DO NOT SEND YOUR CHILDREN HERE! Here is my experience as a former Acting Studio student. Victoria has no boundaries with her students (especially those aged 11-17) and will insert herself into any middle school or high school drama. She went as far on some occasions to monitor students social media to observe if any students were interacting with students who were currently being "shunned". If she found evidence of students reaching out to "shunned" students, she would turn the rest of the Acting Studio against this child. Victoria's main manipulation tactic is the threat of turning all of your friends against you. She welcomes children to the studio, tries to cut off their ties to anyone outside of the studio, and then controls whether or not their newfound family will shun you or continue to support you. It is a particularly scary thing to a child to have all of your friends turned against them. She has done this to many of my close friends and family members and to me. When I left the Studio at 15 because of my busy high school schedule, Victoria Watson started and perpetuated a rumor about me that I was a drug addict. She told my classmates and friends that I was addicted to drugs and that I abused my little brother in order to make my peers hate me. This is a rumor she perpetuated from my age of 15 until now as far as I can tell (nearly 10 years). She would also say the same about my mother- yes, Victoria Watson would tell students at the acting studio that my mother (a paying customer, with another child still enrolled at the studio) was a drug addict and neglectful mother. She would use this rumor to manipulate my little brother into moving into her house. My brother lived in Victoria Watsons house for years, where she manipulated and emotionally abused him. She asserted thats she was his real mother. She commanded my brother to stay away from me, my family, and many of my friends (or ex-studio students) under threat of turning all his friends against him. This went on for years, resulting in my brothers emotional instability and PTSD-like responses to Victoria and the Acting Studio. Eventually he had enough support from people outside the Acting Studio that he was able to cut ties and not be alone. Me and my brother are not the only people to go through circumstances like this at the Acting Studio. Many of my close friends have had their own traumatic experiences there and at the hands of the the Watson family. The less dramatic, but still true issues are that it is not a good school lol! Even back when I attended, Vicki would waste paid class time to talk about any random drama of the week and her own personal life. There are no auditions and not much training to be offered, they throw your children right into a show and demand a ridiculous amount of their time. If you cannot attend a rehearsal or show your child has been scheduled for, (almost always outside of regular class time) Victoria will take it as a personal attack and consider you disrespectful for wasting her time because she "stayed up all night to make the schedule". read more

The Acting Studio of Tampa prides themselves on treating everybody like one big family! This results in mountains of unprofessional and manipulative behavior. The main instructor at The Acting Studio seems to put 'Acting' on the back burner, in favor of becoming friends with her students. By getting close to her students, the main instructor often opens up to her student body, often taking 15-45 minutes out of each PAID class to talk about unrelated topics, subjects, or her own personal emotions. For long stretches of time, a substantial amount of time in each class was stolen to talk about how good classes WILL BE, once they gain access to their new space. This was a recurring, weekly talk that students were subject to for MONTHS. This wouldn't be problematic if this was a separate gettogether of friends or colleagues. However, this is a PAID class which wastes time and does not teach any aspect of theatre sufficiently. How do you audition? How do you read music? Once I leave The Acting Studio, where should I go? These are all questions without answers found at The Acting Studio of Tampa. Not only is the environment unprofessional, but this unprofessionalism is being used advantageously on the economic side of The Acting Studio. They use the familial vibe to keep students within the class, paying that monthly fee, while brushing any hardships off as growing pains. Do you feel you wasted your money on the class because the instructor talked about unrelated topics the entire time? Oh it's okay! Families need to sit down and talk every once and a while! read more

Stories from former Acting Studio students: When being turned away from the Studio, it's usually never done from the owner herself. She tends to rely on her sons to do her job for her, and when any contact is made with her to sort things out as she is the owner of the company she either: ignores you, or yet again relies on one of her sons to respond for her. Your relationship with the Studio is entirely reliant on your relationship with the youngest son. Victoria Watson can even be quoted to say that her son's comfortability within the Studio's space is eons more important than those of the rest of the student body (yes, it's her son, that much is understandable. But if everyone has an issue with one kid, maybe your one kid is the issue rather than everyone else). The youngest Watson also knows of his ability to influence peoples standing within the Acting Studio, having threatened someone in an argument saying 'do you know who I am? Do you know what I can do?' which was never spoken about. Instead of attempting to dissolve issues privately and give students a chance to fix mistakes or spats within a small group; the main instructor gives talks describing the wrongdoing to the entire studio: allowing for the 1 or 2 students she's talking about to be shamed and talked about as everyone tries to figure out the context. It also causes shame that makes the situation worse with no issues resolved, causing further and further breaks between those in the inner circle and other students. read more

I used to be a student here and I wish I could leave a better review but based on my final experiences there it's very hard to do that. One thing I will say is that they are great at making students feel included until they don't need them anymore. They use their familial vibe to almost manipulate their students. They also have a huge problem with nepotism as their youngest child is a student and the eldest children are teachers. This would be okay except that their youngest child often fabricates stories in favor of themselves leaving any students who aren't like by this child feeling left out or even kicked out of the studio. The youngest child often uses their power as the owners kid to make other students feel unsafe and threatened in a supposedly safe and drama free environment. I used to be really close with the whole family but unfortunately circumstances have occurred several times to several different people making that not a possibility anymore. There is also plenty of problems with the classes themselves as students don't audition for parts they are just given parts leaving the students unprepared for real life auditions. The owner also has a habit of including herself into situations that don't involve her, making the situation worse and essentially tells the whole studio about that situation this includes student drama and etc. read more

My son discovered The Acting Studio a few years ago, and I was surprised he wanted to try because he was quite shy and had never been on stage before. From the moment he walked through the door, he loved it. Now he plays the guitar and performs in High School thanks to the guidance, encouragement, and love from the Watson's and The Acting Studio. We were so happy when my daughter decided to give it a try, and she too fell in love with it! It has changed her life, and I mean it. She was bullied by "popular" girls in middle school, and was withdrawing from everything and everyone. Victoria and Dan Watson, and everyone at The Studio have shown her acceptance, support, caring, and now a skill that makes her feel confident! She shines on stage, where everyone gets as big a part as they want. They are professional, and share their talent while giving kids a safe place to flourish and grow. Thanks for being there for my family. Is there a higher star rating than five?? read more

My daughter has been at The Acting Studio for 8 years. I loved this program when she was in elementary school as an outlet for her creative expression, but it has become even more important in her teen years. It has been a touchstone for her and has helped her develop skills, interests, and confidence like nothing else. Daniel & Victoria Watson are a god-send to kids and their families. They love the performing arts and use the studio as a vehicle to build kids up, offer guidance and support, and instill that same love of music, theater & dance in the next generation. Their kids are all a big part of the Studio, which further infuses a family feel. It is so awesome to see young people come into The Acting Studio shy & withdrawn, immediately be enveloped in this loving, accepting atmosphere, and come into their own as they shine on stage. The Watsons are miracle workers pure and simple. read more

I love this place so much. It's awesome and an incredible place to learn and have fun. I started in summerstock and by the end of the week it already felt like home. It really is incredible. You don't only gain talent and experience, you also gain friendships. If you're looking for a place to sing and dance, this is it. And if you're just a parent looking to leave your kids for a couple of hours, this is also it. There are singing, dancing, and acting classes, for adults too. It's also very conveniently located, there are restaurants next to it and it has it's own coffee house. I can't it stress enough, if you're a theatre kid, this is the place for you. read more

This high-energy theatre blew me away, with their performance of the broadway musical- "Caberet". A local theatre with powerhouse vocalists, and amazing talents. With ticket prices at only $15, will be continuing to see what The Acting Studio brings to the plate this fall. read more