Identity School of Acting
Type | Drama School |
---|---|
Established | 2003 |
Students | 900 |
Address | 21-25 Beehive Place, Brixton , London SW9 7QR , England |
Nickname | IDSA |
Website | Identity School of Acting |
Established | 2018 |
---|---|
Students | 300 |
Address | Thymele Arts, 5481 Santa Monica Blvd , Los Angeles , CA 90029 , U.S. |
Identity School of Acting is a part-time drama school that was founded in London, England by Femi Oguns in 2003. A second branch and campus opened in Los Angeles, California in 2018.
Identity School of Acting began in 2003 with 10 students at the Arcola Theatre in Hackney. Although open to prospective students of all ethnicities, Oguns founded the institution with the intent of reaching out to black and minority actors and promoting the diversity of the real world on stage and onscreen, as well as holding casting directors to account due to the lack of opportunity he'd found in his own early acting experiences.[1] The school later moved to Holborn and then again to Brixton as well as offering online classes.[2][3] The school offers part-time acting training starting at age 16.
The school is affiliated with Identity Agency Group, which was established in 2006. However, the agency is a separate entity; not all students and alumni are necessarily represented by the agency, and not every actor represented by IAG is necessarily a student or alumnus of IDSA.[4]
The Los Angeles branch of Identity School was launched in 2018 with alumni John Boyega, Letitia Wright, Malachi Kirby, Damson Idris, and Melanie Liburd as patrons of the new faculty.[5] Oguns and Boyega launched a production arm of the institution, Identity Filmworks in 2019.[6]
Notable people[]
- Femi Oguns, founder
Alumni[]
London[]
- Adelayo Adedayo
- Samuel Adewunmi
- Shaquille Ali-Yebuah
- John Boyega
- Simona Brown
- Noeleen Comiskey
- Leonie Elliott
- Fola Evans-Akingbola
- Amelia Eve
- Tanya Fear
- Sophie Hopkins
- Damson Idris
- Osy Ikhile
- Armin Karima
- Malachi Kirby
- Jessie Mei Li
- Melanie Liburd
- Judi Love
- Zackary Momoh
- Rukku Nahar
- Weruche Opia
- Chance Perdomo
- Aaron Phagura
- Jessica Plummer
- Scribz Riley
- Varada Sethu
- Tahirah Sharif
- Lydia West
- Letitia Wright[7]
Los Angeles[]
References[]
- ^ Chappet, Marie-Claire (20 June 2018). "Identity School of Acting: a London drama school like no other". Evening Standard. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ Laughland, Oliver (25 February 2012). "From Hackney to Hollywood: the stars of an all-black drama school". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ Colleen Harris; Sadaf Maruf (4 August 2017). "The drama school out to break glass ceilings". BBC News. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ "Identity Agency Group (IAG)". Identity School of Acting. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ Wiseman, Andreas (20 September 2018). "John Boyega, Letitia Wright & Damson Idris Among Patrons Of New LA Drama School". Deadline. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ Ritman, Alex. "Diversity-Focused Identity School Launches Production Arm". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ "Alumni". Identity School of Acting.
- 2003 establishments in England
- 2018 establishments in California
- Drama schools in London
- Drama schools in the United States
- Educational institutions established in 2003
- Educational institutions established in 2018