Location « LSDA – London School of Dramatic Art

LOCATION

The London School of Dramatic Art is situated in the heart of South Kensington, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. The area is a centre for art and culture with a host of theatres, cinemas, museums and galleries and short distance to the West End’s theatre district.

Performance venues that are close to LSDA:

The Royal Court Theatre

The Royal Court theatre opened in 1956 in Sloane Square. The theatre is committed to producing new British and international plays with a focus on new writing that shapes contemporary drama in Britain and overseas. It offers special discounts to students and has a good bookshop. royalcourttheatre.com.

The Drayton Arms Theatre

The Drayton Arms built in 1860, aims to build relationships with new and emerging production companies by providing a cost effective space to stage quality theatrical productions. It currently programmes performances for four weeks as well as short runs at the weekend that include new writing, film, comedy and cabaret. It is also used by LSDA as a rehearsal and training space. www.thedraytonarmstheatre.co.uk.

The Finborough Theatre

Founded in 1980, the Finborough Arms is one of London’s hip venues for new writing talent, presenting contemporary work, revivals, music theatre and UK premieres of foreign plays from the U.S. and Ireland. www.finboroughtheatre.co.uk.

The Chelsea Theatre

The Chelsea Theatre on the Kings Road is one of the leading small theatres in London. It is dedicated to promoting new voices in Live Art and stages thought-provoking and innovative productions. www.chelseatheatre.org.uk.

The Ciné Lumière

Opened by Catherine Deneuve in 1998, the Cine Lumière is an independent cinema showing European and world films, with a mix of new releases and classics and themed seasons. Its repertory features over 900 screenings a year. There is an adjoining library. ‘The Ciné lumière is one of the best places in London to see movies, from classic revivals to emerging new talents…’ – Stephen Frears, director. www.institut-francais.org.uk/schedule/blog.

The Royal Albert Hall

The Royal Albert Hall is a centre of culture in the capital, home to the annual BBC Proms, and a key venue for classical concerts, ballet, opera, as well as contemporary musicians such as Lady Gaga. It also hosts talks and live music film screenings. www.royalalberthall.com.

MUSEUMS AND GALLERIES

There are a large number of museums and galleries within walking distance of the college, most of which are free of charge. They include:

the Natural History Museum, which is housed in a spectacular Victorian Gothic building – described as the ‘Cathedral of Science’,
the Science Museum, which is an exciting tribute to man’s quest for scientific understanding,
the Victoria and Albert Museum, which houses collections of every conceivable art form including textiles, furniture and metal work and
the Serpentine Gallery, located in Kensington Gardens is one of London’s premier venues for the temporary exhibition of modern and contemporary art.

V&A Theatre and Performance Collection

A short walk from the college, the V&A is a great resource for social and historic context research and period costume and design. The V&A’s Theatrical exhibitions provide an extensive resource for the understanding of live performance throughout history.
The new gallery exhibits all aspects of performance, from the initial concept, through the design and development and audiences’ reactions. Arranged in three main themes – creating performance, staging performance and experiencing performance – the displays feature Theatrical highlights.
Collections include costumes, set models, stage props, original posters and playbills, theatrical prints, paintings, and photographs. The largest of their type in the world, the Theatre Collections show the history, development and practice of the performing arts in the UK. The collections cover all the major performing arts sectors: drama, dance, opera, musical theatre, circus, rock and pop and popular entertainment. The objects range in size from stage machinery and architecture through to theatre tickets and tokens.

LOCAL INFORMATION

For more information on Kensington check out the following websites:
– Local Life – RBKC
– kensington-chelsea.com

For lots of London information, you can try:
– studylondon.ac.uk
– visitlondon.co.uk