Are most actors practice and study acting to get any good?

Question

Are most actors practice and study acting to get any good?

Answer 1

Short answer, yes.  

Even someone who is a "natural" needs to study and practice.

To use a sports analogy, someone who can run really fast still has to train and practice in order to participate in a marathon.

Answer 2

Many actors who are any good have at least some form of classical training, especially Method actors--the term Method, as you might guess, refers to a specific brand of training created by a Russian guy named Stanislavsky, who sought a more naturalistic form of acting instead of the quite stylized format of turn-of-the-century stage works.

Classical training was even more prevalent in older plays and films--but even today, most actors have some theater experience in undergrad, if not specific study at a specialized theater school itself or within a specific theater troupe. Broadway actors often spend years as chorus or understudies to help them hone their craft before they take on leading roles.

This is just a general overview to answer your question; for further info, look up drama schools and the like.

Answer 3

yes!

Answer 4

there are people who are naturally adept at performing in front of others...there's absolutely no doubt. but they can not compete with those that not only have that talent but have a technique to go along with it. i do believe acting is natural talent combined with experience but it also involves a specific technique combined with a knowledge of not only current theatre but past theatre as well. and that's not to say you have to go to a university to get it yet it is the most obvious.