Dean's Philosophy

I’ve spent my working life finding out what are the exact conditions that activate obligation and/or exploration onstage or onscreen and, more to the point, what are the costs or rewards to the artist travelling down each track. For over 30 years I have witnessed the best and the worst of both. I have seen actors crumple with shame and self-consciousness under the desperate need to impress, invent and survive. I have also witnessed actors serve the scene with such a sense of honour and selflessness that the room itself seemed to stop still. I have also experienced actors do both in the one rehearsal.

Actors are brave souls indeed and their courage is called upon often in this line of work. I have seen teachers and directors play out their unconscious and unmet needs corrupting the actors entirely and polluting the play. I have also been inspired by the humility and deepest care from a teacher or director which has everyone in the room - without exception - join together with one common focus: to do exactly what’s required of them and to the very best of their abilities.

Our aim and commitment here at ACA is to step into a place of vibrant possibility and enquiry that encourages all to lose themselves (and in so doing find themselves) in the service of the art.  I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing Sir Ian McKellan in 2010 when he addressed our full-time students. He said that audience members go to a lot of trouble to get to a play: they have to make their way to the theatre, find and pay for parking, have dinner somewhere, perhaps arrange baby sitters, pay for their tickets and give up an entire evening just to be there. He then paused for a brief second, looked over the rim of his glasses and added, “The least we can do is our best…” 

DEAN'S CV>>