After last month's surprise news that Trinity College is scraping it's three-year degree course in acting, the university has announced that it will hold a forum to review the needs of undergraduate actor training in Ireland.
Running since 1995, the Bachelor in Acting Studies (BAS) degree course currently has an enrolment of 35 students.
It is described on the Trinity website as "the only degree-level professional actor training programme in Ireland."
Actors and directors that have emerged from the course include Brian F O'Byrne (Druid Theatre, 'Million Dollar Baby', 'Intermission'), Director of Guna Nua Theatre Company David Parnell, Ruth Negga (Abbey Theatre, 'Breakfast on Pluto') and Jason Byrne, artistic director of Loose Canon.
The Provost of Trinity College has invited authority on Irish drama Professor Nicholas Grene (TCD School of English) to chair a forum to look at the needs of undergraduate actor training in Ireland and how best it can be delivered at a national level.
The work of the forum is expected to commence by the end of February.
Although the acting degree course will no longer exist, Trinity College intends to initiate an M Phil postgraduate one-year degree in acting as well as expanding the BA in Drama and Theatre Studies to include acting strands.
