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RADA

Coordinates:51°31′18″N0°07′53″W/ 51.5218°N 0.1314°W/51.5218; -0.1314
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For other uses, seeRADA (disambiguation).

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Gower Street entrance
Main entrance onGower Street,London
Other name
RADA
TypeDrama school
Established25 April 1904;120 years ago(1904-04-25)
ChairmanMarcus Ryder
PresidentDavid Harewood
PrincipalNiamh Dowling
Royal patronKing Charles III
Location
London
,
England, UK

51°31′18″N0°07′53″W/ 51.5218°N 0.1314°W/51.5218; -0.1314
Affiliations
Websiterada.ac.uk
Official logo

TheRoyal Academy of Dramatic Art,commonly abbreviated toRADA(/ˈrɑːdə/), is adrama schoolinLondon,England, which provides vocational conservatoire training fortheatre,film,television,andradio.It is based inBloomsbury,Central London,close to theSenate Housecomplex of theUniversity of London,and is a founding member of theFederation of Drama Schools.

RADA is one of the oldest drama schools in the United Kingdom, founded in 1904 by SirHerbert Beerbohm Tree.It moved to buildings on Gower Street in 1905. It was granted aroyal charterin 1920 and a new theatre was built on Malet Street, behind the Gower Street buildings, which was opened in 1921 byEdward, Prince of Wales.It received its first government subsidy in 1924. RADA currently has five theatres and a cinema. The school's principal industry partner isWarner Bros. Entertainment.

RADA offers a number of foundation, undergraduate and postgraduate courses. Its higher education awards are validated byKing's College London(KCL). The royal patron of the school isKing Charles III,following the death ofQueen Elizabeth IIin 2022. The president isDavid Harewood,who succeededKenneth Branaghin February 2024, withCynthia Erivoappointed vice president.[1]The chairman is Marcus Ryder,[2]who succeeded SirStephen Waley-Cohenin 2021. Its vice-chairman wasAlan Rickmanuntil his death in 2016.[3]The current principal of the academy is Niamh Dowling, who succeededEdward Kempin 2022.[4][5]

History[edit]

The sculpture above the entrance to RADA features masks which depict Tragedy (pictured) and Comedy (which appears opposite). A symbol of theatre, they are also known asSock and Buskin.

The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art was founded on 25 April 1904 by actor-manager SirHerbert Beerbohm Treeat theWest End'sHer Majesty's Theatre(now His Majesty's) situated inHaymarketin theCity of Westminster,London.[6]In 1905, RADA moved to 62 Gower Street, and a managing council was set up to oversee the school. Its members includedGeorge Bernard Shaw,who later donated his royalties from his playPygmalionto RADA and gave lectures to students at the school.[7]In 1920, RADA was granted a royal charter and, in 1921, a new theatre was built on Malet Street behind the Gower Street buildings. Edward, Prince of Wales, opened the theatre. In 1923, SirJohn Gielgudstudied at RADA for a year. He later became president of the academy and its first honorary fellow.[8]In 1924, RADA received its first government subsidy, a grant of £500. The Gower Street buildings were torn down in 1927 and replaced with a new building, financed by Bernard Shaw, who also left one-third of his royalties to the academy on his death in 1950.[9]The academy has received other government funding at various times, including a £22.7 million grant from the Arts Council National Lottery Board in 1996, which was used to renovate its premises and rebuild the Jerwood Vanbrugh Theatre.[10]

RADA entrance sign

In 2000, the academy founded RADA Enterprises Ltd, now known as RADA Business, providing training programmes and coaching for organisations and individuals in communications and team building which use drama training techniques in a business context. The profits are fed back into the academy to help cover its costs.[11]In 2001, RADA joined with the London Contemporary Dance School to create the UK's firstConservatoire for Dance and Drama(CDD).[12]RADA left the CDD in August 2019 to become an independent higher education provider.[13]RADA is also a founder member of theFederation of Drama Schools,established in 2017.[14]

In 2004, celebrity photographerCambridge Joneswas commissioned to create a body of work published as a book,Off Stage: 100 Portraits Celebrating the RADA Centenary,in 2005 to celebrate RADA's centenary. The photographs includeJohn Hurt,Alan Rickman,Sheila Hancock,SirAnthony Hopkins,Ralph Fiennes,Edward Woodward,SirIan Holm,Richard Attenborough,Joan Collins,Tom Courtenay,Warren Mitchell,Imelda Staunton,June Whitfield,Richard Briers,Glenda Jackson,Juliet Stevenson,Jonathan Pryce,Kenneth Branagh,Ioan Gruffud,Susannah YorkandTimothy Spall.[15][16] In 2011,the Lir Academywas established in association with RADA atTrinity College Dublin,with the partnership of the Cathal Ryan Trust. Following RADA’s conservatoire-style, practical theatre training, the Lir Academy modelled its courses after the London-based school.[17]

RADA has been registered with the Office for Students as a higher education institution since July 2018. The current principal of the academy, Niamh Dowling, succeededEdward Kempin 2022.[4]The current president,David Harewood,succeeded Kenneth Branagh in February 2024, withCynthia Erivoappointed vice president.[1][18]

Courses[edit]

RADA's higher education awards are validated byKing's College London(KCL)[19]and its students graduate alongside members of theKCL Faculty of Arts & Humanities.[20]It is based in theBloomsburyarea ofCentral London,close to theSenate Housecomplex of theUniversity of London.[21]It is a founder member of the Federation of Drama Schools.[22]

RADA has expanded its course offering over the years. The school offers a three-year BA (Hons) in acting degree. The first stage management course was introduced in 1962 under the directorship ofDorothy Tenham,and today students on the technical theatre and stage management degree learn theatre production skills including lighting, sound, props, costume and make-up, stage management, production management and video design.[23]In the 1990s it launched a programme of short courses for actors and theatre technicians from around the world, including a special course for students at theNYU Tisch School of the Arts.[24]

Other courses include a one-year acting foundation course introduced in 2007; an MA in Text & Performance, affiliated withBirkbeck, University of London,introduced in 2010; and an MA Theatre Lab course introduced in 2011.[25][26]

Campus[edit]

The RADA building onChenies Street,London

RADA is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London. The main RADA building where classes and rehearsals take place is onGower Street(with a second entrance onMalet Street), with a second premise nearby inChenies StreetwhereRADA Studiosis located. TheGoodge StreetandEuston Squareunderground stations are both within walking distance.[21]

The Gower and Malet Street building was redeveloped in the late 1990s to designs byBryan Avery,[27]and incorporated the new theatres and linking the entrances on both streets.

Theatres[edit]

RADA has five theatres and a cinema. In the Malet Street building, theJerwood Vanburgh Theatreis the largest performance space with a capacity of 194; the George Bernard Shaw Theatre is ablack box theatrewith a capacity of up to 70; and the Gielgud Theatre is an intimate studio theatre with a capacity of up to 50.[28]In January 2012, RADA acquired the lease to the adjacent Drill Hall venue in Chenies Street and renamed itRADA Studios.The Drill Hall is a Grade II listed building with a long performing arts history, and was where Nijinsky rehearsed with Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes in 1911.[29]This venue has a 200-seat space, the Studio Theatre, and a 50-seat space, the Club Theatre.[30]

In April 2016, planning permission was granted for the redevelopment of the Chenies Street premises as part of theRichard AttenboroughCampaign.[31]

Library[edit]

The RADA library contains around 30,000 items. Works include around 10,000 plays; works of or about biography, costume, criticism, film, fine art, poetry, social history, stage design, technical theatre and theatre history; screenplays; and theatre periodicals.[32]The collection was started in 1904 with donations from actors and writers of the time such as SirSquire Bancroft,William Archer,SirArthur Wing Pineroand George Bernard Shaw.[33]

Other facilities[edit]

Other facilities at RADA include acting studios, a scenic art workshop with paint frame, costume workrooms and costume store, dance and fight studios, design studios, wood and metal workshops, sound studios, rehearsal studios, and the RADA Foyer Bar, which includes a fully licensed bar, a café and a box office.[34]

Admissions[edit]

The RADA Theatres onMalet Street,London

RADA accepts up to 28 new students each year into its three-year BA (Hons) in Acting course, with a 50–50 split of male and female students.[35]Admission into the three-year BA (Hons) in Acting course is based on suitability and successful audition, via the four-stage audition process, spanning several months. Auditions are held in London as well as in New York, Los Angeles, Dublin, and across the UK – in recent years this has included Birmingham, Bristol, Glasgow, Chester, Leicester, Sheffield, Manchester, Newcastle and Plymouth. Free auditions are offered to any applicants with a household income of under £25,000.[35]

RADA also teaches Technical Theatre & Stage Management (TTSM) – a two-year foundation degree and with a further 'completion' year to BA level which has to be separately applied for and which allows for specialisation in all theatre craft areas. The TTSM course admits up to 30 students a year with a 50–50 gender balance, with the option to interview in Manchester and Plymouth.[36]

RADA’s postgraduate training currently comprises a MA Theatre Lab programme and a Postgraduate Diploma in Theatre Costume (both validated by King's College London). RADA also jointly teaches an MA in Text and Performance with Birkbeck, University of London, where students on this course are enrolled at RADA as well as registered at Birkbeck. Both MA courses frequently collaborated according to their specialisms (i.e. directors on the Text & Performance programme using actors from the Theatre Lab course). Rehearsals and performances for the programmes are done mostly in the Chenies Street and Malet Street buildings.[37]

In addition, RADA offers a series of short courses, masterclasses and summer courses for a range of standards and ages. Previous attendees have includedAllison Janney,Liev Schreiber,Maggie GyllenhaalandEmma Watson.The Academy’s education, widening participation and outreach work includes two Youth Companies,[38]schools' workshops, Access to Acting workshops for young disabled people,[39]Shakespeare tours to secondary schools[40]and the RADA Shakespeare Awards.[41]

Undergraduate students are eligible for government student loans. RADA also has a scholarships and bursaries scheme, which offers financial assistance to students.[42]

Leadership[edit]

The Royal Patron of RADA isKing Charles III,following the death ofQueen Elizabeth IIin 2022. The President isDavid Harewood,since February 2024.[43]The chairman is Marcus Ryder, who succeeded SirStephen Waley-Cohenin 2021. Its vice-chairman wasAlan Rickmanuntil his death in 2016. The current principal of the academy is Niamh Dowling, who succeededEdward Kempin 2022.[44][45][46]

Principals[edit]

Presidents[edit]

RADA alumnusDavid Harewoodwas appointed president of the school in February 2024

Honorary fellows[edit]

Listed alphabetically by date of appointment

Notable alumni[edit]

Main article:List of alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
SirJohn Gielgud,who studied at RADA in 1923 and would later become president and first honorary fellow of the school

References[edit]

  1. ^ab"David Harewood and Cynthia Erivo appointed new President and Vice President of RADA".RADA.Retrieved8 March2024.
  2. ^Fabrique."Marcus Ryder appointed new Chair of RADA Council — RADA".www.rada.ac.uk.Archivedfrom the original on 30 April 2021.Retrieved3 May2021.
  3. ^"Alan Rickman (1946–2016)".RADA.Archivedfrom the original on 4 January 2022.Retrieved4 January2022.
  4. ^ab"Niamh Dowling appointed new Principal of RADA".The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.Archivedfrom the original on 11 July 2022.Retrieved21 July2022.
  5. ^"RADA appoints Niamh Dowling as principal".The Stage.Archivedfrom the original on 21 July 2022.Retrieved21 July2022.
  6. ^"RADA Celebrates 100 Years Of Drama".London Theatre Guide.8 June 2016.Archivedfrom the original on 19 December 2021.Retrieved26 October2020.
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  8. ^"Westminster Abbey to honour Sir John Gielgud".RADA.Retrieved24 April2024.
  9. ^"An Irishman's Diary on George Bernard Shaw and the National Gallery of Ireland".Irish Times.Retrieved24 April2024.
  10. ^"Rada aims for consistency in brand review".Design Week.Retrieved24 April2024.
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  14. ^"Partner Schools – Federation of Drama Schools".www.federationofdramaschools.co.uk.Archivedfrom the original on 17 April 2021.Retrieved2 September2023.
  15. ^Off Stage: 100 Portraits Celebrating the RADA Centenary, by Cambridge Jones.Archivedfrom the original on 19 May 2023.Retrieved19 May2023– via LensCulture.com.With a foreword by Lord Attenborough, the book includes an introduction by the Observer writer Miranda Sawyer, as well as interviews with all the actors.
  16. ^Jones, Cambridge(2005).Off stage: 100 portraits celebrating the RADA centenary.Dewi Lewis Media.ISBN9780954684327.Retrieved19 May2023– viaInternet Archive.
  17. ^Fabrique."Who we work with — RADA".www.rada.ac.uk.Archivedfrom the original on 12 April 2021.Retrieved6 October2019.
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  32. ^(admin), Jed Staton."RADA: The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art – Library".Archivedfrom the original on 15 March 2016.Retrieved6 June2016.
  33. ^Attar, Karen (2016).A Directory Of Rare Book And Special Collections In the UK And Republic Of Ireland.American Library Association. p. 220.
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External links[edit]

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