As well as being a professional actress, Prue is a qualified, experienced Acting teacher who offers private coaching to actors or acting students preparing for performances, castings, auditions, entry into Drama Schools, examinations, etc. She works from a home base near Cirencester in Gloucestershire.
Having specialized in Sanford Meisner‘s approach to Acting and text analysis (see below for more details), Prue also offers bespoke group courses in the Meisner technique.
Prue’s private coaching sessions may be one-to-one, for individuals wanting to work on their own, on monologues, for example – or one-to-two, for couples working on scenes and/or the Meisner technique.
Fees start at £40 per hour.
Teaching Experience and Ethos
A highly qualified and experienced teacher, Prue is organized, enthusiastic and motivating. She enjoys the proven ability to communicate material successfully to individuals and groups of all ages, and has accordingly gained the respect, appreciation and love of hundreds of students (young and old) in her 25+ years’ experience as a teacher, lecturer and private coach.
Key words for her as a trainer are clarity, simplicity, patience, variety, appropriately graded steps, achievable but real challenges, empowerment and fun – all with a view to ensuring her students make the progress and enjoy the learning satisfaction they deserve.
Testimonials
“Thanks for everything you have taught me so far. I look forward to every single class, learn amazing things every week and come away from every class excited and inspired. You have helped me grow and improve and have given me more confidence. I feel I’m a better actor than I have ever been and will just keep improving.” – GG-S, Middleton
“Hi Prue, I’m about to finish a feature film in which I was cast as a lead and I wanted to thank you for everything you have taught me. I followed your teachings and it helped immensely. It was a very challenging role but I managed to play it really well (I was told by my director). The text analysis made sense out of things, and the activities I used to help me with my emotional preparation were a godsend. I enjoyed all the acting even though I had to work for 14 hours at a stretch at times. Thank you so much.” – AC, Chester
“I’m sure you don’t fully appreciate what you have done for me. I was seriously coming to the end of my road until you invited me to join your class. The brilliant way you teach what to some is a difficult concept to grasp is so uplifting. Along with this, the passion you feel for Meisner is passed on to all your pupils and certainly has led me to discover such rich new skills and yes I will use the word ‘enlightenment’.” – BB, Sheffield
“Prue is a great teacher who has helped me to really get what Meisner is about. Not only is it enjoyable and interesting but it really works. I’ve done things I never imagined I was capable of and the experience has been fantastic, and it has helped me not only in my acting but also my writing, understanding of Drama in general and in other aspects of my life, too.” – EJT, Liverpool
“There seem to be a lot of acting schools around that employ a ‘pick and mix’ approach to training, without a clear path through any one process. What Prue offers is so much more than that. I’d recommend her Meisner Training to any actor searching for an exciting and structured technique they can call their own – and one that really works. A great course, run by a skilled and encouraging teacher.” – MH, Sale
“I’d just like to say a huge ‘Thank you’ for the past year of classes. The Meisner technique is so different from anything I’d ever done before. It was both challenging and rewarding. I’ve learnt where my strengths and weaknesses are and I’ve learnt so much from your classes as to what real, truthful acting is, and where it comes from.” – CM, Salford
“Working with Prue is great, she has so much enthusiasm and love for acting it’s infectious. Prue has so much experience and training using the Meisner approach. I felt like I had found some hidden treasure. Two years on, since first working together, Prue is now helping me to develop a one-man show. It doesn’t stop.” – AB, Belper
Relevant Training
East 15 Acting School, The Impulse Company, The Actors Temple and The True Acting Institute
Educated at the Universities of Cambridge (PGCE) and Durham (PhD), Prue’s formal training as an actress began in the 1990s in Paris, where she was working for her doctorate in French Theatre. Having gained first prize for Acting in the modern drama section of the Prix Supérieur de la Scène Française, Prue returned to England and trained subsequently at East 15.
On leaving Drama School she specialized in the Meisner Technique, completing two-year conservatory courses with both Tom Radcliffe at The Actors Temple (London) and Scott Williams of The Impulse Company (London), finally qualifying with Larry Silverberg at The True Acting Institute (Florida) as a Teacher of the Meisner Approach to Acting in 2010.
Relevant Qualifications
The True Acting Institute, St Petersburg, Florida. Certificate in Teaching the Sanford Meisner Approach to Acting as taught by Larry Silverberg (2010)
University of Essex (East 15 Acting School). Postgraduate Certificate in Acting for TV, Film and Radio (2004)
University of Durham (St Mary’s College). PhD in French Inter-War Theatre (1997)
University of Cambridge (Hughes Hall). PGCE (1975)
Associate of the London College of Music (Speech and Drama)
For further details and to check Prue’s availability, please email her at: prue@pruegillett.com