged on 1 September 2000.[2][3] In 2024, East 15 (as part of the University of Essex), was ranked fourth in the UK in The Guardian's University Guide rankings for Drama and Dance.[4]
It is a member of the Federation of Drama Schools.[5]
History
[edit]East 15 Acting School was founded in 1961 by Margaret Bury.[6]
East 15 draws its origins from the work of Joan Littlewood's Theatre Workshop. Margaret Bury was part of the Theatre Workshop for fourteen years before starting East 15 Acting School in 1961. She drew on the teaching methods and philosophies of the Theatre Workshop.
In 2000, East 15 found established its partnership with the University of Essex. At its inception, Essex's founding Vice-Chancellor, Sir Albert Sloman, emphasised that "radical innovation" would be at the heart of its approach, including new specialist performance courses and the creation of new facilities, including the Clifftown Theatre and a motion capture studio served by 30 Vicon sensors.[citation needed]
Notable alumni
[edit]Notable graduates from East 15 include:[7]
- Maisie Adam
- Arsher Ali
- Patricia Allison
- Peter Armitage
- Annette Badland
- Marcus Bentley
- Linnea Berthelsen
- David L. Boushey
- Sian Breckin
- Corinna Brown
- Marji Campi
- Ian Champion
- Nathan Clarke
- Peter Cleall
- Susannah Corbett
- Stephen Daldry
- April De Angelis
- Janine Duvitski
- Alan Ford
- Paul Garnault
- Alex Giannini
- Chris Haywood
- Elizabeth Henstridge
- The Kipper Kids
- Gabriella Leon
- Kevin Lloyd
- John McArdle
- Sera-Lys McArthur
- Ann Mitchell
- Diane Morgan
- Billy Murray
- Michael Parr
- Vicki Pepperdine
- Jenny Platt
- George Rossi
- Chris Ryan
- Ruth Sheen
- Marlene Sidaway
- Kiell Smith-Bynoe
- Alison Steadman
- Gwen Taylor
- Abigail Thorn
- Kraig Thornber
- Oliver Tobias
- Rhydian Vaughan
- Steven Waddington
- Clive Wedderburn
- Kate Williams
- David Yip
- Meng'er Zhang
- Philip Hedley
- Kyran Thrax
- Daniel Ezra
- Melissa Johns
Damon Albarn and Marc Warren attended the institution but did not graduate.
References
[edit]- ^ a b "East 15 Acting School | University of Essex". www.east15.ac.uk. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
- ^ "East 15 Acting School: University of Essex" Archived 13 May 2008 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 26 May 2008
- ^ "University of Essex". www.essex.ac.uk. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
- ^ "The Guardian University Guide 2024 – the rankings". the Guardian. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
- ^ "Rainy season". Encyclopedia of Korean National Culture. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
- ^ "East 15 Acting School: BA (Hons) Acting Course (3 year)" Archived 13 May 2008 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 26 May 2008
- ^ "East 15 Alumni". east15.ac.uk. 2020.
