Ireland’s national screen acting school has opened its first international campus in Los Angeles, it was announced Wednesday.
Bow Street Academy said its new L.A. location marks an expansion of its Dublin-based program, which emphasizes on-camera performance and real production conditions for actors.
The new campus is led in part by co-founder Gerry Grennell, a veteran performance coach who has worked with actors including Johnny Depp, Meryl Streep and Natalie Portman, officials said.
“Los Angeles is where the work lives,” Grennell said in a statement. “It made sense to bring the method here. Not to compete with what already exists, but to enhance it.”
The academy’s approach, known as the Gerry Grennell Method, focuses on developing actors for on-camera work through techniques that combine psychology, philosophy and performance training.
Unlike traditional stage-based programs, Bow Street emphasizes filmed performance from the outset, allowing students to work directly with cameras and review footage as part of their training.
Co-founders Kirsten Sheridan and Shimmy Marcus said the Los Angeles campus is intended to build on the community-driven model developed in Ireland.
The school offers a range of short- and long-term programs aimed at helping actors develop technical skills and gain industry exposure, according to the academy.
Officials said the expansion comes at a time of uncertainty in the Los Angeles entertainment industry but reflects continued demand for training rooted in storytelling and screen performance.