Acting is perceived as a nice hobby, perhaps even a diversion from the ‘serious’ subjects like maths and science, rather than a feasible career option

Hearing that Miranda Melhado was on vacation I immediately sought her out to respond to SO’s question about how to improve the lot of our creatives.

My name is Miranda Melhado. I am an actor, singer and comedienne. I recently graduated from the University of Southern California with a degree in the Dramatic Arts, and shot my first short film in Los Angeles in a leading role. I am also set to make my comedic debut in Kingston as part of Itey/Fancy Cat’s Boxing Day Comedy Cookout.

It is my view that while Jamaican schools offer optional drama programmes, there are few genuine acting classes teaching technique and method. Said another way, acting is perceived as a nice hobby, perhaps even a diversion from the ‘serious’ subjects like maths and science, rather than a feasible career option. I believe that the world has changed with the explosion of new content providers (eg Netflix, Amazon) and there is now significant demand for actors, and especially actors of varying ethnicities, a big change from the whitewashed cinematic culture of the past.

In my case, when I first got to university, I felt as if I was eight years behind, having performed in only a handful of plays, versus my classmates who already had a decade of technical theatrical experience, including major high school productions. So, if there is one thing I could impress upon the current curriculum czars, it is to treat the dramatic arts as a viable outlet for creatives; not all students are academic by nature and we miss out on developing the next Idris Elba or Kerry Washington if we ignore this opportunity.