• Degree
  • Sixth Form
  • Classes For Children

    Classes for ages 2-18
    Take a look at our range of Performing Arts classes in Milton Keynes for children and young performers. From Dance, Singing and Acting.

    Classes for adults

    Classes for Over 18s
    Are you looking to learn a new skill or have you always wanted to learn to sing, dance or act. As a school we provide opportunities for adults to take a wide range of performing arts classes, each class designed to work specifically for adults.

    1-to-1 coaching

    Take a look at our range of individual sessions for children young people and adults. Learn a new instrument, develop your acting skills or train your voice with one of our expert coaches.

    Saturday school

    For those budding performers ages 4-16, jump into a programme of all things singing, acting, and dancing between 10AM - 1PM each Saturday.

    View Our prospectus

    See what's happening at Arts1 and find your dream classes.

    Advanced Training Programme

    A monthly session to advance your skills to the next level.
  • Pricing
  • About us

    The school is set apart by its caring approach, to developing the region's top talent and was the winner of the BTEC Showstopper Awards in 2018.

    meet the team

    Arts1 brings together a dynamic staff team of highly experienced teachers and exciting and accomplished creatives.

    facilities

    The foyer at Arts1 is a bright and airy space, full of creativity and energy. Refreshments can be purchased on-site and you check your e-mails on the visitor Wi-Fi.

    News

    Latest News From Arts1.

    Student Stories

    See what our students are saying about their experience.

    term dates

    Check out our school's term dates.

  • arts1 tv

    Stream our students' incredible performances and films in one place and on any device.

    gallery of performances

    Check out our performances, photographed professionally by out photograph team.

  • Events
  • Contact

Search Arts1

Loading results...

Sixth Form Acting Course

Train intensively as a professional actor and prepare yourself for auditions at the UK’s leading acting schools and conservatoires. Work with specialist staff with outstanding experience in preparing actors for a performing career.

Play Video

Qualified experts

Learn from the best

As an Acting student at Arts1 we will work to develop your unique creative voice as you train your craft to respond to a wide range of vocational settings. Using techniques from practitioners within the Stanislavski system and movement based practitioners such as Lecoq and Barba to build valuable skills, Acting students develop the skills needed for performance in both stage and screen. Working with our students' original ideas to create performances, the acting course at Arts1 has an ethos of 'ensemble' - working together.

Apply Now

Key Course Features

1

Classical and contemporary text

2

Movement for actors

3

Improvisation

4

Script writing

5

Screen Acting techniques

6

Voice and Singing

7

Live Performance each term

8

Intensive course hours

9

Equivalent to 3 A-Levels

10

Government Funding

Introducing Masterclasses

Weekly Industry Masterclasses

Arts1 School of Performance: Sam Mackay

Musical Theatre, Acting

Sam Mackay

About me

Theatre includes: Dee in Wonder.land (Manchester International Festival); Usnavi in In The Heights (Southwark Playhouse), Lamar in 5,6,7,8 (Royal Court); Jimmy in Flashdance (Shaftesbury Theatre); Eddie in Mamma Mia (Prince of Wales Theatre); Reecey in Our House (UK Tour).

Television includes: Lannister Guardsman in Game of Thrones, Bastien in Le Grand and most recently Denny in Canal+ series Spotless.

Film includes: Lethal.

Arts1 School of Performance: Nandi Bhebe

Acting

Nandi Bhebe

About me

Nandi Bhebhe, Nandi has experiences including performing with Kneehigh and at venues including The National Theatre, The RSC and The Old Vic.

Nandi trained originally as a dancer making her story an amazing one for us all to hear.

Arts1 School of Performance: Jess Parker

Musical Theatre, Acting

Jess Parker

About me

Jess trained at ArtsEd graduating with 1st Class BA (HONS) in Musical Theatre. As a performer, her credits cover numerous Wests End, UK and International tours – including ‘KISS ME KATE‘, ‘EVITA‘, ‘SEUSSICAL‘ and ‘AVENUE Q‘.

Most recently, Jess has been working as a Creative Associate and Resident Director for various productions and companies, including ‘JERSEY BOYS’, ‘SIX’, ‘20TH CENTURY BOY’, ‘WIZARD OF OZ’, and is currently the Associate Director for the UK Tour of ‘AVENUE Q’.

Her journey with Avenue Q and Puppetry began in 2014, where she played the roles of 2nd Arm/Bad Idea Bear/Mrs T, understudied and played the roles of Kate Monster/Lucy. She became on-stage Resident Director of the show in 2015-2017, and most recently Associate Director for the 2019/2020 UK Tour.

“‘Parker Puppetry’ was born in 2020, from a passion for Puppetry, Acting, Directing and Teaching for so many years.. and the desire to make learning this amazing skill accessible for anyone who enjoys any of those disciplines. COVID-19 has taught us that we are so adaptable to anything life throws at us, and learning online has become a great new normal. Teaching can now be delivered all around the world to anyone and everyone, and that is so exciting. So many Theatre, Television and Film productions are requiring Puppetry as a skill, not to mention just how much fun and joy it brings!

Learning any new skill can be daunting, but the results and sense of achievement that is felt is magical.”– Jess Parker

More masterclasses

More masterclasses
Arts1 School of Performance: Sam Mackay

Musical Theatre, Acting

Sam Mackay

About me

Theatre includes: Dee in Wonder.land (Manchester International Festival); Usnavi in In The Heights (Southwark Playhouse), Lamar in 5,6,7,8 (Royal Court); Jimmy in Flashdance (Shaftesbury Theatre); Eddie in Mamma Mia (Prince of Wales Theatre); Reecey in Our House (UK Tour).

Television includes: Lannister Guardsman in Game of Thrones, Bastien in Le Grand and most recently Denny in Canal+ series Spotless.

Film includes: Lethal.

Arts1 School of Performance: Nandi Bhebe

Acting

Nandi Bhebe

About me

Nandi Bhebhe, Nandi has experiences including performing with Kneehigh and at venues including The National Theatre, The RSC and The Old Vic.

Nandi trained originally as a dancer making her story an amazing one for us all to hear.

Arts1 School of Performance: Jess Parker

Musical Theatre, Acting

Jess Parker

About me

Jess trained at ArtsEd graduating with 1st Class BA (HONS) in Musical Theatre. As a performer, her credits cover numerous Wests End, UK and International tours – including ‘KISS ME KATE‘, ‘EVITA‘, ‘SEUSSICAL‘ and ‘AVENUE Q‘.

Most recently, Jess has been working as a Creative Associate and Resident Director for various productions and companies, including ‘JERSEY BOYS’, ‘SIX’, ‘20TH CENTURY BOY’, ‘WIZARD OF OZ’, and is currently the Associate Director for the UK Tour of ‘AVENUE Q’.

Her journey with Avenue Q and Puppetry began in 2014, where she played the roles of 2nd Arm/Bad Idea Bear/Mrs T, understudied and played the roles of Kate Monster/Lucy. She became on-stage Resident Director of the show in 2015-2017, and most recently Associate Director for the 2019/2020 UK Tour.

“‘Parker Puppetry’ was born in 2020, from a passion for Puppetry, Acting, Directing and Teaching for so many years.. and the desire to make learning this amazing skill accessible for anyone who enjoys any of those disciplines. COVID-19 has taught us that we are so adaptable to anything life throws at us, and learning online has become a great new normal. Teaching can now be delivered all around the world to anyone and everyone, and that is so exciting. So many Theatre, Television and Film productions are requiring Puppetry as a skill, not to mention just how much fun and joy it brings!

Learning any new skill can be daunting, but the results and sense of achievement that is felt is magical.”– Jess Parker

Arts1 School of Performance: Gavin Spokes

Musical Theatre, Acting

Gavin Spokes

About me

Theatre includes: DI Hyatt in A Very Expensive Poison (Old Vic), Harry in Company (West End), Charles Ingram in Quiz (West End/Chichester Festival Theatre), Against (Almeida), Mr Snow in Carousel (ENO), Nicely Nicely Johnson in Guys and Dolls, (West End, Olivier Award nomination for his performance), Francis in One Man Two Guvnors, (UK tour/West End/National), 1984 (West End/Headlong UK tour/Almeida), Dame Nanny Nora in Sleeping Beauty (Hackney Empire), Toad in The Wind in The Willows (Northampton Theatre Royal), Laurel and Hardy (Watermill Theatre), She Stoops to Conquer, (National), Noises Off (New Wolsey), Up on the Roof (Oldham Coliseum/UK tour) and Guys and Dolls (Salisbury Playhouse/Theatre Clwyd/Ipswich). US theatre credits include: Oklahoma, Assassins and The Grimm Tales.

Television includes: "Hitmen," "Brexit," "Man Down," "Will," "Casualty," "Utopia," "Holby City," "Obsession," "Hollyoaks," "The Cast," "Lunch Monkeys" and "The Bill." Film includes: The Courier and Made of Honour.

Arts1 School of Performance: Rosalie Craig

Musical Theatre, Acting

Rosalie Craig

About me

Two-time Evening Standard Theatre award winner Rosalie Craig is one of the most recognised and critically praised actors working in the West End. She received sensational five star reviews from critics for her lead role as BOBBIE in Company, which played at the Gielgud Theatre in London.

Her other notable theatre work includes leading roles in The Ferryman directed by Sam Mendes at the Gielgud Theatre, City of Angels at the Donmar Warehouse, Ragtime at the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, and The Threepenny Opera & As You Like It at the National Theatre. Rosalie's television work includes appearances on BBC ONE’s Spooks, ITV’S Endeavour, NETFLIX hit Lovesick, McDonald and Dodds alongside Jason Watkins, Truthseekers with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost for AMAZON PRIME, and Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit.

Arts1 School of Performance: Paul Bullion

Acting

Paul Bullion

About me

Paul Bullion is a British actor set to appear as Lambert in Netflix's "The Witcher". Best known for his roles in hit drama series "Peaky Blinders" for the BBC and Kurt Sutter's "The Bastard Executioner" for FX. He has appeared in live theatre productions for The National Theatre and Shakespeare's Globe.

I was a student at Arts1 when it first opened its doors. I think that taking a gap year was the best thing that could have happened for me. I was able to experience all the great experiences Arts1 has to offer. Amazing full scale musicals and workshops that inspired me to pursue a place on a full-time graduate course at Arts Educational school in London. I am very excited about my last year on the course in London. I have great opportunities ahead of me and can’t believe I’m here. I owe it to the staff at Arts1 who have been nothing but supportive to me. As long as you listen to the advice and valuable lessons they teach you can’t go far wrong!

As seen in
Peaky Blinders The Bastard Executioner
Arts1 School of Performance: Lisa Cotterell

Dance, Musical Theatre, Acting

Lisa Cotterell

About me

Lisa Cottrell has been the Artistic Director of Belinda King Creative Productions for the past 14 years creating original shows for luxury cruise lines and casinos.

Prior to this she worked for 12 years in regional repertory theatre choreographing and directing numerous productions from musicals to Shakespeare, Ibsen to Willy Russell.

Lisa enables actors to approach movement with confidence. Drawing on her vast experience in musical theatre and drama, she has developed teaching methods encompassing dance techniques and styles from a traditional perspective to the modern.

The emphasis is in adaptability, coaxing the best out of her students to improve their confidence and movement skills.

Committed to encouraging and advising young dancers, singers and acting students, Lisa has taught at full-time vocational schools such as Guildford Conservatoire and Birmingham School of Acting.

Arts1 School of Performance: Lise Olsen

Acting

Lise Olsen

About me

Lise is currently the Course Director of MA in Acting at Birmingham School of Acting. She relocated from Merseyside, where she trained actors for a decade at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA). An American ex-pat, she has been working professionally in the UK for over 20 years.

Lise holds a BA in Theatre from Northwestern University in Chicago and a Master of Fine Arts in Directing from the University of Utah. She has done further postgraduate study at the Central School of Speech and Drama and the Shakespeare Institute in Stratford-upon-Avon.

In addition to her many professional credits in the USA, Lise has taught at The North Carolina School of the Arts, Pacific Lutheran University and was Head of Voice at Duke University , Purdue University and The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. She is an acknowledged international specialist in the areas of Vocal Violence and Acting Through Song. Her musical theatre workshops, which are always oversubscribed, have been given at the International Stephen Sondheim conference, and Song Stage and Screen conferences.

The recipient of directing awards in both the US and UK, she was a founding director of Seattleís first small specialist musical theatre company. Her West End credits include The Witches of Eastwick, Coyote on a Fence and A View From the Bridge. Other UK credits include the Royal Exchange Theatre, Bristol Old Vic, Birmingham Rep, Belgrade Theatre, Dukes Playhouse Lancaster, Bolton Octagon, Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, Rose Bruford, East 15 and the Drama Centre.

The Show must go on
Be a Creative
Intense

Course training

Arts1 School of Performance: Sixth Form Acting Course
01.

Training the body & voice

Training in acting is a physical and challenging, your body is part of your toolkit that you can learn to use to communicate thought and intention to an audience. Emotion is carried through the way you move and interact with the space and also how you use your voice to express thought. Exceptional actors can transform physically and vocally from role to role and the training on the Acting course provides an opportunity to develop your craft in these areas.

APPLY NOW

Apply for our Vocational Sixth Form courses in Dance, Acting or Musical Theatre. Once we receive your application you will be contacted with our next available audition date and the material you will need to prepare.

start my journey

Arts1 School of Performance: Sixth Form Acting Course
Arts1 School of Performance: Sixth Form Acting Course
our students have ended up globally reknown

Student testimonials

"The Arts1 6th Form is, without exaggeration, one of the most amazing, rewarding and supportive places to train. The teachers are supportive, experienced and friendly. The classes are perfectly planned out to assure maximum progress for every student involved.The 6th form course assures no student is left behind and they are all treated equally and fairly. You learn things that you never would’ve thought you could, you think in new ways that open your eyes to different paths and ideas. The people that attend the course and fun, supportive and hard working and everyone pulls their own weight and they have to be up to the challenge for a very tough but extremely rewarding experience. It has so far been the best experience of my life."
Arts1 School of Performance: Sixth Form Acting Course
Charlie Woolford
Now studying at Now studying at Millennium Performing Arts
"I have been a student at arts1 for the past two years now and I can confidently say that I have enjoyed every second of it, the teaching is superb and second to none and outside of the normal timetable we also get to create and learn with industry professionals whom all contribute to our skills all to further and enhance talent and productivity in the industry. I would recommend arts1 to anyone looking to start or enhance their goals in the aspect of performing"
Arts1 School of Performance: Sixth Form Acting Course
Joseph
"Brilliant school - the staff couldn't be kinder, and the class sizes accommodate personal feedback and teaching. Amazing opportunities and so easy to fit in from the start, wouldn't change a thing."
Arts1 School of Performance: Sixth Form Acting Course
Sinead

The Qualification

  • Equivalent to 3 A-Levels
  • Prepare you for your next step
  • Unlike a standard BTEC

Equivalent to 3 A-Levels and with an internationally recognised awarding body, the Acting course will prepare you for your next step in education or performance. The highly experienced staff team work to develop our students into highly skilled Actors. The Acting course at Arts1 is unlike a standard BTEC taught in a school or college setting, it has several unique features including intensive contact hours and specialist delivery that give our students the edge in performance.

friendly, qualified staff

Meet your teachers

Arts1 School of Performance: Chris Bradley

Chris Bradley

Arts1 School of Performance: Clare Gosling

Clare Gosling

Arts1 School of Performance: Carol Allen

Carol Allen

your future starts here

start my journey

Programmes
  • Evening & Weekends
  • Adult
  • Individual Coaching
  • Sixth Form
About Arts1
  • About Us
  • Events
  • Grub Café
  • Contact
Legal
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
Contact Us
  • reception@arts1.co.uk
  • 01908 604756
Arts1 School of Performance: Accreditation - Royal Academy Of Dance
Arts1 School of Performance: Accreditation - Acrobatic of Arts
Arts1 School of Performance: Accreditation - CDMT
Arts1 School of Performance: Accreditation - Estill Voice Training
Arts1 School of Performance: Accreditation - Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing
Arts1 School of Performance: Accreditation - Joint Council For Qualifications
Arts1 School of Performance: Accreditation - LAMDA
Arts1 School of Performance: Accreditation - Edexcel
Arts1 School of Performance: Sixth Form Acting Course
© 2025 Arts1. Company No. 06928354.
Cookie Policy / Privacy Policy / Web Design Agency: Octave Agency Ltd