The Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, formerly the Webber Douglas School of Singing and Dramatic Art, was a drama school, and originally a singing school, in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. It was one of the leading drama schools in Britain, and offered comprehensive training for those intending to pursue a professional performance career.

History

The school was founded in London in 1926 as the Webber Douglas School of Singing, by Walter Johnstone Douglas (youngest son of

Arthur Johnstone-Douglas Arthur Henry Johnstone-Douglas JP DL (23 June 1846 – 26 March 1923) was a Scottish soldier and politician. Early life Johnstone-Douglas was born on 23 June 1846 into Clan Douglas. He was the son of Robert Johnstone-Douglas of Lockerbie (1814� ...

) and Amherst Webber. It was created from the singing academy founded in 1906 in Paris by

Jean de Reszke Jean de Reszke (born Jan Mieczysław Reszke; 14 January 18503 April 1925) was a Polish dramatic tenor and opera star. Reszke came from a wealthy Polish family with classical and operatic musical traditions. His mother gave him his first singing ...

. By 1932, the school had added full theatrical training to its curriculum, and was renamed the Webber Douglas School of Singing and Dramatic Art. Gunn, John
''Acting for You.''
London: Lutterworth Press, 1957. p. 145. It was located at 30 Clareville Street in

South Kensington South Kensington is a district at the West End of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with the advent of the ra ...

. In 2006, the academy was absorbed into the

Central School of Speech and Drama The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, commonly shortened to Central, is a drama school founded by Elsie Fogerty in 1906, as the Central School of Speech Training and Dramatic Art, to offer a new form of training in speech and drama for ...

. In 2009, the Central School of Speech and Drama renamed its Embassy Studio the Webber Douglas Studio.

Alumni

''See :Alumni of the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art''

References

External links

* *
Central School of Speech and Drama homepageWalter Henry George Johnstone-Douglas
in ''

Burke's Landed Gentry ''Burke's Landed Gentry'' (originally titled ''Burke's Commoners'') is a reference work listing families in Great Britain and Ireland who have owned rural estates of some size. The work has been in existence from the first half of the 19th cen ...

'' {{Authority control 1926 establishments in the United Kingdom 2006 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Arts organizations established in 1926 Arts organizations disestablished in 2006 Drama schools in London Educational institutions established in 1926 Educational institutions disestablished in 2006 Royal Central School of Speech and Drama