National Youth Theatre Company - ok?

...which doesn't necessaarily mean anything good or bad. I'm guessing it's a startup trying to make a name for itself.

By way of comparison, the cost to learn a musical instrument for a year is generally around $1000 - that's based on forty half-hour lessons. So, if it were me, I would ask myself 'I am getting the same value for money as I would expect from a private piano teacher?' Bear in mind that for a company with U18s, the duty of care is higher and therefore costs are higher.

I can understand them asking for an up-front payment if they are a new organisation. That would help their cashflow. On the other hand, an instalment approach is pretty standard practice in non-profit-organisations. Alternatively, they could offer a discount for paying the whole year in advance.

++If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got++