Grades 9-12

Acting Conservatory

The Acting Conservatory is a multi-year program for high school students who have a serious desire to pursue in-depth training in acting. The goal of the program is to provide students with the professional acting training, resume experience, and audition preparation needed to pursue a life in the theater.

Available at Zach's Downtown and Cedar Park campuses.

Acting Conservatory

Auditions

Auditions for the 2027-28 school year will be announced in April of 2027.

Acting Conservatory Audition Requirements:

- All students will need to prepare two monologues (maximum 60 seconds each; if your monologue goes over a minute, you may be cut off).

- Monologues should contrast (comedic/dramatic, strong/weak, calm/energetic, modern/classic, etc.).

Be sure that monologues involve you talking to an imaginary scene partner and are NOT narrative.

Any questions? Please email [email protected]

Acting Conservatory

Tuition

Monthly payment plans and financial aid are available.

Acting Conservatory
- $1,700 for the full year
  - or $189/month on a 9-month payment plan
Acting Conservatory Senior
- $2,000 for the full year
  - or $222/month on a 9-month payment plan
- includes extra coaching and trip to Houston General auditions

For questions about the program or financial aid, email us at [email protected] (Downtown) or [email protected] (Cedar Park).

Acting Conservatory

Program Levels

Perfect for beginners or those with some basic acting skills. This level introduces core acting concepts and methods.

Foundations Classes
- Foundations of Acting: An Intro to Methods and Techniques
- Improv
- Auditioning Skills
- Script Analysis
- Acting for the Camera
- Scene Study
- Intro to Stage Combat
Tailored for students who have mastered acting techniques and are preparing for college or professional auditions.

Audition Prep Classes
- College Audition Process: From Prescreens to Unifieds
- Monologues: Where to find them and how to perform them
- Self Tape Methods
- Business of Acting: Resumes, Headshots and Online Portfolios
- Auditioning for Film
- Mastering Cold Reads

Acting Conservatory

FAQs

Yes! The Performing Arts School and the Acting Conservatory made a promise to the Austin and Central Texas community that we would not turn any student or family away on the basis of their ability to pay for the program. You do not have to apply for a financial aid before you audition.
Included in your tuition is 24 weeks of a 2 1/2 hour advanced level acting class, complimentary tickets to Zach Mainstage productions, two performance audition opportunities, and one-on-one college and career counseling.
- The Curriculum: There has been a great deal of attention and detail given to the curriculum in the Acting Conservatory. Each class is designed to build on the last, this direct feed into the next class leads to more direct and intentional growth as an actor.
- Levels: The Conservatory carefully places its students into classes where all students are at the same age, knowledge, and skill level.
- College/Professional Audition Preparation: We begin this work in your freshman year of the Conservatory in order to give our students the competitive edge in the audition room. The college/professional audition process can be confusing, crippling and riddled with self doubt. We believe that training steadily throughout a student’s four years of high school will prepare them to handle the audition process with greater success.
Daily drop-off and pick-up are free. If you're dropping off or picking up your student and leaving within 20 minutes, there is no charge.

If you're staying on campus for longer than 20 minutes, you'll need to scan the QR code posted in the lots to pay for parking.

Parking at Zach North and Penfold Theatre locations continue to be free.

Acting Conservatory

Auditions

Tuition

Program Levels

Foundations of Acting

Audition Prep

Performance Opportunities

FAQs

Do you offer financial aid for the Acting Conservatory?

What is included in my tuition?

Is there an Acting Conservatory at the Zach North location?

When do classes meet?

Can I join at any time?

What makes this different from other Conservatory style acting programs in Austin?

How does parking work?