What makes Drama Llamas unique #4
This is a hard blog to write.
As the topic I’m covering means, I am forced to blow my ‘own trumpet’.
I also have to tread carefully. I don’t want this to sound like we are putting down other drama classes. To be clear, we are not suggesting that their lessons are bad. They’re not. I’m sure they run amazing classes, and if your child goes to one, I’m sure they will have a great time. What I will be saying in this blog, is that their classes are good, but ours are better.
Our lessons are better for two reasons. We are actual working professionals and we teach not just children but in accredited drama and musical theatre schools to students who are going into the business.
We are working professionals
Both Karen and I perform full time. To be clear, I mean in top professional shows. And I don’t mean we used to perform, or were once in some TV show. We actually work full time in the business. In 2023, I was the headline act in over 150 shows, Karen toured the country's largest theatres in one of the biggest new musicals of the year, and we found time for me to present a weekly London Radio show and to perform together in a 70-venue tour of a new comedy musical I wrote.
We teach at the highest level
And I don’t mean because our venue is on top of a hill. No, I am highlighting the other major difference with our school, and that is along with teaching classes for children, we also teach and have taught at top accredited drama schools. I taught the Guildford School of Acting (GSA) Summer school on multiple occasions. Karen has consistently taught in top drama schools. She’s also a fully qualified teacher, with an MD in voice and also teaches singing to students on musical theatre degree courses.
Many of our competitors are big money-making behemoths. They have schools all over the country. They employ loads of people to teach their classes. It’s all very McDonald's like. And although I love a happy meal… we just do it differently. We own and run our school, and we teach our lessons. In fact, that’s the only reason we can ‘afford’ to have us as teachers.
As I said up top, the classes run by other schools are good, ours are just better.
Ok, I’m putting my freshly blown ‘own trumpet’ away… what’s that did someone shout “encore”?
Jay