Amateur dramatics........sad wanabees or future stars?

Question:

Amateur dramatics........sad wanabees or future stars?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

Both... but mostly neither!

Community theatre can be horrible, but most community theatre is pretty good and in order to be cast in a production even a "sad wannabe" has to have some talent! Most people in community theatre are just folks who enjoy theatre, itself, and bringing the arts to their community.

Some folks do have larger ambitions... and most truly talented stars started in local theatre... probably because it is one of the best training grounds there is.

The play my local theatre is doing is a terrific example: There is a cast of four people and this is how it breaks down:
(1) Former H.S. English Teacher who enjoys acting and is good at it.
(2) Talented actress who does a lot of local theatre but decided not to pursue it as a career
(3) Drama Teacher in a nearby school district (also very good)
(4) Young Actress who plans to give professional acting in New York a shot later this year... someday you really might know her name.