The Drama Student Magazine - Issue 5

issue 5 | winter 2010

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BIRTHDAY ISSUE The wish list for actors

Robert Lindsay The Entertainer entertains us

A to Z of Long Runs

Accents

Puppetry

Cabaret

Books

contents Photos: © Neil Genower

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12 Don’t Play Me, Pay Me

Sarah Clark investigates the current campaign which is calling for disabled actors to be cast in disabled roles every time

Life is a Cabaret

prologue Welcome to a brand new decade! Didn’t 2010 sneak up on us when we weren’t looking? Well it’s been a remarkable primary year for The Drama Student Magazine.

In many respects it seems like only yesterday I witnessed the first few pages roll off the press. Equally, as someone in the industry said to me the other day, “1st birthday? It seems like the magazine has been around forever.” I’ll take that as praise.

As Publishing Editor, I am immensely proud of everyone who has supported us. The hard work and enthusiasm it takes to bring you each issue should never been underestimated and I am lucky to have a team who believe wholeheartedly in the publication.

I wish to take this opportunity to thank all of our writers, advertisers, fellow industry colleagues and anyone has endorsed the magazine in whatever way – you know who you are. Thank you to our readers who have supported our advertisers, as without them the magazine would not exist. But it’s with the support and devotion of one particular person that makes all of this really possible – Co-Founder and Art Director Fabio Marcolini. His endless hours of behind-the-scenes graft, wisdom and passion is to be truly admired. My respect for him knows no bounds.

To celebrate our 1st birthday, we’ve brought you a thrilling issue, packed with entertaining interviews, articles and advice. As always it’s an eclectic mix of fresh and inspirational editorial.

We’re very excited to have secured our big interview with stage and screen star Robert Lindsay. He’s one of those seasoned pros who makes it all look effortless, and I’m pleased to say he’s really rather a charming man. Read his fascinating story.

Moving through 2010 will see the magazine develop even further.

Check out the recently re-launched The Drama Student Online with updated daily news, blogs, reviews and much more. We’re creating an interactive young community passionate about the arts, so get yourself involved.

I hope you continue to enjoy the publication and help us spread the word. Your persistent support will help us reach heady heights!

Let’s raise a glass!

Training as an actor often takes us in unexpected directions. Paul L Martin recounts his journey into the world of cabaret

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16 Robert Lindsay

The Derbyshire born actor talks exclusively about his RADA training, embarrassment at his TV celebrity and how he got that broken nose

It’s a Puppet

Karla Crome takes an engaging look at the art form of puppetry and how it’s working its way into mainstream theatre

4 News 20 Into the Profession 28 Actor’s Toolbox 34 Training

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The First Word 6 Take Control 24 Student Support 30 Theatre & Culture 44

46 Books

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Phil Matthews Editor

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news

NSDF 2010 The National Student Drama Festival – the week-long celebration of theatre, live performance, discussion and special events – returns in March for another exciting event. Students from around the UK inhabit the seaside town of Scarborough to take advantage of the many shows, workshops and debates covering all aspects of theatre and performance, incorporating acting, dance, writing, directing, designing, devising and production.

Practitioners come from all over the world and there are opportunities to take part in performances even for those not part of a selected show. In previous years, workshops have been led by: Mike Bradwell, Brian Cox, Ken Campbell, Stephen Daldry, Tim Fountain, John Godber, Stephen Jeffreys, Mike Leigh, Phylidda Lloyd, Mark Ravenhill, Simon Russell Beale, Sandi Toksvig and Timothy West, to name but a few.

If you are a student or have been a student within the last year, aged sixteen or over and working on a production between now and 19th February 2010, you can enter your show. If you are a director within two years of graduation you are also eligible to enter a show. NSDF will send a selector who will see your production and give feedback, help and advice.

If your production is selected for the festival it will be seen by over 100 professionals and 650 students from all over the UK, interested in every sort of performance. There are also a host of awards including The Sunday Times Playwriting Award and the Spotlight Acting Awards.

For more information, visit www.nsdf.org.uk for more information and to download an entry form.

HOBSONS PRIZE WINNER Acting graduate Stephanie Donaghue has won The Hobsons Prize 2009. Following a pilot last year by the well-known voiceover agency, the award was open to all 22 CDS drama schools, with 38 students from ten colleges participating.

The judges were looking for applicants with a natural vocal quality, a sense of timing, the ability to make quick, creative responses to a variety of script types and a professional outlook throughout the session.

Stephanie, who trained at Mountview, triumphed over three other finalists and wins a year’s representation, a bespoke showreel and mentoring from one of Hobsons experienced voice artists. She will also have her own page on their website.

Autumn saw The Drama Student Magazine run a competition with a series of prizes to reward our readers.

We’re proud to announce the winners were as follows:

• Nick Wilson – Two tickets to see West End smash hit Wicked • Randa Hajallie – Won a fantastic photo shoot with top headshot photographer Nick Gregan • Tom Church – Benefitted with a free year’s subscription to the UK’s essential casting service – CastWeb

Photo: Maxine Burrows

The celebrated National Youth Theatre, the UK’s premiere arts organisation for young people, is holding auditions for the 2010/11 company in February. The company initiated the careers of many famous names including Matt Lucas, Daniel Craig, Sir Derek Jacobi, Rosamond Pike, David Suchet and Dame Helen Mirren.

Matt Lucas, the award-wining comedian and actor said: “The National Youth theatre greatly contributed to my own love of acting – it gave me heaps of confidence and a belief in myself and my abilities. It’s just brilliant that this innovative organisation exists and so many young people involved will get to enjoy the long-term benefits.”

The NYT offers young people the chance to work together in a professional environment, giving them artistic and technical skills as well as the invaluable experience of working as part of a dedicated team. Initial applications are invited for acting, costume, lighting and sound, scenery and prop making, and stage management courses.

Membership is open to anyone between the ages of 13 - 21 for acting applicants and 16 – 21 for technical applicants. Everyone who applies will be offered an interview or audition, regardless of previous experience and they also offer an assisted placement scheme.

All acting applicants take part in a fun, informal workshop, before giving their individual audition. Technical applicants will have an interview, where they will get the chance to show any previous work should they wish to.

Auditions and interviews will be held all over the UK. Applicants should visit their website www.nyt.org.uk

© Allan Titmuss

NYT TO HOLD AUDITIONS FOR 2010/11 COMPANY

• Joanne Gail – Gained a premium upgrade to the top casting website – Casting Call Pro • Elisa Dias, Marcia Parkes and Kate Chambers – All received copies of the new Contacts 2010, the essential handbook for the entertainment industry

news

ONLINE ARTS DIRECTORY LAUNCHES A new online directory has launched for the arts. Arts Oracle contains over 100 categories, including listings for agents, casting directors, drama training, photographers, tutors, showreel editors and voicereel companies – as well as advice from top industry professionals. Creative director Ben Miller explains the journey of how it came to be.

“I trained at East 15. When I graduated in 2002 I was eager to know who was who in the industry as soon as possible. But I found that all the information I needed was published in book form and almost immediately became out of date.The industry is constantly evolving.

“After a lot of research and conversations with acquaintances and friends in the industry, I realised that many other people also had the same frustration. It was not until chatting the idea through with my friend Brian Cross though that we realised the full extent of what we could offer.

And so the idea of a new online directory for the Arts was born.”

Become part of it at www.artsoracle.com

NEW CDS PRESIDENT ANNOUNCED Actress Janet Suzman has been elected President of the Conference of Drama Schools. She succeeds George Kitson who becomes the first Founder President.

Janet has twice won The Evening Standard Best Actress Award, Academy Award and Golden Globe Nominations for Nicholas and Alexandra. After graduating from the University of the Witwatersrand and studying for the stage at LAMDA, Janet Suzman started her career in the UK with the RSC’s blockbuster opening season The Wars of the Roses, at Stratford-on-Avon.

Janet says: ‘This appointment is a signal honour for me; I love working with the young, and I will do my best to continue urging mastery of the language as the fountainhead for the teaching of drama. We have the best vocational schools in the world in this hugely creative country, and we intend to keep our pre-eminence in supplying talent to the industry sharp-edged.’

Peter Barlow, Chair of CDS says, ‘I am absolutely delighted that Janet is our new President. She is a highly respected actress who is passionate about the process of training actors and theatre professionals.

Janet directs in CDS drama schools and takes master-classes and, by her own actions, encourages students to take the process of training intensively for their chosen vocation seriously.

I know that Janet will also be an ambassador for CDS schools who provide the best performing arts training in the world.’

• Joel Wood, Adam Bone, Dalia Grigonyte, Yusuf Ravat and Shenelle Manwaring – All lucky winners of Nancy Bishop’s new book – Secrets from the Casting Couch • Joe Shefer, Jazz Andrews, Jack Chandler, Siane Medoes, Gere Thompson – Won year’s subscriptions to The Drama Student Magazine

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the first word Everyone’s journey is unique. Jeremy Irvine describes taking a step away from the traditional drama school training, hungry to get stuck into the industry.

Firstly, and before any angry mob start to think I’m writing an anti-drama school article for a magazine called The Drama Student, I just thought I’d mention that drama school is almost undoubtedly the most realistic way into the acting profession, and the training here in the UK is probably the best in the world. But what if you don’t go, for whatever reason, be it that you’re not accepted, you can’t manage it financially, or drama school just isn’t for you?

During my final year of 6th form no one more than me believed that drama school was the ultimate goal for any aspiring actor, and I openly admitted that my A Levels and anything else came second to me getting onto an accredited course. I was convinced that not being accepted would surely lead to a lifetime of working in the local supermarket, dieing of some boredom related illness.

Luckily I was offered a place on Central’s three year Acting course and LAMDA’s one year Foundation. For no other reason than that it ‘felt right’ I went against everybody’s advice and went to LAMDA with the single-minded intention of going on to complete a three year training when I left. I was so determined that this was what I wanted to do I had chosen two of my speeches before even starting the course.

However, in that year something changed. Although the training was outstanding and I had one of the best years of my life, I ultimately just wanted to work as an actor. I was still 18 at the time, so why not see if it was possible to work before completing three years of training? After which surely you would be leaving with a flood of other actors your age all looking for agents and work in an already saturated industry? An hour a night, after getting back late from drama school, working on my CV quickly became an obsession as I read about more and more actors who either trained whilst working or never officially trained at all.

I started working ridiculous hours, getting back from LAMDA at 10.30pm and then doing anything that would give me the credibility to start going up for work. Naturally being a student I tried to do everything on the cheap and do it myself if I could. Some costs I couldn’t avoid, such as Spotlight membership, and I wasn’t going to get amateur headshots.

But time didn’t cost me anything, except for being tired the next day, so I didn’t mind a bit of extra work. I had a friend who showed me a web design programme, two weeks getting to grips with the software and I had my own website. I remember last February when London ground to a halt because of the snow and we all got the day off. Brilliant! I phoned my friend who was working as a camera man “I really need a show-reel, is there any chance you could film one of my audition speeches, it would

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look great in the snow, Please, Please, Please, Please?!” I bought the editing software he recommended and put it all together with a few other things I’d done. It was laborious but the hours slowly began to pay off.

I didn’t have a clue about agents so when I first started looking on the internet for the best ones to visit all I could really find were casting agencies with big “We’ll make you famous!” banners... Hmm funny how I don’t know anyone who’s with you. No problem, I could pester everyone I met who might know anything about these agent people whoever they might be. I ended up with about 15 to go and visit, so off I trotted round London blindly walking into agencies whose walls were covered in the latest Hollywood posters featuring their A list clients. Right, okay, I made a mistake, it isn’t possible after all, you can’t just walk up to these people, force your CV on them and expect them to so much as look at your photo.

I, along with so many others, believed the story that there was no point even approaching agents without some serious credits or three year training. In fact I was told by a tutor not to worry about it yet, but I hadn’t even handed out all my letters that day before my phone started ringing. By the end of the week, I had arranged meetings with all but a few of the agents I had approached. The story, it turned out, was a myth.

From the meetings I got a handful of offers and chose an agent who I felt I got on best with during our meeting. Although I was still auditioning for drama schools it gave me the confidence to see if it was possible to go it alone, at least for a year, and if things didn’t work out, so what? I’m not arrogant enough to say it was easy, but a rejection letter won’t kill you and surely it’s better than just waiting another year for the drama school auditions to come around again. Of course I’m also not arrogant enough to say you don’t need training. Anyone, in my opinion, who thinks they don’t is naïve and clearly self destructive. I regularly take some fantastic courses at places like The Actors Centre from people who are working right now in the industry, not something you always get at drama school.

Obviously there are draw backs but only four days after leaving LAMDA I was lucky enough to be starting rehearsals for two months filming with Disney playing a main character for my first TV series. At the end of the day, if you’re able to get any acting work, who cares how you did it, it’s not school anymore, you don’t have to show your working. ● www.jeremyirvine.co.uk

[CONTACTS2010] The essential handbook for the entertainment industry

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AN ACTOR’S WISH LIST A copy of East of Eden (film 1955) directed by Elia Kazan. James Dean’s performance is so powerful. Immediately after I watched it (as a 16 year old A-level student), I applied to drama school to pursue a career in acting. He gives such an honest, inhabited performance – any actor could take note of the truth he portrays in his character Kal.

A business card with your photo on it. They can be ordered quite cheaply online and are the greatest networking tool. Carry them with you at all times and give them out like candy.

KNIGHT HOOSON Actor and Writer

DAVID HUTCHINSON Actor and Producer

A London Street Atlas. I have lived in London since I was born but it’s a massive place. Actors are always required to go to various London addresses at short notice for castings, to watch shows or meet contacts, so I always keep one in my bag so I know where I’m going and can plan a quick route.

One way plane ticket to Manhattan. New York is the centre of all theatre and a ticket is the best gift for an actor! You can see the very best in traditional plays as well as up and coming new writing in the off-Broadway areas of Manhattan. You will also be in the best place to study theatre Gods such as Meisner, Chekov, Stanislavski and many more. Try the famous Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute on 115 East 15th Street, where you’ll get yourself some great acting advice. And remember it’s a one way ticket so you have all the time in the world!

BENJAMIN POTTER Drama Student and Writer

KARLA CROME Actress and Writer

My idea is for every professional or aspiring performer to have a readily available boost of confidence when and wherever they need it because performance anxiety can spring up unexpectedly anywhere, anytime!

Lacking confidence can make you forget lines or even make you want to give up on performing all together. So I’d recommend the PK Performance method which combines; meditation, hypnotherapy, compounding affirmations, deep breathing, guided visualisation and music to help combat attacks of stage fright and cultivate consistent powerful levels of self confidence. www. pkperformance.co.uk

For anyone who has to sing on stage the DVD of Elaine Stitch - At Liberty is a master class in interpretation and storytelling.

Particularly good for those who think they can sing and those who think they can’t. You’ll soon see why. And it’s hilarious.

RUSSELL LABEY Director and Playwright

PAULA KAY Actress and Hypnotherapist

Year Of The King, by Antony Sher. Sher’s diaries from the year he played Richard III at the RSC make great reading for any actor, whether you’re a Shakespeare fan or not. The sheer amount of research and dedication he poured into the role has always inspired me to go that extra mile with any part I’m playing, and this book is a must for any actor wanting some motivation! A great reminder of why we put ourselves through this!

SARAH CLARK Student and Writer

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I guess I’d have to say, the most invaluable thing for the career so far, constant source of support / comfort / guidance would be my friends (cue throwing up). Can I have, I dunno, a big party for them instead?

Always there to consult, bounce off ideas, frustrate and give you a good kick up the arse when one starts to wallow in self-pity / congratulation.

That or an iPhone - maps for meetings, downloading scripts, research. Handy!

SAM HEUGHAN Actor

Celebrating our 1st birthday is an incredibly exciting time for us! To mark the occasion, we thought it might be an nifty idea to get The Drama Student Magazine family together to toast our success with An Actor’s Wish List – the ultimate birthday gift suggestions of essential things for all actors to own.

An array of ideas were put forward – some practical, some outside the box and others that are impossible to live without! With this smart list, you’ll never be stuck for gift hints ever again.

Every actor should own a video camera.

It doesn’t need to be high quality, but just something to practice their on-camera skills with, and in case they need to put themselves on tape for an audition.

CastWeb’s essential casting information service would be top of my gift list of course!! But running a close second would be a copy of The Spotlight’s Contacts. It’s quite simply THE industry address book and quick reference to it will find you all the established agents, casting directors, production companies, suppliers and organisations that an actor could ever need to further their career. Without a copy of Contacts you’re walking without shoes, and without CastWeb you may as well go out without your trousers on!

PATRICK WARRINGTON CastWeb

NANCY BISHOP Casting Director

I feel like I’m being very boring but I am going to say that the thing that comes to mind (aside from a mobile phone, an underground map and a notebook - which are even more boring!) is The Complete Works of Shakespeare. I tend to get bored very quickly of whichever Shakespearian monologue I’m using for auditions, but having a copy of this to hand means that when I’m reminded of a different speech, or I’m looking for a new one, I can have a scan through and get practicing without having to pick up a new copy of the play.

My suggestion is the book True and False by David Mamet. It’s the only book on acting and the world of the actor which says things as they really are and is essential reading for any actor!

MARK WAKELING Actor and Actors’ Temple Founder

My suggestion would be a copy of Death of A Salesman – an almost perfect play.

HOLLY KENDRICK National Student Drama Festival

FRANCESCA WAITE Actress, Writer and Producer

A DVD of Mr. Holland’s Opus is a definate ‘must have’! Not only is it my favourite tear jerking movie of all time, Richard Dreyfuss’ performance is outstanding. With a cameo from Joanna Gleeson too, its a necessity in my eyes.

CHARLIE VOSE Actor and Writer

A little (blank) black book and pen: Every actor should have one, to record anyone they have met for interviews/auditions; or anyone they met socially; to make any note about performances they have liked, shows they have enjoyed – who directed it, who cast it. Any bits of work related information which could prove invaluable in the future. Your little black book should be your reference for life. Just imagine working with a student film director and 10 years hence they are making a block buster – you will be able to recall the project and date when you worked together – so mention it when you write. However good your memory you will start to forget things as the years pass so this will be your prompt. Or a year’s subscription to The Drama Student Magazine: The perfect gift!

YVONNE I’ANSON Mountview Head of Marketing and Writer

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Manuka Honey – I thought it was overrated especially because it is quite pricey and my initial reaction was why don’t you just use REGULAR honey? But seriously this stuff is incredible, as soon as I have a sore throat, honey and hot water it is (I would recommend two teaspoons).

MAGIC! Soothes your throat so much. You can opt for lemon as well but I’m not a fan!

MARIKA VISSER Student and Writer

I think an essential item is Exit, Pursued by a Badger: An Actor’s Journey Through History with Shakespeare by Nick Asbury.

It combines historic work of Shakespeare with the innovative modern social networking mediums, and gives a superb insight into both Shakespeare, the RSC and most importantly the trials & tribulations of a jobbing actor in perhaps one of the most honest accounts I’ve read.

RICHARD J LOFTUS Writer and Rose Bruford Graduate

Every actor should watch the documentary film The Aristocrats directed by Paul Provenza, starring a host of Actors & Comedians.

Although it appears to simply be a documentary about one very dirty joke, it actually teaches us that the investment in story telling is paramount!

SIMON GREIFF Actor and Resident Director

A good headshot! Your image is important and the quality of your printed headshot even more so - we can guide you to the right kind of photographer and attend your printing needs – and wish you many happy returns as well.

JOHN AYTON Visual Eyes Repros

Ned Sherrin’s book on Theatrical Anecdotes – every young actor needs some anecdotes until they have some of their own!

NEIL RUTHERFORD Head of Group Casting, Ambassadors Theatre Group

Get rid of your accent by Linda James and Olga Smith. It is an English pronunciation and speech training manual which helps actors to get the RP accent, which is an essential tool any actor should have. This book was recommended to me by one of my acting teachers and I find it really useful since it’s helped me to get rid of my Spanish accent. This book uses tried and trusted learning methods used in London drama schools.

SAMUEL GARCIA GUANCHE East 15 Student

I could suggest a library of all my books or the greatest theatre acting book ever written: Peter Brook’s The Empty Space.

However, your “something you can’t yourself live without” grabbed me.

Out of all the fundamental insights I’ve been privy to, Jacob Bronowski’s The Ascent of Man (Book & DVD) is probably the greatest. Although it sets out simply to outline the history of science, he manages to include a brilliant outline history of humanity.

And, his visit to Auschwitz is probably the most riveting/haunting moment of television/ theatre I’ve ever encountered.

SIMON DUNMORE Director and Writer

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Withnail and I - The essential film for EVERY actor. Paul Meyers book Accents and Dialects for Stage and Screen – It’s about £75 but worth every penny. It’s fantastic!!

GREGG LOWE Actor

The 80’s book and TV series Playing Shakespeare by John Barton. It follows a series of programmes with actors of the day such as Judi Dench and Simon Callow as they try to find the best way to play Shakespeare. Its focus is on the practicalities of playing the text, not studying or analysing but from an actors point of view. I only discovered it this year but find it invaluable as it changed how I approach Shakespeare.

DANIELLA GIBB Actress and Writer

I think rather obviously I am going to say Equity membership – as Judi Dench says “Equity is the only force in the entertainment world to bring some order to the very uncertain lives of performers.”

LOUISE GRAINGER Equity’s Marketing, Events & Training

About Acting – Also known as The Complete About Acting by Peter Barkworth. He taught Acting Technique at RADA in the 50’s and 60’s and this book is an absolute for the newbie or the seasoned pro.

Unlike many acting books which can seem to mystify and spiritualise acting, making it into some ethereal, intangible craft, Barkworth taught Technique. It’s fallen out of vogue in recent years but the advice contained within these pages is invaluable. Notes about where to look, when and how to gesture, how to listen properly are drip fed to the reader in short chapters, rarely longer than a paragraph. Using anecdotes from great actors to illustrate each note, this is a thoroughly enjoyable “How to” book. I’m not advocating a wholly technical approach but much of this is basic stage craft. Covering every aspect of acting, from audition to rehearsal to read-through to long runs, this book should sit on the shelf alongside all those books on truth and feeling. Technique AND truth. Now there’s the hallmark of great acting!

JOSH BOYD-ROCHFORD Actor and Writer

As an actor turned writer, my birthday present is a Box Set of early Woody Allen movies as an essential master class in comedic dialogue writing. Nobody hits you with a well-crafted one-liner quite like Woody and the ones to watch are Annie Hall, Manhattan, Hannah And Her Sisters, Husbands and Wives, Crimes and Misdemeanours, Broadway Danny Rose and Manhattan Murder Mystery.

SAM PETER JACKSON Playwright

A diaphragm and how to work it. I found mine under a piano at drama school. This muscle and associated skills are indispensable and provides vital energy and power when most needed.

Useful in all mediums.

MICHAEL CULKIN Actor and Writer

My suggestion for every aspiring actor is rather prosaic and practical. But it is one that I always suggest to drama students when I give career development talks. It is to buy a big fat address book just for their career – doesn’t have to be anything fancy – and write in it every contact you make, guest tutors at college, theatre artistic directors, theatre producers, list production companies making TV drama, casting directors etc. Get phone numbers, email addresses, write comments and notes by names.

The Art of Changing by Glen Park is very useful.

There is nothing more distracting in an actor than poor body habits that belittle a character transformation. This book helps an actor find a neutral posture.

CHRISTINE CLARE Actress

GRAHAM BENNETT Theatre Producer, Manager and Photographer

Well I have to admit to being slightly bias here and suggesting that key to getting the most out of your career in 2010 is membership of Casting Call Pro. Many actors forget that standard membership of Casting Call Pro is entirely free, so your credits, headshot and showreel can be listed and seen by over 20,000 casting directors and production companies without spending a penny.

CHRIS TIMMS Casting Call Pro

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Don’t play me, Something interesting has been happening on our TV screens once a week lately – something which has made some people uncomfortable, some empowered, some just plain curious and lots entertained, writes Sarah Clark.

The series in question features characters which seem new and exciting, and no, I’m not talking about the return of Doctor Who here, but about Cast Offs, the Channel 4 drama in which all six leading actors are disabled.

If the basic premise of the show is perhaps not the most original (the six characters have been sent to a remote island for a fictional reality show) then the casting of genuinely disabled actors certainly is. For the issue is not just that there are very few disabled parts being written for mainstream media, but that when disabled characters are featured they are too often portrayed by able-bodied actors ‘putting on’ the disability.

A new campaign, entitled Don’t Play Me, Pay Me, has called for this to be seen as akin to blacking up, and for only disabled actors to be cast in disabled parts. The campaign is run by Nicky Clark, whose daughter Lizzy has Aspergers Syndrome, and appeared in Dustbin Baby in 2008 playing a character with the same condition. The experience of raising a disabled child inspired Clark to fight for an increase in casting disabled actors – as she says, “The reality is that there are over 8 million people in this country with a disability but you would never know that by switching on the TV or opening a magazine”.

This is an interesting point – we no longer readily accept casting actors of the wrong race or ethnicity in a role, but an actor assuming a disability generally raises no questions, as there seems to be a feeling that this is allowable, and in some cases even preferable – Hollywood actors looking for an Oscar nomination, for example, have frequently been known to choose disabled characters for their emotive potential. It is rather telling that of the five people who have won Oscars for playing

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a disabled character, only one of them was actually disabled – the deaf actress Marlee Matlin.

So why do directors choose able-bodied actors over those with the appropriate disability? It can’t be lack of available talent – there are 235 disabled actors registered with Equity, and many more who aren’t registered, as well as agencies and theatre groups specifically for disabled actors.

Clark explains; “There is fear and trepidation. Mainly I think because no-one wants to offend. Also there is a misconception that disabled actors will need very high levels of one-to-one support.” Breaking down these misconceptions is an important part of the Don’t Play Me, Pay Me campaign. Clark is also working with drama schools to open up their doors to disabled applicants to ensure that aspiring disabled actors can get the training and support they need to embark on an acting career.

Clark is not fighting alone – over the past year the BBC have been working to increase diversity on screen. The BBC Talent Alert is an initiative to find new disabled talent, with the aim of having more disabled actors on mainstream television. One of the people behind the scheme is Sarah Hughes, who has been scouting out new disabled talent for several months. “We had a lot of meetings about diversity last year within the Entertainment department,” she says. “And we were asked if we had any ideas on ways of reflecting modern Britain more accurately on screen, and I thought, since I was already working part time as a casting director in the Entertainment Department, that I could spend one extra day per week really focussing on actors with a disability in the hopes of building up much more knowledge about who was ‘out there’.

Channel 4’s Castoffs

“

Pay me

“Luckily Kate Rowland, who is Creative Director of New Writing here and has a huge commitment to diversity, thought it was a good idea and has funded me to do the work. As well as meeting a lot of people in London I’ve been to Glasgow, Cardiff, Birmingham and Manchester to see who’s around!”

Hundreds of actors have been seen through Talent Alert, and it shows real commitment from the BBC. Asked whether the BBC has a specific policy when it comes to disabled casting, Hughes explains that “We would like to do more casting of disabled actors in ANY part whether that character is stated specifically to be disabled or not. Generally, I think it is felt to be very much preferable to use an actor with a disability rather than a non-disabled actor to play a “disabled” part.”

Hughes raises something interesting here – why are disabled people so rarely cast in parts which are not specifically disabled? There is a curious sort of double standards here – able-bodied people are allowed to play disabled, but the disabled are not allowed to play ‘normal’ parts.

Clark points out that “If disabled people were featured in all roles that weren’t disability specific then it would remove all the barriers.”

But is an entirely integrated industry too much to hope for? Personally I don’t see why not – if we can have ‘colourblind-casting’, then why not ‘disability blind-casting’ too? Whilst there are always going to be limitations to what people with certain disabilities can physically do, the majority of mainstream parts could easily be played by a disabled actor if only directors will have the courage to cast them. Being deaf myself I have no intention of only ever playing deaf characters – a disability is not an identity, and Clark argues that it should have no more bearing on casting than eye-colour. It is perhaps slightly easier for disabled actors to succeed in theatre, as people are more ready to suspend disbelief when it comes to something live, but with campaigns like Talent Alert and Don’t Play Me, Pay Me disabled actors can at least be assured that their corner is being fought. ● www.dontplaymepayme.com

The best job I got through PCR was my first ever professional job - Rewind On>.

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life is a

cabaret What was to be a sideline to support life as an actor, has turned into a proud career in the world of cabaret for Paul L Martin. He tells us know how it all began.

I left drama school 12 years ago, having done Acting and Musical Theatre at Mountview Academy. One of the things I remember most keenly from my time there was a certain teacher telling us that there were too many actors in the world and not enough jobs and advised us to think about creating our own work. Previous to moving to London for my training I had run four annual Variety evenings to raise money for a local charity my family were passionate about. The shows were a mixture of comedy sketches and songs from musicals all performed by a bunch of precocious teenagers with myself at the helm. The shows were always sold out and we raised over £5,000 throughout the four years.

After my training I worked, like a lot of actors, as a waiter. My job in Old Compton street meant coming across some outlandish characters, and one particular lunchtime shift I was serving two flamboyant guys who engaged me in conversation and found out about my real career.

They informed me that they worked around the corner in the worldfamous drag club Madame Jo-Jo’s as showgirls and did I want to audition? A job had become available. I’m not sure why I was so excited by this proposition as I had never dreamt of dragging up before but I jumped at the chance and applied to audition. It’s a little known fact that not many drag queens have any training as performers, so I stood out at the auditions and began working as ‘Trinity Million’ a couple of weeks later.

I worked at Jo-Jo’s for 5 months and then moved on to run my own weekly club night called Trinity’s in a club on the Charing Cross Road.

Trinity was the star and we introduced singers and comics doing open slots – not a million miles away from the variety nights of my teenage years. Trinity’s ran every Thursday for seven years in three different London venues, until I killed her off. I was tired of the make-up ravaging my skin, the heels ruining my arches, the corset scarring my chest and the job putting off potential suitors. I resurrected myself as ‘Paul L Martin’; a cabaret singer much like Trinity - to begin with at least – but in trousers!

During all this time I had been running my shows under the company banner of Millionth Muse Productions (now MMP Ltd) –

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and had been joined by director and writer Simon James Green. We began expanding our portfolio of cabaret shows and also successfully produced a number of plays on the fringe. Fellow performer SarahLouise Young joined Simon and I in producing regular cabaret shows at Theatre Museum, Lost Society, Battersea Barge, The Space, Leicester Square Theatre, Arts Theatre and many more.

I began running lectures and workshops on cabaret in drama schools and The Actors Centre and then acquired the cabaret and burlesque agency Better Chemistry in 2007 to add to our portfolio.

Our shows have also been seen up and down the country and I have personally performed in Melbourne, New York, Berlin, Milan, Rome and Paris as well as nationwide.

I quickly became more and more interested in cabaret as a genre and how intimate, raw and dangerous it can be for both performer and audience. There is no fourth wall, and the script – if there is one at all – can be thrown out the window at any moment. It is a difficult skill for some, and second nature to others, but with clubs, bars, restaurants and theatres finding platforms for such entertainment wherever they can, it would be a shame for any performer to not consider whether there might be a place for them within the artform. Whether that be to earn some extra cash, keep your hand in with a live audience, hone a skill, or all three! Think about it – can you juggle? Sing? Fan-Dance? Eat fire? Tell a joke? Do you excel at clowning? Hanker to drag up? Have an outlandish character you always wanted to show the world? All of these things – and more – can be classed as cabaret.

In 2010 I will celebrate 20 years working as a cabaret performer, promoter and producer, and I am proud and excited at what a thriving sub-culture I have been a part of building in the past decade. With burlesque having been enormously fashionable in the last few years and cabaret sure to become even more popular.

I still work as an actor on television and on stage and always have, but what was to be a side-line of that to keep me going has become the passion of my entire life. After all, it is a cabaret. ● www.millionthmuse.com

review

Michael Bruce In 2005 I was invited to Sir Elton John and David Furnish’s ‘stag do’ at an intimate club in Soho. I remember standing at the bar, wedged between Cilla Black and Orlando Bloom, whilst Eric McCormack apologised to me for rudely pushing in at the bar. “No problem,” I said smiling, having watched Will and Grace on DVD that very afternoon.

I was eventually handed a glass of wine before turning to watch an evening of remarkable entertainment. The hilarious Paul O’Grady took the reins and presented a specially-written cabaret that included turns from Bryan Adams, Scissor Sisters’ Jake Shears, Take That and Lulu – there was even a near-naked strip from Lee Ryan of Blue fame.

Now if you’re wondering where this is going or if you think I haven’t name-dropped enough – please, be patient. As I stood at the bar witnessing this incredible occasion, I wanted to take everything in. As Liz Hurley sipped champagne across the room, in another corner Ozzy and Sharon were rocking the night away and I had that unique feeling inside. I just knew that this would be a ‘one-off’ night I’d remember forever. Geez, I even got to shake Sir Elton’s hand.

Of course, a few years older now, I’ve been to many a star-studded evening, where the entertainment has, at best, satisfied. Yet I’ve longed to hold that rare sentiment ever since. That excitement – a ‘one-off’ distinct and extraordinary moment – knowing you’re witnessing something special.

On Sunday 1st November, as I took to my seat at the Apollo Theatre for Michael Bruce’s very first West End concert, I don’t think I was quite prepared for what lay ahead. There wasn’t anything glitzy or glamorous so far, there was no sign of any paps on the pavement, no ‘celebrities’ on the bill, absolutely no indication whatsoever that we would experience one of those ‘incredible nights to remember’.

For many, the name Michael Bruce will mean nothing of course.

For now, that is. The 25 year old hails from Scotland and began to enter into our consciousness after winning the Notes for The Stage competition two years ago. His successful entry song Children was performed as part of the 2007 Christmas in New York concert at the Lyric Theatre and the rest they say, is history.

Michael Bruce took to the stage on Sunday, comparing the entire concert sat at his piano, with conviction – and rightly so. This was an opportunity that needed to be seized by all – an evening of young talented West End performers celebrating the work of a young unknown composer with a spot on flair for musical theatre. It turned out to be an inspired mix.

Bruce’s skill is an interesting one. His songs are fresh, catchy and engaging – with lyrics that move you to tears one minute and then send you into a side-splitting mess the next. This light and shade is what makes Michael Bruce’s work unique – keeping his audience on their toes, alive and eager for more. If you discover a talent that throws your audience into a range of emotions in succession, you bloody well use it – and use it he does. Praise indeed to producers Neil Eckersley and Paul Spicer for nurturing that talent.

You can see his songs are just a joy to perform. Emily Tierney takes delight in her comical rendition of Continental from Hey Diddle Diddle and has the audience in fits. Other superb performances come from Sarah Lark and Sarah Earnshaw with I want a Man, and Daniel Boys and Jenna Lee James with Looking Back, a truly beautiful performance.

There was also an outstanding rendition of Someplace Beyond the Moon from newcomer Phoebe Fildes, who was the winner of a special YouTube competition. Take a look at her audition tape – it’s something else.

But it was Julie Atherton’s show stopping performance of In a Disney Way that drove the audience wild. Atherton’s ability to sell a story-song with such wit and sincerity is utterly endearing.

So there we have it. The unassuming, yet hugely gifted Michael Bruce with the cream of future musical theatre bowing to a standing ovation. The future’s bright. I left the venue glowing, having acquired one of those rare moments. And guess what, there was not a celebrity in sight. No, I tell a lie. Dame Judi Dench looked on mesmerized for the duration. Sorry, I couldn’t help myself. ● Phil Matthews

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Photo: Paul Rider at Shoot - www.shootgroup.com

Robert Lindsay became a household name in the 1970’s. He’s enjoyed a diverse career on stage and screen that has seen the actor win numerous awards including two Oliviers, a Tony and a BAFTA. Phil Matthews finds out about his rise through the ranks.

The Entertainer

close up

lets go

A year ago I interviewed Zoë Wanamaker for our first issue. I have to ask, what’s it like working with her in My Family?

Well, ironically Zoë and I go back to drama school days. Zoë was at Central, which I’m sure you know, and I was at RADA, and we had mutual friends. I remember going into a party at her flat – 1969 it must have been, or something like that. One of those drama student parties. I knew her Dad [Sam Wanamaker, the founder of the Globe Theatre] very well. I did the very first production ever at what is now The Globe, which was then ‘The Tent’, and I remember we had a rainstorm so badly it all leaked. Equity tried to stop the show, and Sam pleaded with us to go on, and we all supported Sam and carried on. There’s a little anecdote for you, I’d forgotten that.

So Zoë and I have known each other a very long time. How is it working with her? Zoë and I share a sense of humour which I think is very important when you’re working on such a lengthy sitcom. We’ve got a very twisted sense of humour, which is not always prevalent to a prewater shed comedy. We do get on terribly well. But the more we do it, we’re getting on more like husband and wife. I think we’ve got to stop it soon!

Well you can definitely see that chemistry. It certainly comes across on screen.

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Oh without a doubt. I think if it hadn’t have been for Zoë, I think we’d not have lasted this long. If it hadn’t have been for that relationship. I mean, Kris [Marshall] was terrific, who played my elder son, he really had his own fan base. But I do think the real success of the show is their [Ben and Susan’s] relationship, it’s very funny.

You talked about your early days at RADA. How did you decide to become an actor?

Of course I’ve written this book in which I described the cathartic moment, there’s always a moment. I was at a very tough secondary modern school in Derbyshire, which had a very serious reputation. We had this Art Master who was an extraordinary individual, who formed this thing called The Grand Order of Thespians, which was regarded with suspicion by most of the boys. It was kind of like Dead Poets Society, you know, it kind of caught on. There was one day he was rehearsing me in the school hall, to go to college in Nottingham, Clarendon College. I was rehearsing and discussing the play – “Once more unto the breach” and what it meant, and how it stirred people into action, and it’s propaganda and so on and so forth. The school bell went, and all the lads started firing out. And John [the Art Master] made them all stop and made me do the speech in front of 400 boys, most of whom were enemies and desperate to get to the bog and have a fag. And at the end of the

closeup speech, they all cheered, and I realised that was it. (Adopts a theatrical voice) This is what I wanted to do.

It’s

And you auditioned for the Royal Academy?

Yeah. I don’t think my accent served me that well. It was neither northern or southern. I know even my brother is very conscious of his accent when he’s in London with me.

Yeah, without telling anyone at the time, because you see coming from a very industrial mining town in the 60s, you didn’t really tell people you wanted to be an actor. It was like coming out the closet really, people regarded it with great suspicion. So I hid it for ages and told everyone I was going to be an English and Drama teacher. But without telling anyone, I went off to RADA to audition, at the time with people like Richard Beckinsale, actors I’ve admired very much. I borrowed a fiver off a friend of mine called Clare Monks, who was a fellow student at Clarendon, which was my audition fee and train fare. A fiver, can you believe that? And I got in. I literally got in the first time, and there was no turning back.

What was it like being at RADA at that time?

RADA was a curious mix then. It was still a mixture, partly a finishing school for very very beautiful ladies, I remember, who were very wealthy.

It was a very eclectic mix. The working class revolution was beginning to happen, I mean they’d had Tom Courtney and people like that there

about training who you as an actor. Accents aren’t necessarily discouraged, but I think it depends on the individual.

You

can hear yours coming through when you talk about your brother! When I go back to the north east mine comes out.

It does. It will always be there somewhere.

You’ve

talked in the past about how Citizen Smith was not really your big break, although every tabloid newspaper seems to suggest it was. You felt that working at the Royal Exchange in Manchester was your big break. Was that because you felt theatre was more legitimate?

You see I never had any pre-conceived ideas of working in TV. I mean TV was what rather good-looking people did, and rather untalented people did. I hate to say that, but that’s how TV was regarded then. But I gradually realised when I left RADA, I needed to pay the bills as well. I’d

The irony is, I never got a Best Newcomer Award and I’ve just received a Lifetime Achievement Award, which means I’ve got to start going to the gym very soon!

As every drama student does, I imagine!

Oh, I mean dreading it, dreading it… and she picked on me straight away. She said (adopts Russian accent): “My darhlings, I want you to walk along the room, I want you to walk from your bawlls.” I said “My bowels, Madame?” Cos I’d never called anyone ‘Madame’, which to me meant hooker, you know?! At that point, I couldn’t believe I was calling someone ‘Madame’. “No my darhlings, your bawlls,” pointing at my testicles. And so, I acted from my bawlls for two and a half years at RADA. Yeah, it was good and it was bad. I kind of regret allowing them to take away my personality as well, because they made me very conscience of who I was. I think I lost myself for a very long time after I left drama school. I didn’t quite know what I was, and where I fitted in, I kind of lost my true self, if you know what I mean. I think that happens even now, although it’s less geared towards changing accents, am I right?

done the Northcott Theatre in Exeter, I’d done one film called That’ll Be the Day. I’d run out of cash and I literally couldn’t feed myself. I didn’t have parents I could turn to, to say ‘lend me a few quid’. So I was kind of desperate. I went up for an audition for a Thames TV series called Get Some In!, about National Service. The Producer was a wonderful guy called Michael Mills and he said “I’m going to offer you this part”. I couldn’t breathe, because I knew it was thirteen episodes, and I knew the fee was around £200 for each episode, which was going to solve…

.. a lot of problems.

Yeah, solve my life. And he said “Look, before you sign this contract, I want you to know something now. The moment you sign this contract, that’s your anonymity gone forever.” You know, I wasn’t even listening. I didn’t care, I paid my electricity bills, I paid all my tax bills I had to pay, I was solvent. And of course it began to hit me as I got into Citizen Smith, which was knock-on from that [Get Some In!], when it dawned on me – 24 million people – suddenly I was a TV star, which I never really planned to do. I just wanted to do theatre, that’s all I ever wanted. The business has strange twists and turns.

How was it going to the Royal Exchange after that?

Well I was so thrilled to be asked, because it was then in the late seventies and early eighties, the 69 Company and the people there were regarded

Photos: © Alastair Muir / Rex Features

in the 50s, but it was very much a school that wanted to change your personality really. I mean really, breaking down, particularly my accent which was very broad, I mean really broad. It was so dense nobody could understand me there at all. Some of the tutors there were very eccentric.

I’ve mentioned my great fondness of Tosca Fedra who was from the Russian Ballet, who taught movement. I remember vividly, arriving in her class in my tights and leotard, and being deeply embarrassed.

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Photo: © RL

closeup

Main Image Page 16: Richard III at the Savoy Theatre; Page 17: BBC’s My Family with Zoë Wanamaker; Aristo at the Minerva Theatre, Chichester; Page 18: Leaving RADA in 1970; The Entertainer at Old Vic; The Trail of Tony Blair for Channel 4

as the best. Michael Elliott, Jasper Raider, Braham Murray and James Maxwell. The design and the concept of it, it really was the place to be.

Redgrave was there, Mirren was there, Hoskins, you name it – everyone who was anyone worked at the Royal Exchange. Zoë [Wanamaker] was there at one point. I remember auditioning and got a season there, and that was it. At that point I’d become a TV name, which was odd. Being stopped everywhere. I remember doing Hamlet at the Royal Exchange, and there were queues around the block, and I remember them saying to me “You do realise, you’re bringing another audience to this theatre that’s never been before”.

Which must have felt good, no?

Well… (Long pause) Do you know, I think I’ve always been embarrassed by my TV Celebrity. It’s never really sat very well with me. I’ve always thought of myself as an actor. And of course, there’s a lot of baggage comes with being a TV Celebrity and it never sat very well me at all. I mean, I’m used to it now, but it’s taken a long time.

You did The Entertainer at the Old Vic. How was working at such an iconic theatre and with Kevin Spacey?

Well, there’s a long story attached to that. Kevin had the rights, and I’d already done a reading of it a year before at the Royal Court. David Hare directed the reading, and everyone was saying this is a role you have to play. I had been told when I was doing Me and My Girl at the Adelphi that it was a role I should take on at some point, by the man himself who played it – Laurence Olivier. But Kevin had the rights, and I thought he obviously anticipated doing it himself at some point. David Hare said “ring him,” and I said “well, I don’t know him.” He said “never mind that, ring him. He must have heard about you.” So I did, I left a message on his machine and within minutes he called me back, which freaked my daughter out completely because she answered the phone. I don’t think she’s really recovered.

Kevin was great. He said “Robert, you have to do it, but the deal is, you do it here [at the Old Vic], which was perfect because it was Olivier’s theatre and we had his wonderful widow [Dame Joan Plowright] there on our first night, so it made it particularly exciting.

You’ve won numerous awards, would you say they’ve been an important part of your career?

Well it’s recognition isn’t it. I mean, I don’t knock it. I think it’s very easy to sneer at awards. If they’re from your peers, it’s particularly pleasing, and if it’s from the public it’s particularly pleasing. The irony is, I never got a Best Newcomer Award and I’ve just received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Television Society, which means I’ve got to start going to the gym very soon! I don’t mind saying that I do have them on a shelf, I’ve always had them on a shelf, they are slightly hidden from general view. I don’t use them as a door stop or anything silly like that, I’m rather proud of the moments when I’ve received them.

And rightly so. Now, you’ve played Tony Blair twice. Have you

need an impression, you need to play the character that’s written”.

Which is a man haunted by his mistakes.

You’ve

had a long varied career, tackling many different roles, what advice would you give to those launching into the profession?

My daughter’s at drama school at the moment [Syd is training at Arts Ed], and she’s loving it. She turned down the chance to go to university, which I was knocked senseless about I have to say. She turned round to me and said “No, Dad, I don’t want to be sat behind a desk any more, I want to get my hands on and get in there.” And I’m very proud of her because, Syd has seen what the industry can do, she knows the ups and downs. I call those reality shows, throwaway reality shows.

It’s a disposable industry we’re in, you get a telly, it doesn’t work, you throw it away, you don’t get anyone to mend it anymore. And the same with the talent shows, you know. These people have no concept of a career, of an industry that you have to learn a technique, and sustaining a performance over eight shows a week, or sitting on cold film sets and waiting for the moment you give a performance. Syd admires people like Julie Walters and Helen Mirren, who are great friends of mine, people who have worked in the industry all their lives. They’re not one-off wonders, they like everyone else in this industry have had their failures as well, and failures are very important, they really are. I’ve always talked very publicly about my acting failures, and my personal failures, I think because they push you on.

I believe that’s what’s wonderful about drama school, you can afford to fail, if you need to, in a safe environment.

Yes! Kevin [Spacey] said that, at the Old Vic, when he was choosing plays that were particularly mauled. He said “You know, that’s why I came into the theatre, because it’s about trying things out – experimenting”.

Okay, Mr Lindsay, I have to ask. Rumour has it, you had a punch up back stage with another well-known actor? Is it true?

Very much so, yeah. I’ve got a broken nose to prove it.

You’re not going to say who it was though?

No.

Go on, give us a scoop…

No, no, I think it’s water under the bridge now. You know, egos can collide, it’s an ego business, you are putting yourself on the line, you are constantly being criticised by the public and your colleagues, and sometimes on set and stage you get friction, and you have to resolve it, otherwise it reaches a situation like that.

A true Gent. All the best Robert. ●

ever met him?

No, I don’t think I ever will now. I’ve always made it very clear that I’ve never been a fan. I was very anti-war. That’s why I did the second film [The Trail of Tony Blair]. And that’s why I dropped the impression. Simon Cellan Jones who directed the film said “I think, Robert, you need to drop the impression, which is rather good, but this is a film that doesn’t

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Robert Lindsay’s autobiography Letting Go is out now and available from all good book stores or via Thorogood Publishing. www.thorogoodpublishing.co.uk

Reach for the stars Youth Academy

Oakham School Oakham, Rutland 6 - 9 April 2010 NODA’s Youth Academy for 12-17 year olds

Book your place today!

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Professional support for amateur theatre Registered charity number 254640 Patron The Lord Lloyd Webber

Photo: Catherine Ashmore

one year

MORE

into the profession With a year’s contract in Les Miserables, Daniella Gibb reveals the reality of living the dream.

One year’s contract! 365 days of doing what you’ve trained to do and 365 days of rent money! After all the stress of auditioning and staring at your phone you are finally given a job offer and your life is mapped out until way past your next birthday! It is a wonderful feeling and you ride through rehearsals and opening nights on adrenalin, anticipation and excitement.

However, you can under-estimate the stamina and mental focus required to sustain a performance for 8 shows a week, every week and I think it takes a few months for the reality to set in, especially if you are new to the profession it does come as quite a shock! I am fortunate enough to be half way through a year-long contract at Les Miserables and as the current poster says I do “Dream the Dream Nightly”! Every night I am part of the world’s longest running musical and it certainly satisfies the 8 year old girl inside me who only ever wanted to be in Les Mis! So how do you keep a show fresh day after day, week after week? I am often asked - what is it like to be in a long-running show? Does it get boring? Your dream has become a reality so does it feel like a 9-5 job?

But the wonderful thing about live theatre is that it is impossible to do the same thing every night and enough things happen in just one 8 show week that no night is ever the same. There is never a dull moment...

A standard Monday has the mandatory “What weekend? I feel like I’ve never been away” or “I’m still slightly wasted from Sunday” chat in our warm up whilst humming and sirening to wake up our voices. Most

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shows have a compulsory warm-up which I feel is invaluable not just to get our voices and bodies ready for the show but it also allows us to reconvene as a company and get notes. A show isn’t just rehearsed then put on for a year – we don’t just turn up and churn another one out. A huge amount of work is put in to maintaining standards and re-working things so we regularly have note sessions with our Resident Director and Musical Director to try new ideas and tighten sections up.

Tiredness can often prevail especially on a matinee day. Wednesday afternoon is known to be the hardest show of the week, people drag themselves in bleary-eyed with multiple cardboard coffee cups or energy drinks despite it being 1pm – Les Miserables may as well be sponsored

by Starbucks! The wonderful girls in my dressing room have invented a cocktail of Berocca and Lemsip if they’re peaky or feel a cold coming which apparently tastes “like a dream” and soon has them bouncing off the barricades! So there are many aides to keeping your energy up!

Many incidents can brighten up an otherwise normal week. On any given day we have a list at stage door detailing who is off sick or on holiday and who is covering what parts in the show.

Understudies and Swings can be thrown on at a moment’s notice.

Fifteen minutes after curtain up our Jean Valjean broke his finger during a fight scene recently. So we had to stop the show whilst the understudy got wigged up to replace him, the audience sat waiting patiently as did the dressed up prostitutes and sailors backstage and Valjean reappeared 20 minutes later looking about 10 years younger but competently

intotheprofession continuing with the show! Swings are cast members who cover all the ensemble tracks and therefore have about 9 tracks running through their heads at once. They are immensely talented people who can seamlessly replace someone who’s back injury has become too much or the poor victim of a stage punch that results in the mopping up of a bloody nose whilst lying next to a water cooler in the wings!

I understudy two parts, one of which is the 10 year old boy Gavroche. I can hear your guffaws across the country! Why is a 28 year old woman understudying a part normally played by young male actors from places like Sylvia Young etc? Well it’s something to do with being 5ft and not being as physically blessed as Jordan but anyway it is an “emergency cover” so I agreed because I never thought it could actually happen - But then swine flu hit!

One of our lovely boys sadly had suspected swine flu (damn those pigs!) so there was a day last August when Gibb stepped up to the mark! It was terrifying, hilarious and exciting all at once! With filled in eyebrows and not a scrap of make-up on I tried to convince an audience of my youthful boyishness and it hopefully worked if they didn’t make use of those binoculars! However, during a jubilant highfive moment in the finale my hat fell off to reveal long brown hair cascading out! Ah foiled again!!

Talking of losing hats I have to share a mortifying wig mishap. Our show is heavily wigged, especially so for our leading man Valjean. As we ran on one day to chase the fleeing felon we were greeted by a bald man with a pair of tights on his head careering towards us, belting out a high note and his wig flowing behind him attached by one pin! It was the funniest thing we’d seen in ages but it quickly became terror as we realised this poor man couldn’t get off stage and had to complete a highly emotional solo in a few moments time! Someone tried to help by placing it back on his head as we ran but it ended up looking like a sideways mullet of piled up fuzz. The actor took it so well and sang the soliloquy with pride and was making jokes about keeping his hair on by the interval! What a trouper!

Jokes and funny incidents aside there is a serious focus and technique required to sustain 8 shows a week at performance level.

Funny moments do help you get through a show as do wonderful opportunities such as our recent filming of the promotional EPK or The Susan Boyle Story where we get to work in recording and television studios. They inject you and your daily work with passion and energy as you are inspired by a live orchestra or recording some vocals as a group with amazing conductors. It truly bonds you as a cast and makes you so grateful to be part of the show.

Whilst I’ve been writing this piece we happened to be given an apt speech from our Resident Director during a notes session – he felt it was time to remind us of the passion and drive required from us as actors, in order to make Les Miserables work. And sadly we weren’t doing the show justice with our commitment and focus. Of course it is natural that 6 months into a contract our bodies have become used to our tracks in the show, it perhaps sits more comfortably within us than it did at first therefore requiring less energy but we cannot become robotic or complacent in our work. Les Miserables is an epic show full of epic music and emotions and it demands epic commitment from a performer. I often joke that I die every night, sometimes twice a day, but that is a fairly major thing to undertake!

I felt this talk was justified as we all sometimes need a gentle reminder s of how bloomin’ lucky we are and how we cannot at any cost allow ourselves to think we have a regular 9-5 job. It may be only 3 hours work a night in whatever show you are fortunate enough to do and by Saturday night you may feel like you are climbing uphill in treacle with dead bodies attached to your legs, but it still requires your ultimate commitment. The people paying £60 are worth that, your fellow cast members are worth it, but mainly (and without sounding too much like a L’Oreal advert....) your passion and your integrity as an actor are worth it!

So 365 days may seem like a long time, but it’s your duty to make each day different and full of appreciation. Make each day your best days work because let me tell you, 365 days don’t half go quick! ●

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of long runs It’s one of the great dirty secrets of the acting profession. None of the acting schools equip you for how to deal with it, and hardly anyone is sympathetic to your cries – however there is no denying that long runs are a test of your determination and stamina, writes Knight Hooson.

There are times when two shows on a Wednesday can seem as difficult as scaling Mount Everest. When the thought of doing the same scene for the 1 millionth time is more than your soul can bear - and yet you must do it – how do you summon the strength to soldier on? Below are 26 titbits of well-earned wisdom which can help you give your best even on bad days.

Exercise

Keeping fit will help keep your energy reserves high.

Vigorous exercise will also help you process any feelings of frustration and leave you on a natural high.

Audience

Think about the people out there who have paid their money and have come to see you. They are looking to be entertained and your job is to send them home happy. Sometimes seeing the faces of the people in the front row, especially pensioners who have saved their pennies to come see you, is enough to find the will to do one more show.

Breathe

Breath energises you; it also reminds us that we can only ever go from one breath to the next. This helps to keep you in the moment and break a huge task down into tiny mouthfuls. Make sure each new thought is ‘inspired’ with a new breath. When we forget to breath, we feel stale and our performance gets stale. Breath makes it new.

Friends

Use your friends, both within the cast and without, to laugh about things and help keep your perspective on life and acting in check.

Gratitude

Be grateful you have a job. Thinking of the 10,000 actors who would love to have your job is often enough to fuel the final mile.

or Coffee Chocolate Sometimes the promise of a treat is enough to get you from one Act to the next.

Hydrate

Keep your body full of water.

A dehydrated body is a tired and cranky body.

Intention D

iction Focus on your diction, hitting

all of your consonants and using all of your available resonance for your vowel sounds. Energetic consonants can often energise a tired performance.

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Active verbs are your best friend.

The subtle shift from ‘I tease’ to ‘I titillate’ can make a sagging line feel new again.

Judging

Don’t judge yourself – everyone suffers from time to time. The more you judge yourself, the more you will become self-conscious, which is the last thing you want. Keep focussing outside of yourself in order to get over whatever you may be feeling.

Keep your life going

Make sure your life outside of the theatre doesn’t grind to a halt. Keep reading, learning, and challenging yourself every day.

Take full advantage of your days off to see friends and loved ones and experience new things.

Listen

Really listen! After a length of time, we can hear without really listening; but if you actually listen to everything that is said on stage, not just the words but the inflections, then you will get out of yourself and have tonnes of fresh reactions.

Motivation

Your motivation for a scene is allowed to change.

Your objectives can shift and develop as your character tries to achieve their major objective. Try a different tack to reach your destination and see what happens.

atoz

Trust

Trust the people you’re on stage with to help carry you along – you’re a team. Sometimes when one person is tired, another person can help give them a boost.

Also trust that each show is new and presents the possibility of discovery about yourself, the character and the people you work with.

Unemployment

Occasionally thinking about how miserable you are when you aren’t working is enough to get you through. Think about your worst day temping and use that to spark you into making the most of your chance to practise your craft.

Nothing

Vocalise

Sometimes we add so many layers to what we are doing in a scene that we lose the forest for the trees. Sometimes, if we step back and do nothing, it re-energises the scene. Do nothing and see what comes out – you might surprise yourself by finding something new.

Opinions

Even if you are in the background of a scene, you should have an opinion about everyone and everything. These opinions can change (as long as you stick to the shape of the scene) which allows it to be different every time.

Practice

– All the techniques you learned in your training can be experimented with. Once you are comfortable and secure in what you’re doing, there is no reason why you can’t incorporate techniques like your Alexander Technique training into your performance. Set goals for yourself: how about doing a whole show keeping your neck free/relaxed and your shoulders wide?

Or breathing freely and deeply with each thought? You can still do the scene, hit your marks and practice skills that will make you a better actor.

Question

A vocal warmup can wake you up and focus you on the task ahead.

However, don’t just do the same warmup everyday – try new exercises, work on new texts, challenge yourself. Take that vocal energy into your performance.

Relationships

Acting is all about relationships between various characters. These relationships can always deepen and take on new layers. Invest more in your personal backstory; then dig deeper and flesh out your history with your scene partner.

Secrets

Every character can (and should) have secrets which only they know. It’s amazing how energising having a secret can be. Perhaps your character is pregnant and no one knows? Or maybe you are sleeping with the next door neighbour?

You can also know secrets about other characters – things they would be horrified if anyone else knew. It’s all in the imagination.

Watch

Really watch what is happening around you. Observe people, scenery, and props in detail. It will keep you grounded in the moment and give you new stimuli to react to.

X-Factor

You never know who is in the audience watching you. You wouldn’t want the day that Trevor Nunn visits to be the day you ‘phone it in,’ would you?

You

It all comes down to you. You are responsible to give your best every time – for yourself, for your colleagues, for the playwright, for the public, and for your art. Do whatever it takes to achieve this – that’s what being a professional is all about.

ZZZZZ

Get plenty of sleep – it will make sure you are on top of your game. A nap between matinee and evening performances can do wonders. ●

Question everything – instead of repeatedly thinking the same thoughts, ask yourself new questions every day. Why am I reacting this way?

What do I think of this? It will keep your mind active and an active mind doesn’t have a chance to be bored.

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takecontrol Felicity Jackson is an actress on a mission. What began as simple advice to her thespian friends, has turned into a full blown convention to help performers sustain their notoriously difficult profession.

take control Tell

us about the UK’s first actor’s convention, survivng actors. how did it come about?

It all came about with me constantly seeing actors struggling to survive in London, and struggling to finance themselves between jobs. Also seeing lots of actors taking long breaks to make money and then it’s really hard to get back into. So I thought of an actor’s convention, that would be a great chance to show actors how to survive real life, no talk of Hollywood, fame and fortune. Just really how to survive in the industry. There are so many opportunities out there to make money whist in-between jobs. Even though it might not be the most fantastic jobs, you can still do it.

And what’s the main purpose of the event?

To help actors survive and introduce them to various opportunities that are out there. It’s also to guide actors towards quality companies that are genuine and away from the phoney companies that are out there.

It’s really important to mention that the people who put this together are actors themselves. So we’ve made sure that every single company that’s invited and everyone that is speaking at the seminars are people that we would take advice from, and that we would use ourselves.

And what would you say is the unique thing about surviving actors?

It falls into three different sections which are to Develop, Create and Sustain. For the Develop section, we’ve introduced different companies such as photographers, showreel, voicereel and casting companies that can help develop people in their acting career. The Sustain section, we’ve invited lots of different promotional companies, also companies that are looking for entertainers at birthday parties and even children’s theatre companies who are looking for teachers. And the third section will help actor’s create their own jobs and productions, so we have the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and other companies which will give advice to those who wish to take control of their career and make it happen for themselves.

They will be running different seminars, which are completely free to go to.

What will actually happen on the day?

There will be four different rooms open on the day. The main room will be the exhibition room with lots of different companies to give advice and obligation free information about what they can offer you as an actor.

There will also be a career’s advice room, which you will need to book

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in advance for on our website. The bar area will be open for networking opportunities and will also have different singers and performers showcasing their work. And the seminar room, to get advice on casting and creating your own productions, which you will also need to prebook on the website.

What companies will we be able to meet at the event?

Companies that help you develop your career such as Casting Call Pro and their sister website Promo Jobs Pro. Hot Reels, MAD Photography, PCR. Also in the Sustain section we’ve got promotional companies like Sugar Dools and Promotional Support, also Create Theatre School and Perform who will be able to offer different work opportunities for 2010.

And to help you create your own opportunities, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Sell a Door Theatre Company and the new London Festival Fringe.

Who should attend surviving actors?

We are expecting professional actors, singers, dancers and performers still in training. The one important thing is that it is an over 18 event as the venue is a licensed premises. We welcome actors who have been out of the profession for a while and want to get back into it, to network with others in the industry, or just to get advice.

So how do actors attend the event?

Go onto our website, click on register and fill in their information. They will be sent an email to verify their information, and then they will receive their e-ticket. It’s quite important to bring your e-ticket along, as we are expecting a large number of people. With your e-ticket you can get straight in and not have to queue up. So really it is worth going to our website and registering in advance.

So it’s a completely free event?

Absolutely. Completely free. You can come along, gain entrance, attend a seminar, get career’s advice and not have to spend a penny.

As

proud sponsors, the drama student magazine is really excited to be involved and looking forward to the day.

●

Surviving Actors will be held on Saturday 30th January at Sway Bar in Central London. For more information and to register visit www.survivingactors.com

IN THE MONEY In 2005 Equity celebrated its 75th Anniversary. The impetus for Equity came from a group of leading actors of the day who decided that they had quite a hard time of it (not being paid for rehearals, no agreed working terms, no protection when things went wrong etc) and how much worse it was for people starting out in the business. Equity was born in the Duke Of Yorks Theatre on St Martin’s Lane - if you are in the bar have a look for the commemorative plaque and copy of the charter with all the signatures of the original members of the union.

So, 75 years on we celebrated the founding of the union and among other things had a bit of a do at the National Theatre for our Life Members. This group includes the elder statesmen and women of the industry and they wanted to give something back to help people at the start of their careers. They made donations and as a result Equity established it wo sets of bursaries for Student Members and Young Members.

The Young Member bursaries are for full Equity members aged 26 and younger (Equity Members join at 14 years old if they are working). The Student Members bursaries are open to Equity Student Members in their last year of study who are nominated by their school, university or other training institution. Each school can nominate a female and a male student and of course these include student actors, directors, dancers, choreographers, designers, circus artists etc. There are two bursaries of £500 each which the Life Members and union hope will give a bit of useful, practical support at a time of change, i.e leaving training. This year the awards went to Irina Baldini and Harrison Daniels and they were announced at the Duke of York’s Theatre in November as part of the Clarence Derwent Awards (a whole other story).

Equity contacts the schools directly when the bursary process begins each year, so if you are in your final year and an Equity Student Member, make sure your school knows about the bursaries and sends in their nominations. www.equity.org.uk

Dudley

by Michael Culkin

I was recently asked why I had done some job or other, if, as it seemed, it had been a disaster from start to finish. It was on location in an Eastern Europen country that must remain nameless, where cooking was either boiled or fried. I got paid rather badly and the work’s appearance in the annals of cinematographic art was most unlikely.

But I knew the answer to why I did it. I always do.

Beyond the delight in being asked to work in the first place, I am acutely aware of the usefulness of knowing why! I did my first job in the West End because that was what I had always dreamt of. I played the Donmar because I wanted to work in the best playing space in London, probably the country.

But having your own reason for doing a job brings a surprising benefit. Protection! Many refuse to read reviews, they consider the critics superfluous and in many ways they are right. But for some it is simple fear, we don’t want to be hurt. We risk all and yet are terrified of what that brings.

BUT knowing why you took the job puts you beyond the reach of hurt. I know why I did a job and I remain happily unaffected by critics.

If you take the trouble to scan the NT archives for some of the worst reviews they’ve ever had, you’ll find a play in which I made my belated debut there. Why the play was wholly derided is not important, it was unimportant to me at the time, but what is important, is that I knew why I did the job, I had my reasons! Many in the cast took the drubbing very badly, I was unaffected. I had agreed to do the play because I wanted to know if I could play ‘an ineffectual man’. I had set my course and no slings or arrows could trouble or throw me off.

Your reason for accepting a job will be as unique and personal as the talent and skill that got you it in the first place. You might want to work with the director, in that space, with that company, in a piece you have long admired, with another actor, get the nudity over and done with, tackle the classics, see if your singing voice works, try on your dancing feet… The why’s abound!.

AND if you know why you accepted the work, then no matter the barbs and comments from critics, friends, family even, or public, they will fall away as so many used ticket stubs and leave no mark, scratch or hurt.

I have made films for their exotic locations, the film has vanished without a trace but memories of Thailand linger. I have done a job for the money but rarely any of that lingers. The longer I remain at the mill the more I respond to the adventure of good writing and exciting ideas.

But I am specific in my ‘why’. Not just the good writing but what it is to me, and the particular ‘learning road’ I am on.

This business is lonely, so much of our ‘showbiz family’ falls away during holidays, and ultimately we are all treading a unique and lone path. Knowing why you do what you do each time, adds to your fulfilment, empowerment and happiness.

So why did I go to Eastern Europe? The disaster was all the more amusing for my reason: I went because I wanted to see if things had improved since my first visit back in 1994. Perhaps somewhat trivial, but as the production fell about our ears, I remained sanguine, a point of Zen-like calm in the Balkan mayhem, and, was considered the mightier actor for it! ●

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takecontrol

webmarketing

Online casting services have played a major role in casting actors in productions. We learn about one website that’s personally ensuring their members have the talent to succeed.

The job of a casting director is often a tricky one. Their definitive aim is to make life easy for the Producer and Director, so it’s imperative suitable actors are found for the roles as quickly as possible. A great Casting Director will grasp the script at once and present a series of potential runners for each role to the decision makers, all of whom could be perfect casting.

You may not think it, but a Casting Director will always be feeling the pressure. Ideally, they want the director to be so happy, he or she casts the entire project in the first round of auditions – job done and dusted – although sadly, that doesn’t often happen. The longer the project takes to cast, the more strain everyone is under.

So how does a Casting Director get there? They will always draw on their knowledge of existing actors in the industry first, with the ability to sniff out new emerging talent when needed. Casting Directors will more often than not take on suggestions from trusted agents. After all, they’re representing the actor, seen their performance and will be confident they have the talent.

Yet, a Casting Director knows there’s gifted actors in every pocket of the country, who may or may not be signed by an agent, so online directories are often explored. Casting Directors can spend many hours meetings actors that are new to them, on a one-to-one basis, to gauge their potential suitability. This can be a long, drawn out and tiring process, with many poor performances coming through the door.

So how do you limit the odds of that happening? Robert Earnshaw of The Casting Website reckons he has the answer. In 2005 whilst still a member of the National Youth Theatre, Earnshaw set up his own directory of students. “I was increasingly frustrated by the fact that a lot of young actors in the industry, with fantastic talent, didn’t have access to casting calls and weren’t able to contact casting directors in the industry,” he explains. “So I decided to create a directory of NYT members.”

It wasn’t long before professional Casting Directors were taking advantage of Earnshaw’s list, and he decided to open up the directory to help other young actors throughout the UK. “All of a sudden, it really took off. I had casting calls coming in left, right and centre,” he recalls.

“Suzanne Smith [a major Casting Director] sent me a film breakdown and I had Slum Dog Millionaire come in two weeks later. I just kept suggesting actors.”

“I think we can all relate to being at your local youth theatre and you don’t really know where the next steps are. You really enjoy acting, you want to take your career further but how do you get yourself an agent, where do you go for professional headshots, this is why I started The Casting Website to offer everyone the chance regardless of their background or previous experience, to have access to casting calls and to contact casting directors directly.”

Nowadays The Casting Website is positively thriving, having helped

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11 to 21 year olds across the country secure acting jobs in theatre, film and television. But it’s the company’s recent change in tact that has excited Earnshaw most. In order to ensure the quality of the directory’s members, he and a group of professional Casting Directors, such as Sue Jones and Jane Frisby, are travelling the length and breadth of the UK to vet those that are serious about a career in the industry.

“I think the fairest way to be able to judge somebody’s talent is by offering them an opportunity to audition in front of a professional casting director,” explains Earnshaw, who invites all of his basic members to a workshop in their local region. “If they pass the audition, and only if they pass the audition, are they then invited to become part of the full directory.”

This may sound a little harsh, but Earnshaw insists that moderating his service in this way can only be beneficial to everyone. “What we do, is work with the youngsters for four hours, they get to workshop with twenty other people, doing improvisation, some script work, they get to meet and ask questions to the Casting Director about the industry,” he says. “They get an opportunity to practice and then perform in front of the Casting Director the script they were given on the day. Very much like a film audition really. Even if they don’t pass the audition, they get something from the day and they also make some new friends.”

Basic members can also take advantage of many discounts and offers through The Casting Website, as well as their profile being visible to all Casting Directors.

Those that pass the audition are invited to pay £60 to join the directory as a full member, which then entitles them to access all of the casting calls with details of the Casting Directors. “They’ve been given the seal of approval, if you like,” says Earnshaw. “Casting Directors want to see the best people. They can be confident the full members have been seen by a professional, who has said they do have the talent to be in the directory.”

Sue Jones, says she is sure The Casting Website will prove an extremely useful tool for her and fellow colleagues. “To be able to access and target so many young people at once will save so much time. There is a huge gap in the market for a service, with an enormous database, with the ability to handle vast numbers of submissions and process them for Casting Directors - all on the same website.

“Pretty much what Spotlight has been doing so successfully with adult actors. And knowing that so many members will have been independently assessed, is especially reassuring.”

Karen Lindsay-Steward, the Casting Director of blockbusters such as Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets, added: “It’s great what Rob is doing. He’s opened up a whole new way to find exciting, young talent.” Suddenly the pressure is easing. ● www.thecastingwebsite.com

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actorstoolbox

A Flawless Accent? actors toolbox How important is it to get the pronunciation perfect? Odile Rault considers how far the rules can be bent before we realise it’s just another actor doing a dodgy accent.

Prince John (Richard Lewis): “Why should the people listen to you?”

Robin Hood (Cary Ewles): “Because, unlike some other Robin Hoods, I can speak with an English accent.” from Robin Hood: Men in Tights.

Mel Brooks’ witty dig at Kevin Costner’s hide-n-seek English accent in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves has helped to make Costner’s performance in the film top of many ‘Worst Accents in Movies’ lists. He’s joined by Dick van Dyke’s attempt at a Cockney accent in Mary Poppins and Demi Moore’s on-again-off-again English accent in Flawless. So, how important is it to get an accent right? Does it have to be perfect, or does the odd mispronunciation here and there not matter? Does a dodgy accent distract from a great performance?

I remember being surprised that the obvious errors in accent (for example in Demi Moore’s performance in Flawless) weren’t picked up on in production, and corrected. This would surely have avoided the fieldday the press had comparing the title of the film to Ms. Moore’s rendition of an English accent. Presumably there are (expensive) dialogue coaches available for these productions, and one can’t help but wonder what went wrong.

The interesting thing is, in “real life” many of us have mixed accents.

There are a wide variety of influences on our natural accents. Spending time in different cultures even within the same country can change certain vowels and phrasing, as well as having friends who have accents different to our own. Most of us will pick up at least a couple of habits – unconsciously – if we spend enough time with the person. However, when it comes to accents in performance on stage, screen or radio, we tend to become intolerant of this. It jars to hear a character who is supposed to have a particular accent, delivering it with tinges of a different dialect. Audiences become particularly critical when hearing their own native accent mispronounced.

Despite the fact that my own native accent is a mix of South African and R.P. – and I’m a perfectly real person – I’m well aware that if I don’t pull off an accent accurately in performance or during an audition, it’s more likely my audience will see it as incompetence rather than assume my character has spent time in South Africa or London. I’m therefore extremely careful when using a dialect that isn’t my own, to make sure

28

that the accent doesn’t upstage me. In many cases – especially with an accent that’s almost accurate – the odd word here and there breaks the illusion and the audience is reminded “it’s only an actor”.

An excellent example of one word “giving an actor away” without their even realising it, is the word “adult” pronounced in an American accent (any American accent). Most of us who’ve not lived in the U.S. and don’t have friends or family who are American (and even some who do!) when asked to pronounce “adult” in an American accent, will keep the emphasis of the syllables the same, and simply accentuate the “a” and possibly shorten the “u”. And indeed I recently witnessed an audition by an English actor who did just that. He was auditioning for an American director, who later pointed out that his accent was excellent, but that his pronunciation of the word “adult” gave him away. Americans in fact, when pronouncing “adult” shorten the “a” and put full emphasis and stress on the “u” (rhyming with “assault”, but if you hadn’t heard it spoken by an American, or you hadn’t heard it recently, you would quite naturally assume the former.

For this reason I thought it would make sense to have a native speaker read my lines onto an mp3 file when using an accent that isn’t my own – knowing that there may be words I’m unaware I’m mispronouncing. This led me to the website usemyaccent.com where actors are able to find native speakers of the accents they need for performance, auditions, show-reels and voice reels. They are then able to email the script to the “reader”, and receive in return, an mp3 with the actual words they’ll be using, spoken in the authentic accent. I attribute a recent job to the confidence I gained in using this service for correcting the pronunciation of a few words using an East Coast American accent.

Actors are also able to register their own accents and read for others. Membership of the site is free, and readers arrange a fee for the reading directly with the actor. Many are even offering to read lines in their accent free of charge.

If only this site were around when Dick van Dyke and Kevin Costner needed it! ● Visit www.usemyaccent.com

ARTS EDUCATIONAL SCHOOLS LONDON

MA Acting now auditioning

September 2010 entry

VISIT WWW.ARTSED.CO.UK

Q

I auditioned for drama school last year and although I got recalls for some schools, I was unsuccessful. The feedback from one panel said that I have problems emotionally connecting to the speech. I really have to agree. I sometimes find it difficult to get into the role under the pressure of an audition, especially within just a 2 minute speech. What can you advise to help me find that connection when it matters most?

student support

Simon Dunmore answers...

Essentially, recognise the fact of the artificiality of the audition process.

And be completely rooted in your characters & their situations!

There’s quite a wind blowing as I write. Branches — even whole trees — are swaying quite alarmingly. I doubt if they’ll be much damage...

Maybe dead branches will come down, but my trees will stay firm — because of their roots.

Growing a character’s roots Who are you? You must bring your character’s life history (gleaned from the play and supplemented by your imagination) into your performance.

Most of what you ‘bring’ won’t be obvious to your auditioners. However, it will be immediately obvious if that ‘life history’ is not sufficiently rooted.

Tip Carry a small notebook around with you so that you can jot down new ideas as they occur to you. As the character (i.e. in the first person) write notes of all the bits of information (big and small) that you find in order to build his/her life. There’s always more!

Who are you talking to? If you choose a speech addressing another character, then it is vital that that other person (and how they are reacting through the speech) is clear to you. It is generally better to imagine an adaptation of someone you know rather than ‘borrow’ someone you’ve only seen on a flat screen — there can be a huge difference in how we perceive others between two- and three-dimensions.

It’s not just them (and how they are reacting); it’s also important to be clear about your relationship. As well as imagining what your character’s lover looks like (for instance), you must also know the feel of their touch, their smell, and so forth — and many more personal aspects.

If you’re talking to yourself: Remember that you’re talking for the

30

audience — your auditioners. If your talking to the audience: It’s often a good idea to imagine someone (appropriate) that you know out in that audience. Also, think of your auditioners as being part of a bigger audience. It is also important that any other people, places and events mentioned in the speech are similarly ‘clear’ in your imagination.

What are your circumstances? The setting, clothes and practical items are also part of your character’s ‘roots’ — in your imagination.

(NB I could have written ‘set, costumes and props’, but I believe that it’s important to think of everything being ‘real’ and not items constructed for a production). I believe that actors neglecting these is the cause of a high proportion of failed and indifferent speeches. It’s not just the visual images, it is also what the other senses give you — the ‘brush’ of a summer breeze across your face, for instance.

It isn’t just the major features that you should think about, but also the apparently minor details — for instance, that mark on a wall that suddenly catches your character’s eye. [Our eyes are like vacuum cleaners — they suck in huge amounts of information]. It can be a good idea to draw a map (or groundplan) so that the whole ‘geography’ of your ‘circumstances’ is clear for you — and fill out your imaginary location with as much detail as possible.

Beginnings It is particularly important to be clear about what actually provokes the character to start speaking — the ‘ignition’ that kicks your ‘engine’ into life. Try running a brief ‘film’ in your imagination culminating in the event (for instance, a statement or a gesture from someone else) that is your cue.

Tip It can also be very useful to incorporate a simple movement to start a speech — a turn of the head, for instance.

studentsupport That voyage of discovery Be aware of the ‘voyage of discovery’ that shapes your speech. Don’t anticipate the end at the beginning.

This is a common fault in rehearsal, which is easily corrected — but a remarkable number of people fall into this trap when performing their audition speeches.

It can be very useful to write out a speech with each sentence (or even each phrase) on a separate line — it then appears less of a ‘block’ of words on the page and more a series of separate, but connected, thoughts and ideas. It is also a good idea to leave sufficient space between each line to write notes on what the impulse is to go on to say the next thing, and the next, and...

Endings It’s also important to be clear as to why a character stops speaking — after talking for two minutes... You need to be clear what your character’s final thought is — crucially stopping his/her flow.

The artificiality of the audition process Auditioning for drama schools (& in the profession) is a desperately artificial process! [Hence that extra sense of ‘pressure’]. However, we’re stuck with it. And, there are ways round the artificiality — using the techniques that we use to put on a production. If you’re in a production you’ve got lots of physical & emotional support to inspire your performance — provided that the production is well-rooted. In audition — however conducive the panel & surroundings — you don’t have that ‘support’.

Therefore, you have to be self-sufficient — through rigorously working through the disciplines that are fundamental to the beginning & end of a performance. You need to be not only well rehearsed (‘well-rooted’) but also well prepared for how to cope with all the peripherals that are other people’s responsibilities when you are actually doing a production. You are your own stage-management, wardrobe department, front-of-house manager, and so forth.

“Your first speech, please.” Whatever cue you’re given to start acting — don’t rush into it! First (if necessary) tell the panel clearly the character’s name, the play & playwright — akin to the front-of-house announcement that the performance is “about to commence.”

The acting area This is your ‘stage’. Once you arrive in it, first you need to check everything you need is in place — that is the invisible (but clear in your imagination) ‘setting, clothes and practical items’ that are ‘part of your character’s roots.’ However clear these may have been in your rehearsal space, it’ll take a few seconds to fit them in to the audition room.

Note If you’re using a chair, take a moment to get a ‘feel’ of the one in the audition room — it could be subtly (even, significantly) different from the one you’ve been rehearsing with.

Replanting those ‘roots’ Your audition room is new ‘soil’. It takes a few seconds to acclimatise & reconnect with your character’s life & ‘roots.’

Finishing When you finish you should keep the final thought in your mind and gently freeze for a moment — just as you would if you’re left onstage at the end of a scene in a play. Then fade the imaginary stage-lighting (and close the curtains) at a suitable rate. (That ‘moment’ should last about a second — if you’re unsure, say a multi-syllable word like ‘Mississippi’ in your head). Then - without immediately looking your auditioners in the eye - relax back to your normal self, ready to move on to whatever they want you to do next. If you do make eye-contact immediately at the end of a speech (as you might whilst working with a tutor), you’ll invariably encounter a thoughtful stare which can appear intimidating. It’s better to give yourself a private few seconds, before re-engaging with your auditioners. Good luck! ● Simon Dunmore has been directing productions for over 30 years — nearly 20 years as a resident director in regional theatres and, more recently, working freelance. He also teaches acting & audition technique and has worked (& continues to do so) in many drama schools and other training establishments around the country. He has written several books: An Actor’s Guide to Getting Work (now in its fourth edition), the Alternative Shakespeare Auditions series and is the Consultant Editor for Actors’ Yearbook. He’s also been very involved with the work of Equity & the National Council for Drama Training. www.simon.dunmore.btinternet.co.uk

justask@thedramastudent.co.uk

Am I allowed help?

I’m all ready to audition for drama school, and have my dates for three schools coming up soon. I was reading in a forum that getting help with your speeches from a tutor or director was frowned upon with the drama school audition panel. I have a tutor who helps me and is brilliant.

If the panel ask me should I be honest about this?

Marc, Chester Hi Marc, A drama school audition panel wants to get to know you as an actor and sometimes an over-rehearsed and over-staged piece stifles spontaneity. We appreciate that you may want a bit of advice and direction to understand the piece but you have to keep it real too. Some drama schools run short courses on audition technique which are specifically aimed at helping you prepare for your drama school audition. You also have to do your own homework - you would be surprised how badly advised some auditionees are and they come along with a really bad choice of speech and little character/ play understanding. Personally I think it is important that you are open to suggestions and follow any re-direction you may be given by the panel - who may want to see you perform in a different style - or they may want to see how you respond to a different approach. Just remember to be objective and to think outside the box. It is something you will have to do throughout your career. Finally I would always say honesty is the best policy - so if you are asked a question, be truthful.

Good Luck.

Lose my roots?

My Aunt was a famous actress in the 1960’s and we have the same unusual surname. Whenever I meet theatre professionals that is all the panel ever speak of. I didn’t know my Aunt as she died before I was born. I know this sounds rather bizarre, but I have considered changing my name several times as I want to succeed in my own right, not just because of the family legacy. Does it make a difference?

Kate, London Dear Kate, Be proud of the fact that people ask if you are related to your Aunt. They are not asking you to imitate her but the familiarity of your name is a point of conversation. I would strongly suggest you do NOT change your name - why should you?

Trust me, people will find it interesting and if you do press interviews it will be covered, but you will not ‘make it’ purely on your name. You will have to prove you can do it and that you are able to sustain a career. Look at Amelia Fox - with two famous parents, she has proved her worth and shown she is a great actress in her own right. Your name might open doors for you - and why not, we all need as much help as possible. But you have to do the rest.

Yvonne I’Anson is Head of Marketing at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts.

Can Yvonne Help?

If you have a question, no matter what stage in your journey, email justask@thedramastudent.co.uk *Please note that Yvonne is unable to respond to your questions personally.

31

farewell . . .

So long,

After twenty-three years at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, Paul Sabey has left in search of new and exciting challenges, writes Yvonne I’Anson.

In 1987 a fresh-faced, talented young musician was offered a post at Mountview, teaching singing on a one-to-one basis to students studying on the performance course, which was at that time primarily acting.

Although only 22 years of age, Paul Sabey had already amassed an incredible amount of experience. Coming from a musical family, he started to play the piano at the age of four and reached an advanced level in playing and reading music within a short period of time (he was pianist for the school assemblies from the age of six). By the time he reached his early teens he’d also mastered the Trombone, Bassoon and Church Organ and was much in demand as a young musician. From the age of sixteen he was offered engagements as a conductor, organist, pianist, vocal arranger, choirmaster and vocalist. By the following year he had started to musically direct and compose productions and his musical First Time was published by Samuel French Ltd. He was educated at Hitchin Boys’ Grammar School, North Herts College and the Middlesex University where he gained a BA (Hons) in Performing Arts.

So how did Paul identify the need for a course that specialised in Musical Theatre?

“During my first couple of years at Mountview I became very aware of the changing trends within the business and the need for a higher ‘triple threat’ performer (the ability to act, sing and dance). With this in mind, I presented a proposal for a new programme of study to the then Principal, Peter Coxhead, who wholeheartedly endorsed the idea of a highly specialised course in Musical Theatre training and offered me the opportunity to lead and develop the course - the first of its kind in the UK”, explained Paul.

He continued, “Our first students enrolled in 1990. As a completely new concept within drama training, the course was met by some professionals with derision, but sheer determination on my part and with the support of Peter Coxhead and my staff, Musical Theatre training became recognised and respected within the industry and, within a short period of time, other training establishments and the business were embracing this innovative idea. I am particularly proud that, 19 years on, Mountview continues to be the leading light in Musical Theatre training.”

What has driven Paul through such a long career? “Passion, passion and more passion”, says Paul with a smile. My commitment to the department and to the students has been 100%. I have been fortunate

32

in maintaining a high calibre of staff, and we have continued to raise the profile of the course. I am so hugely proud of our graduates and their ongoing success.”

What has been your motivation over the years? “There are some individuals who have inspired me and probably the most important one is Peter Coxhead. He put his trust in me and believed in what I was doing - I am always aware of a deep debt of gratitude to Peter, who is sadly no longer with us. Jill Meggido was Head of Dance in my early years at Mountview and she too really supported my ideas and helped make them happen - she was a remarkable and inspirational lady. I must also pay tribute to all the staff at Mountview, who are totally dedicated to the Academy and the students, and in particular I would like to acknowledge the musical theatre team for their commitment and dedication - it has been a privilege to work with them.

So why leave Mountview now? “I know this is a cliché but I think the time is right”, he replied. “My partner is currently working in Australia and since resigning I have been inundated with numerous offers of work so I will be moving out to Australia to face new and exciting challenges. The Musical Theatre course at Mountview has never been stronger and I know I am leaving it in very safe hands - also a new course director will bring a fresh approach so there will be new and exciting developments.”

And what memories will you take with you? “Too many to mention” he laughs. “But without doubt the main memories are the thousands of students I have trained, all of whom are very dear to me.”

Paul concluded, “Obviously I am very sad to leave because Mountview has been such a big part of my life for so many years but I am also excited about the future and I am looking forward to new adventures.”

Mountview’s Principal Sue Robertson said “We will all miss Paul a great deal but he leaves us with a wonderful legacy: a course which is recognised throughout the world and one which will continue to flourish.” ●

Summer School 2010

If you want to develop your acting, voice or theatre craft skills, the Central School of Speech and Drama offers you a wide array of intensive courses throughout June, July and August 2010.

For more information email spcd@cssd.ac.uk, call 020 7559 3960 or visit www.cssd.ac.uk

ACTING COURSES

VOICE COURSES

Acting for Camera for Beginners Acting for Radio Actors’ Audition Pieces Combat & Stage Fighting Directed Scenes How to Become an Actor Improvisation Making a Soap Opera Musical Theatre Liberating the Text with Nickolas Grace Summer Shakespeare Summer School at the Moscow Art Theatre School (MXAT) Summer Theatre Company Youth Theatre for Actors Preparing for Higher Education

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GUILDFORD SCHOOL OF ACTING Undergraduate: • BA (Hons) Acting or Musical Theatre [3 years] • National Diploma in Professional Acting or Musical Theatre [3 years]* • BA (Hons) Professional Production Skills [3 years] • National Diploma Professional Production Skills [2 years]* • BA (Hons) Theatre Conversion Course [1 year FT Distance Learning or PT up to 4 yrs] • BA (Hons) Professional Production Skills [1 year APL extension to 2 yr Diploma]

Postgraduate: • MA Acting [1 year] • MA Musical Theatre [1 year] • MA Practice of Voice and Singing [1 year]

Courses for 2010 –11 entry

* Diploma courses validated by Trinity College London Fully funded places available from Dance and Drama Awards for Trinity Diplomas (option to top up to BA [Hons] with extra fee) and Higher Education Funding Council for England on 3 year courses All vocational courses accredited by the National Council for Drama Training Member of CDS

For an application form/further details contact:Stag Hill Campus, University of Surrey, Guildford GU2 7XH UK Tel: (01483) 560701 Fax: (01483) 684080 Email: info@gsauk.org Web: www.gsauk.org

training

Mastering the

Art

By Kevin Wyatt-Lown

East 15 Acting School is already well known for its diverse range of exceptional Undergraduate training programmes. It is also highly regarded, both in the UK and abroad, for the Postgraduate courses it offers. While it retains its individuality as a drama school and is an active member of the Conference of Drama Schools, it has, since 2000, been part of the University of Essex, and East 15 students are able to access the benefits and resources which that relationship brings.

In 2009, to further compliment the range of Acting and Theatre Directing postgraduate programmes available, it also launched an MA/ MFA in Filmmaking. At the BAFTA launch, the opportunity for both actors and filmmakers to be able to extend their working experiences through synergy between courses was not lost on leading film and theatre director Sir Richard Eyre who explained: “If you don’t have access to actors, how is a director ever to learn? The value of a school that teaches theatre and film is enormous”. It was a view that was echoed by Sir Ben Kingsley who commented: “The wonderful thing about East 15 is that you are working so closely with actors. Directors working with actors is quite marvellous”.

These opportunities for collaborative work were even more strongly reenforced this year when all of the Postgraduate programmes were located together at the school’s main campus site in Loughton.

One group of students working most closely with the filmmakers are those studying on the MA Acting for Film, Television and Radio programme.

It is the only course of its kind accredited by the National Council for Drama Training, allowing student entry into Equity, the actors’ union. Rather than a performed stage showcase at the end of the course, students enjoy a screening at BAFTA for the industry with their work presented on a professionally produced showreel. The course attracts a mix of students: from those newly graduated and who now wish to continue their studies by adding a specialism to their training, through to established working actors who have identified a need to be properly equipped to exploit ever increasing opportunities offered from work in non-theatrical environments.

One such student is David Taylor-Sharp. He explained; “I came to East 15 after graduating from AADA (The American Academy of Dramatic Arts - Hollywood) in 2006. The course at AADA was an undergraduate program focusing on theatre acting with some screen work included. After 3 years working as an actor in LA, working exclusively on screen, I felt it would be beneficial to retrain with a specific emphasis on film and TV technique.

“I looked at several places in Los Angeles but for a fully comprehensive training I decided to look at Postgraduate courses at British drama schools.

The MA Acting for TV, Film and Radio course at East 15 was one of the only screen courses accredited, which was very important to me. It ensures that the training will be of a proven quality but also provided the benefits of Equity eligibility on graduation. The end of year showcase for agents and casting directors, which also provides the students with a show reel, is also really important for launching new actors into the industry.

“After researching East 15 and its origins further I was very happy that it would be a good fit for me. I have always been interested in the Stanislavski approach to training and Joan Littlewood’s Theatre Workshop tradition, which had so influenced the school, was very exciting for me.”

Other Postgraduate courses offered by East 15 include MA Acting, MA/MFA Acting (International) and MA/MFA Theatre Directing. Thanks to longstanding relationships with overseas centres of excellence, some of the courses also offer students the opportunity to study some of their modules in locations such as Bali and Moscow. Most importantly, all actors and directors have the opportunity to take part in productions staged in leading London theatre spaces.

Maintaining a high standard of entry as well as attracting students from around the world (some 22 countries were represented at the last count) also ensures that the East 15 student community as a whole is hugely committed to excellence. The underlying benefit of this, most often commented on by graduates at all levels, is the quality of the networks created and then retained by so many students. So often, especially in an industry such as this, it is these on-going relationships that help to further career opportunities.

34

Ralph Richardson Memorial Studios, Kingfisher Place, Clarendon Road, Wood Green, London N22 6XF

APPLY NOW FOR SEPTEMBER 2010 3 Year BA (Hons) in Performance Acting ∙ Musical Theatre Validated by the University of East Anglia

2 Year BA (Hons) Technical Theatre Validated by Middlesex University

Stimulating and intensive Postgraduate courses Acting ∙ Musical Theatre ∙Technical Theatre Theatre Directing ∙ Musical Direction

Plus an exciting programme of Part-time and Summer Courses

New prospectus now available

Accredited by the NCDT

Tel: 020 8881 2201 Fax: 020 8829 0034 enquiries@mountview.org.uk www.mountview.org.uk Mountview is committed to equal opportunities

training Course: MA Acting Where: Arts Educational Schools London Summary: The study of the craft of acting is first and foremost a study of

develop most successfully in a group with a communal work-ethic and mutual respect for each other.

The belief that each actor will develop their innate potential through having a safe space in which to take bold creative risks in an atmosphere where both success and failure are seen as part of the creative enterprise.

Requirements: If you are over 21 years of age and have a first degree or at least 3 years professional experience you may apply. Your potential for training will be assessed at a workshop audition.

Full info: www.artsed.co.uk

Photo: Robin Savage

humankind. The work of the actor is to reveal the potential of the human spirit and the realities of the human situation.

This 1 year MA course exists to enable mature students to gain an advanced understanding and ability as professional actors and to allow them to explore their creative possibilities as artists both for stage and screen acting. The course seeks to develop in the actor the ability to research, experiment, test, extend, reflect and process the art in themselves, within an atmosphere of rigorous constructive criticism. The emphasis of the training is in Behavioural Realism. The atmosphere is non-competitive and encouraging of artistic and creative risks, where the student is guided by specialist tutors and directors.

The course is built around the following principles: The idea of an ensemble, the belief that actors will

Course: PG Dip / MA Professional Voice Practice Where: Birmingham School of Acting Summary: This course is intended for graduates

who wish to undertake advanced studies in voice in order to pursue careers as voice professionals, who seek specialised practice and study in voice and speech. Whilst the foundation of the course is rooted in the principles of healthy vocal use, it will not focus on a particular system or regime.

The course was developed with the support of the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) Voice Department and text based work is at the heart of this course. The course will concentrate on an approach to working with language developed by Cicely Berry at the RSC. Students will have the opportunity of working with Lyn Darnley and other members of the RSC Voice Department, and it is anticipated that a maximum of two placements for students on the course will be offered by the Company annually. The course will also offer some opportunities to work with the singing voice as approaches to spoken and sung text are becoming increasingly important for the voice professional. Birmingham School of Acting also has a working relationship with the Voice Clinic of Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham.

Requirements: This course is suited to those who already have an interest in and some knowledge of voice: actors, drama graduates, teachers, speech therapists, singers and musicians with a particular interest in vocal music. You will normally possess a first degree, performance diploma or equivalent qualification.

Full info: www.bsa.bcu.ac.uk

36

Course:

MA Musical Theatre (Performance or Musical

Directing)

Where: Royal Scottish Academy of Dramatic Art Summary: This 1-year intensive Masters Degree trains advanced performers for a professional career in Musical Theatre. RSAMDA take a small cohort of students through a curriculum that involves a full working week with up to 30 contact hours over 45 weeks. The programme focuses equally on acting, singing, and dance, and includes individual voice tutorials with some of the finest voice tutors in the UK. The Academy believe that great Musical Theatre requires a blend of skills rooted in solid acting technique, and the emphasis of the programme is on training imaginative, versatile performers.

The programme culminates in a fully staged production at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and an Industry Showcase both in Glasgow and London. The course has attracted a lot of interest internationally, through the school’s association with RSAMD President Sir Cameron Mackintosh and through their continuing development of new Musical Theatre work. Past graduates are currently appearing in the West End, Broadway, Regional Theatres and for the National Theatres of Scotland, Iceland and for Scottish Opera.

Full info: www.rsamd.ac.uk

ACTING SCHOOL

Courses at Loughton and Southend • BA Acting

• CertHE in Theatre Arts

• BA Acting and Contemporary Theatre

• MA Acting

• BA Acting and Stage Combat • BA Community Theatre “The contribution of East 15 actors to British theatre, television, and film over the past decades has been immense.

Several generations of brilliant young actors and actresses have come out of this highly original conservatoire.”

Mike Leigh OBE

• BA Physical Theatre • BA World Performance • FdA/BA Technical Theatre

• MA Acting for Film, TV and Radio • MA/MFA Acting (International) • MA/MFA Filmmaking • MA/MFA Theatre Directing

For further details or to request a Prospectus: call 020 8508 5983 or visit www.east15.ac.uk East 15, Hatfields, Rectory Lane, Loughton, Essex, IG10 3RY

East 15 Acting School is part of the University of Essex and is a member of the Conference of Drama Schools

One Year Musical Theatre Diploma Course Beckenham, SE London

01342 322 121 info@ksapa.co.uk www.ksapa.co.uk

ATCL Performance Diploma in Musical Theatre Full-Scale Musical Production in a West End Theatre First Class, Professional Training only 15 mins from London All Classes Taught by Industry Professionals Proven Student Successes

Apply Now for September 2010 Photograph from “Secrets” - a new musical performed by students of KSA at the Jerwood Vanbrugh Theatre, RADA, London

Photo: Max Key

training

The

BIG

30

As well as looking after their students, and offering them the highest quality training, drama schools often have much to offer the wider community.

ALRA, the Academy of Live and Recorded Arts, is using its 30th Anniversary to kick-start several new initiatives, often working in partnership with other theatre and film professionals.

Yellow Academy sees ALRA collaborating with Yellow Earth Theatre to promote the idea of formal drama training amongst the East Asian community. Clive Duncan (ALRA) and Jonathan Mann (Co-Artistic Director, Yellow Earth), will be heading out to Manchester, Birmingham, Belfast and London in the Spring of 2010 to hold workshops and audition people for a week’s free residential training at ALRA over the summer.

Deaf/BSL courses in Theatre and Film Acting, again completely free to participate thanks to the Learning and Skills Council, are to be led by David Ellington (DRoots Theatre Company) and Samuel Dore (Bursteardrum Films) respectively, again over the summer.

This new burst of energy also involves ALRA’s prospective students.

Adrian Hall, who’s been with ALRA for 4 months after a long stint at Guildford School of Acting as Head of Production, has pushed forward ALRA’s commitment to diversity by heading out on the road to audition students in their own colleges.

Everyone knows how expensive it can be to apply for drama school - heading down (or up!) to multiple auditions can cost hundreds of pounds in train fares, and that’s before overnighters and the audition fees themselves.

As an alternative, Adrian offers to visit schools and colleges to audition their students on-site, both for ALRA and for GSA. Students know by the end of the day whether they’ve been offered a place at ALRA, and whether they will go forward to a second audition at GSA.

38

Whilst prospective students save money, ALRA and GSA each get the chance to see a wider range of students, hopefully uncovering talented young people who might have thought twice about the application process previously.

He’s already been up to York College, and Winstanley College in Wigan, and heads out West in the New Year to Exeter, Plymouth and Truro.

Adrian also hopes to provide support for teachers with an Inset course in February - ‘Preparing Your Students for Drama School Auditions’. Over 3 days, teachers will go through every aspect of the audition process, and even sit on the panel during a day of ALRA auditions to see how they work from the inside!

It hasn’t been all work and no play in ALRA’s 30th year thoughalumni and friends managed to find time to raise a glass to ALRA’s past and future at the ‘ALRA at 30’ Gala, held in the beautiful Victorian Great Hall of the School. Usually reserved for fight classes and movement workshops, the Hall, with its gorgeous frescoed ceiling, was allowed to shine, thanks to the hard work of the Stage Management students! 200 alumni, some of whom hadn’t seen the school in 20 years or so, took the chance to tour around the building, catch up with old friends, and enjoy a matinee showing of The Jungle Book by the final year Acting students. ● Academy of Live and Recorded Arts Tel: 020 8870 6475 www.alra.co.uk

training

graduate profile Michael Lyle, 22, is a recent ALRA graduate (2008).

What

were experiences?

your

very

first

theatre

My first ever theatre experience was going to see Woman in Black, when I was 12 with my Nan. It was astounding. To this day I still remember being in awe that so few actors could tell such an amazing story in the fantastic way they did.

What made you audition for ALRA? I wanted to go to a drama that I felt I would be comfortable at first and foremost, and also ALRA’s in depth study of camera work really drew me in.

And

once you got there, was it what you expected?

Yeah! Everything and more. It was just brilliant to be surrounded by people that were as passionate about theatre as I am.

And

having experience from your very first year in on-screen acting, how has that helped you?

I think its invaluable. It really allows you to grow not only as an actor on screen, but overall, and gave me confidence for when I first stepped onto a film set, once I had left.

Any downsides to the ALRA experience?

Errmm not long enough?! No, there are things I wish I could go back and do better, but I think that will always be the case.

Did you have a favourite ALRA role?

Yes. Touchstone from As You Like It. I’d love to play him again one day.

Now you’ve left, what are you up to?

Since leaving I’ve had a great time, and had the opportunity to experience so many different things in such a short space of time. I’ve toured nationwide, had a feature film premiered in Leicester Square, won awards personally and the TMA award for theatre for children and young people, with the production ‘For The Best’, and currently I am at the Polka theatre in an adapted version of Goldilocks and the Three Bears.●

Courses for young aCtors! noW reCruItIng! If you’re aged 15 to 19 and passionate about drama and theatre, then this is the place to be. auditions for our 2010-11 sunday acting Courses will be held in March 2010 and places are still available in our 2009-10 weeknight theatre Workshop groups.

For more details please contact us on 029 2039 1394 or via e-mail at yas@rwcmd.ac.uk.

39

training

It’s a

P PU PET !

Who said puppetry was for kids? Karla Crome looks at the art form that is working its way into mainstream theatre and discovers the possibilities are endless

Apparently, puppetry doesn’t begin and end with Sooty and Sweep.

With shows such as Avenue Q and War Horse generating sell out shows and receiving rave reviews, the theatre industry has been forced to wake up and notice this emerging art form - and it aint just for kids. November 2009 saw the launch of the Suspense Puppetry Festival, the first cross London puppetry festival in 25 years.

The festival, produced by The Little Angel Theatre, covered a massive spectrum of performance from object manipulation, marionette theatre and glove puppets. Even objects blowing in the wind was discussed That’s ephemeral animation to you, thank you very much.

And guess what? It was all for us grown-ups.

The stigma of puppetry being predominantly for children is aptly described as ‘the Punch and Judy hangover’ by Lynette Shansbury, General Manager of The Little Angel. “Puppetry has been largely pushed in children’s theatre direction because it fits nicely, and actually, funding wise its had to find somewhere to fit into. Were our own distinct art form and we have a lot more to offer then just entertaining kids.”

Indeed, the use of the mask and puppetry has the power to magnify the grotesque, often reflecting the darker sides of human emotions and relationships. One such company is Bristol’s acclaimed puppet theatre Green Ginger (pictured) who bought Rust to the festival, a satirical glimpse into a future dystopia in which mutants live a submarine, transmitting rock music to the shores. A far cry from muffin the mule.

Although puppeteers hail from many backgrounds, training in puppetry is also working its way into mainstream theatre education. The Little Angel Theatre works closely with students on the puppetry course as the Central School of Speech and Drama. Central pioneered the 1st UK degree in Puppet Theatre and is a leading institution in puppetry training. To the average philistine (namely me) a ‘degree in puppets ‘ is somewhat baffling. Cariad Astles, lecturer in puppetry and object theatre at Central, points out what she looks for in potential students.

“A sensitivity towards materials, design, the visual element and performing and an interest in animation. Some degree of both visual and

40

performing skill. They must be able to do both. Often the best puppeteers come from visual arts backgrounds, but often performers make the best puppeteers too as they are able to exist on stage in collaboration with the object or material.”

It seems then, that graduates from courses such as these have not only the added edge of the unique skill of puppet and object manipulation, but are also accomplished performers. With handfuls of school leavers applying for further and higher education in visual and performing arts, why are courses such as this one in such a small minority?

“I think that a lot of young people are not aware of puppetry enough and simply wouldn’t know that the course existed. At the age of 18-20 when most people are applying to University / Drama School they are generally more interested in acting, which is natural at this age, it’s when people want to be seen. Puppeteers often don’t want to be seen!”

One student who can stand to be upstaged by a puppet is second year student, Joanna Hurby. “I have no background in performance whatsoever, which means that I see puppetry in a very visual way, which can sometimes be a problem, but its an interesting problem…”

Joanna, who considers herself to be first and foremost a visual artist, was drawn to the course after an art foundation degree - in search of something different. However, she recognises the variety of talents needed to make a successful puppetry student.

“I think everyone who does puppetry has to be quite individual…it’s a scary thing doing a subject like this; you have a lot of questions like what am I going to do with this afterwards? How big is the market? You have to know what you want. [Puppetry] welcomes so many different things and the more random and diverse the people are the better it is.’

As the art form begins to creep further into mainstream theatre, so training is edging its way into the curriculum at Theatre Institutions - The Little Angel Theatre also runs regular Adult Puppetry Workshops.

Edward Gordon Craig said theatre students should study puppetry as part of their essential vocabulary.

In this climate it’d be hard to disagree. ●

41

an actor’s

By Charlie Vose Christmas has come and gone and the geese got fat. Whilst the turkey was being sliced, I’ve been traipsing around The Old Smoke searching for places to go and things to see, eat and drink on an acting student’s minimal budget. I must admit though, it’s been a challenging one. What with the credit crunch, one would think there isn’t much going on and that there wouldn’t be much out there to go and see. One would be quite wrong in fact.

Let me tell you, ‘there is more to see than can ever be seen, more to do than could ever be done.’ Sorry to quote Sir Elton, but with his lyrics being somewhat genius, sometimes it’s the only way to communicate.

A day out in London for most students is not an easy one, but hopefully with my intuition and dramatic sense of direction, hopefully I can elaborate on some of the easiest ways to save a bit of money for all you budding thespians out there whilst getting the most out of the city. If you’re on your first trip to Londinium, I cannot stress enough that you must take a bus around town at some point. Getting around quicker, I would take the tube but, after being in London just over 5 years, I’ve recently rediscovered what a joy it is to travel by bus. This way, you really get to see the city for the sights, and it gives you great knowledge and perspective of the different areas of the capital. I hope this article helps some of you blooming actors out there. It certainly has helped me rediscover certain parts and aspects of London I’ve forgotten. Just remember, London is only scary because we don’t know where to go or what to do.

Somewhere to nosh Stockpot

(18 Old Compton Street, W1D 4TN. Tel: 020 7287 1066) Average Price: £20 based on a meal for two. £6.50 for two courses on Sunday.

Nearest Tube: Tottenham Court Road/ Leicester Square

This little gem is amazing for the best of wholesome British food.

The familiarity of the place is so fulfilling and takes you back to your educational era, where simplicity was the answer - Simple décor, simple food and simply fantastic value for money. You certainly do get a lot for what you pay for. The restaurant is also full of character and charm; with things like prawn cocktail, liver & bacon casserole and treacle sponge & custard. Ahhh… bliss. Returning here time and time again, they always make you feel welcome without breaking your bank balance, plus it’s right in the thick of things so it’s great for a pretheatre dinner at reasonable prices.

Something to admire Beaux Arts

(22 Cork Street, W1S 3NA. Tel: 0207 437 5799) Admission: Free (from 27th Jan to 20th Feb) Nearest Tube: Green Park

Get the giggles Soho Comedy Club

(7 Oxendon Street, SW1Y 4EE. Tel: 07900 496 150) Admission: £5-£7 (Thursday to Saturday / 8pm-11pm) Nearest Tube: Piccadilly Circus

This is great comedy for a fiver at London’s friendliest comedy club in the heart of the West End. They put on 6-8 of the best up-and-coming comedians on the circuit every night and have a money-back guarantee: if you don’t laugh, they will give you your money back. So far, no one has ever asked. Kate Smurthwaite, the MC, is “a powerhouse of observational wit”. A rather enlightening alternative to going to the theatre; please go and see them, you will need to bring some spare underwear though, just in case.

An exhibition of new work by artist Rachel Schwalm, whose sculpture has its origins in the worlds of painting and architecture.

This is her second solo show, for which she’s chosen to explore materials - alabaster, onyx and Jerusalem limestone - that have been used for thousands of years for making sacred objects.

It’s no coincidence therefore that Winchester Cathedral has recently commissioned Schwalm to make a new altar-piece for its Venerable Chapel, the maquette for which will be on show.

Engrossed in some culture The Photographers’ Gallery

(5 Great Newport Street, WC2H 7HY. Tel: 0207 831 1772) Admission: Free (open Tuesday to Sunday) Nearest Tube: Leicester Square

The Photographers’ Gallery is the largest public gallery in London dedicated to photography. From the latest emerging talent, to historical archives and established artists - the place to see photography in all its forms. This place is amazing for enjoying a slice of culture away from the hustle and bustle. They have new exhibitions every week so there’s always something new and exciting on the cards to get inspiration from. The material ranges from the weird and wonderful to the more eloquent and seriously dignified. This place is one to watch for up and coming artists and a haven for expression in its rawest form.

guide Literary madness

Samuel French’s Theatre Bookshop (52 Fitzroy Street, W1T 5JR. Tel: 0207 255 4300) Admission: Free Nearest Tube: Warren Street

They’ve been publishing, selling and leasing plays for performance since 1830.

From their premises in London’s Fitzrovia they offer a world wide mail order service, backed with a knowledge and expertise that spans more than 175 years of service to theatre, and now they’ve extended this service so you can browse and buy online. This place always gets my juices flowing. If you need to know anything about theatre, this place will have it all. Always nice to spend an afternoon browsing through the brochures, booklets and bibles and taking them just round the corner to Park Square Gardens for a bit of therapeutic shrubbery.

Dance your socks off Havana Central

Times gone by

The Foundling Museum (40 Brunswick Square, WC1N 1AZ. Tel: 0207 841 3600) Admission: Free with museum admission £5 Nearest Tube: Russell Square

Britain’s original home for abandoned children and London’s first ever public art gallery. The Foundling Museum tells the story of the Foundling Hospital, London’s first home for abandoned children and of three major figures in British history: its campaigning founder the philanthropist Thomas Coram, the artist William Hogarth and the composer George Frideric Handel. This remarkable collection of art, period interiors and social history is now housed in a restored and refurbished building adjacent to the original site of the Hospital, demolished in 1926. Open Tuesday – Saturday: 10.00 - 17.00, Sunday: 11.00 - 17.00 Closed on Mondays.

(Stanza, 93-10 Shaftsbury Avenue, W1D 5DY. Tel: 0207 494 3020) Admission: £6 for one class. £10 for two.

Nearest Tube: Leicester Square

The Cuban Salsa scene in the UK is growing as the crowd crave an atmosphere that returns to the roots of what its all about – feeling the music! They bring together the best talent in Cuban music and dance, good prices and a fun-loving crowd. Whether it’s to take your first salsa steps, improve your groove or to dance all night to your favourite tunes, Salsabana will guarantee an authentic Cuban experience! 7pm Improvers Intermediate – Advanced. 8pm Rueda de Casino - All Levels. If anyone fancies a bash at it then its time to rediscover your hip bones, and get on down to the Rueda de Casino. This class is quite popular and a great way to meet such a wide range of people.

Reader Offer (Bankside, 21 New Globe Walk, SE1 9DT. Tel: 020 7902 1400) Performance Information: www.shakespeares-globe.org Nearest Tube: London Bridge

2 for 1 on SHAKESPEARE’S GLOBE TOUR AND EXHIBITION A fascinating tour of the theatre is included in a visit to Shakespeare’s Globe Exhibition. The guides bring this extraordinary space to life in a half-hour tour of the auditorium, with colourful stories of the 1599 Globe, the reconstruction process in the 1990s and how the auditorium works today as an imaginative and experimental theatre space. Tickets usually £10.50 each.

Photo: John Tramper

The Globe Theatre

20% OFF in the SHAKESPEARE’S GLOBE SHOP Open every day Shakespeare’s Globe shop sells a wide and excusive range of merchandise connected to our theatre season, alongside unique gifts, jewellery, CDs, DVDs and books. *During matinee performances in the theatre visitors will be taken to the nearby site of Bankside’s first theatre: The Rose. Offer valid until 25 March 2010 (excluding 13 - 21 February 2010)

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curtaincall

Jerusalem So everyone is talking about Jerusalem, the play that premiered at the Royal Court and is transferring to the west end after winning two Evening Standard Theatre Awards for Best Play and Best Actor for Mark Rylance.

A comic, contemporary vision of rural life in our green and pleasant land, Jez Butterworth’s epic is wildly original. In part a lament about the erosion of country life and in part a rebuff to the antiseptic modern world, it features a landmark central performance from Rylance as hell-raiser Johnny Byron, ‘a performance so charismatic, so mercurial, so complete and compelling that it doesn’t look like acting’ (Evening Standard), and a superb ensemble cast including Mackenzie Crook who ‘excels’ as Johnny’s sidekick Ginger.

Runs until 24th April APOLLO THEATRE Shaftesbury Avenue London, W1D 7EZ Box Office: 0844 412 4658 www.jerusalemtheplay.com

theatre

SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION

John Guare’s classic adrenalin-fuelled and Olivier Award-winning play, Six Degrees of Separation - a sharp, vivacious take on two worlds colliding. The play is inspired by the real-life story of a flamboyant con artist who managed to convince wealthy residents of Manhattan’s Upper East Side that he was the son of Sidney Poitier.

This new Old Vic production is directed by David Grindley and stars seasoned pros Anthony Head (Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Merlin) and Lesley Manville (His Dark Materials and Old Vic’s All About My Mother). It also stars recent RADA graduate, Obi Abili, who has previously worked at the National and Young Vic. This new production will be the first major London revival of the play in almost 18 years.

Runs until 3rd April 2010

OLD VIC THEATRE 103 The Cut London, SE1 8NB Box Office: 0844 871 7628 www.oldvictheatre.com

WIN WIN WIN

Win a pair of tickets to see the play.

Question: Who is the director of Jerusalem?

Email your answer to: win@thedramastudent.co.uk Closing Date: Friday 5th February 2010. Valid on performances until 26th March. Further conditions apply.

THE FORECAST How do you feel about climate change? The Forecast, a new play presented

by Marvin and the Cats, hilariously explores society’s different responses to the gradual warming of the planet, a bitter-sweet tale of survival on a globe running out of steam. Marvin and The Cats is an international and dynamic group formed of graduates from the eminent theatre school L’Ecole de Jacques Lecoq in Paris.

The group presents a unique form of political theatre, using a contemporary style drawing from the European clown tradition, Commedia dell’Arte and mime.

Jay Miller, Director of the company said: “We don’t want to preach about the rights and wrongs of people’s response and attitudes towards climate change, instead we want to approach the phenomenon from a variety of angles: environmental, economical, ethical, and political. Our play is an entertaining journey through complex issues that will hopefully generate public debate and drive a social movement for change.”

Runs from 18 January to 7 February GREENWICH PLAYHOUSE Greenwich Station Forecourt, 189 Greenwich High Road London, SE10 8JA Box Office: 0208 858 9256 www.galleontheatre.co.uk

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culturefocus

culture BBC STUDIO TOURS

Ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes at the BBC? Well, wonder no more!

The BBC have thrown open their doors and are offering people the chance to take a tour and visit the studios of famous TV and Radio Programmes in London and regional studios across the whole of the UK. BBC Tours will offer visitors the chance to gain access to the rarely seen world behind the famous shows broadcast and produced from BBC studios up and down the country, giving an insight into the many programmes and the level of work it takes to get them from script to screen. Guides are also on hand to answer any burning questions relating to technical wizardry and the famous faces who have visited the various buildings.

Visitors will have the chance to see the studio where BBC News programmes are produced, pop into various BBC Radio studios and visit Studio 7 the home of the world famous BBC Philharmonic Orchestra (Birmingham). There’s also opportunities to have a go at presenting the weather or even take part in a special recording of a radio drama complete with sound effects. www.bbc.co.uk/tours/

BREATHING IRREGULAR Breathing Irregular is a major new work of dancetheatre inspired by extraordinary true stories taken from the transcripts of 999 emergency calls. The experimental show will use the form of contemporary dance to explore a series of dramatic and uplifting real-life stories, which include a woman giving birth alone and a son desperately trying to resuscitate his father after cardiac arrest.

Featuring a company of four actor/dancers, Breathing Irregular celebrates the human capacity to cope and above all to survive. The stories are featured with the consent of the individuals involved. Breathing Irregular is directed by Carrie Cracknell and is choreographed by Jane Manson.

Check out the pre-production documentary on the Gate’s website where the director and choreographer discuss how the project came about.

Runs from 28th January to 27th February 2010.

GATE THEATRE 11 Pembridge Road Notting Hill Gate London, W11 3HQ Box Office: 020 7229 0706 www.gatetheatre.co.uk

ELECTRIC CINEMA - BIRMINGHAM If you just love independent and intelligent mainstream film, then you must pay a visit to The Electric Cinema in Birmingham, an ideal night out on these chilly evenings.

It is the oldest working cinema in the UK, first opening its doors on December 27th 1909 and remains the only independent cinema left in the city today. The venue has gone through many incarnations and name changes over the years, but is now home to luxury sofa seating, waiter service and a fully serviced bar.

The cinema also offers an excellent range of wines, spirits and nibbles to be savoured in the sumptuous Art Deco bar or on your sofa as you enjoy the film. Choose from a selection of deli treats and antipasti, cakes, handmade ice cream from Just Rachel Ice Cream, scrumptious chocolates from Chouchoute Chocolaterie, Perrier Jouet champagne, smooth coffee and Twinning’s Afternoon tea.

Going to the movies will never be the same again!

THE ELECTRIC CINEMA 47-49 Station Street Birmingham, B5 4DY Box Office: 0121 643 7879 www.theelectric.co.uk

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readingroom

improvisation in reheArsal

the science of acting

Auditions: A Practical Guide

Published by NICK HERN BOOKS Priced: £10.99 www.nickhernbooks.co.uk

Published by ROUTLEDGE Priced: £16.99 www.routledge.com

Published by ROUTLEDGE Priced: £15.99 www.auditionsapracticalguide.com

I’ve always believed improvisation plays a vital tool in the rehearsal process. Too often than not, being bogged down in the script for too long stifles the creative process, and a release is needed. John Abbott, the author of Improvisation in Rehearsal, believes that it can be a fabulous tool for exploration and discovery, strengthening the actor’s commitment to their character. After a varied career as an actor in theatre, film and television, Abbott became a teacher of acting. He is Head of Acting at the ArtsEd School in London, where he teaches Shakespeare, Stand Up and Improvisation, as well as directing projects and productions.

This book particularly explores how a director, at every level, can use improvisation in the rehearsal room.

It’s full of really useful exercises and improvisation scenarios to help enliven the process, not just for a director I would suggest, but I imagine these exercises would be incredibly useful for actors who find themselves working together alone.

There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to improvisation, it’s all exploration aimed at developing characters and Abbott manages to present many different approaches, ensuring there will be many that work for different situations and actors. What Abbott does stress, however, is the importance of research and sets aside a large part of the book to dealing with the various ways to do so.

What is also really rather charming about this book, is that you go on a journey with Abbott with him relating his life experiences and linking them in with the premise of the book. It’s a very easy read and one can identify with his suggestions. He never adopts a preaching tone, and his focus and narrative are strong.

With an effective foreword from Mark Rylance, discussing improvisation as being his favourite part of rehearsals, this book is a useful resource I’m sure to refer back to in the future.

MB

Sam Kogan studied at the Moscow Institute of Theatre Arts. He established The Science of Acting, a complete stand-alone technique which uses theories on the relationship between neuroscience, psychology and acting, to resolve the question of what is good acting and how one creates believable characters. How can actors understand a character if they do not understand themselves?

It’s an intensive read with practical exercises providing a step-by-step guide to developing an actor’s ability, ending with ten steps to creating a convincing character. He covers awareness, purposes, events, actions, imagination, free body, tempo-rhythm and talent to explore his theories.

Kogan presents readers with a groundbreaking understanding of the subconscious and how it can be applied to acting.

His original perspective on Stanislavski’s teaching gives readers a unique insight into their characters’ minds.

What is very interesting is the book’s exploration of our human thought processes, delving into why we think the way we do. Why do we, as human beings, have visible and invisible thoughts, for example? Kogan’s theory says that there are so many thoughts stuck in the invisible section of our mind because at some point in our lives we decided we didn’t want to see them and we would be unable to function if we did. Perhaps they bring up feelings of fear or shame. It’s our consciousness that has made these thoughts invisible.

Kogan presents the notion that these thoughts are still present and powerfully running one’s life and in order to act well, one needs to rid oneself of these ‘invisible unwanted’ thoughts as they keep us stuck in rigid patterns of behaviour, which means rigid patterns of thinking. This, explains Kogan, means your brain isn’t agile enough to think your character’s thoughts and so you can’t act well. Each section of the book then builds on this, in stepping stones, culminating in how to finish off the invisible thoughts so that they no longer play an influential role in your consciousness.

Many may well be put off by a book that probes so analytically deep, preferring to approach acting on a more instinctive level. But I urge you to be open to what Kogan proposes – a lot of which really does resonate.

MB

No matter what stage of your journey as an actor, whether you’re about to audition for drama school, or leap into the industry this summer, you’ll be required to audition. It’s true, some actors are better than others at auditioning, but that doesn’t mean they’re better actors because of it. For many many years, actors the world over have had major fears of the casting process, so if you’re secretly panicking, worried that you’re all alone, relax for a moment. You’re not. Some seasoned professionals still go to pieces when faced with a panel of directors and casting directors looking to cast a role, and that will never change. Having said that, with practice and some nifty tips, you can overcome the fear and allow your performance to reign.

Richard Evans is a member of The Casting Directors’ Guild of Great Britain and Ireland, an ex-actor turned very successful Casting Director with a wealth of experience on both sides. He’s consolidated that knowledge, rather smartly, in his new book Auditions: A Practical Guide.

What initially strikes is how easy the text is to interpret. Evans’ has an easy and informal approach, yet the ability to delve into the important factors surrounding the whole casting process: Before, During and After.

Part 1 looks at the ground work actors should be doing to get the actual meetings, broken up into many useful chapters, which cover where to find the auditions, preparation, research, agents and an inspiring section on The Power of Positive Thinking.

Part 2 deals with everything from an actors’ entrance into the room, to their approach to recalls, interview technique and nerves, as well as clarifying all of the areas of the actor’s work. Evans’ successfully draws upon his own experience, as well as using rational thinking to overcome and deal with the range of audition pitfalls, that can and do occur.

In part 3, the book concludes with a look at the actors’ career post-audition, with chapters on rejection, negotiation, turning work down and follow ups.

Auditions: A Practical Guide is not only incredibly valuable to the newly trained actor, it is an uplifting resource that can be drawn upon for years to come.

PM

46

NEVER FORGET

Yvonne I’Anson remembers the actors who have shaped our rich theatrical and cinematic history.

Alistair Sim 1900 - 1976 With the recent release of another St. Trinian’s film, it seemed appropriate to feature Alastair Sim, in this issue’s Never Forget.

Sadly I never had the opportunity to work with Mr. Sim but like millions of other people I have enjoyed his many film appearances and none more so than when he played Miss Millicent Fritton, the headmistress in The Belles of St. Trinian’s (1954) and Blue Murder at St. Trinian’s (1957). In The Belles of St Trinian’s he also played Millicent’s shady brother Clarence Fritton. Although his career spanned stage and screen, in 1950 he was voted the most popular film actor in Britain. Some of his notable credits include the role of Wetherby Pond in The Happiest Days of Your Life (1950) opposite Margaret Rutherford, the title role in the 1951 film version of Scrooge and Inspector Goole in An Inspector Calls (1954).

Alastair Sim was born in Edinburgh in 1900. He left school aged 14 and worked as a messenger for a short while. He held various other jobs before becoming an elocution and drama lecturer at the University of Edinburgh (1925 -1930).

He made his professional stage debut in 1930, playing the Messenger in Othello (with Paul Robeson). A year later he played Cardinal Ferdinando di Medici in The Venetian and towards the end of that year the play transferred to New York, with Alastair playing the same role. Sadly the play was not well received in the US and Alastair never went back! He continued to work in theatre including seasons at the Old Vic. In 1935 Sim made his film debut, playing a Scottish Police Sergeant, in The Riverside Murder. In 1941 he made his first appearance as Captain Hook in Peter Pan - a role he played in six different stage productions between 1941 and 1968.

He married Naomi Plaskitt in 1932 (they had appeared together in an amateur production in 1926 when she was 12 years old). In 1940 the couple relocated to the country and that same year their only child Merlith was born. The couple also took in children who had been sent away from London because of the bombings. One youngster was 15-year-old George Cole, who stayed with them for 12 years practically becoming their foster son. Alastair mentored the young actor and they worked together in many productions including the St Trinian’s films.

Alastair was elected Rector of Edinburgh University in 1948 and in 1951, at the conclusion of his term, he was awarded an honorary doctorate. In 1953 he was awarded a CBE but declined a Knighthood in the 70’s, just as his own father had done many years before.

Alastair Sim was a very private person, he was ambivalent about fame and rarely signed autographs. He died in 1976, aged 75.

I love watching Alistair Sim on screen and I would strongly recommend that if you see one of his films advertised you make sure you watch it. Also his wife wrote about her life with him, Dance and Skylark, which is available on Amazon, so why not treat yourself? ●

French’s Theatre Bookshop 10% Student Discount

Open Mon- Fri 9.30 - 5.30 Sat 11.00 - 5.00 52 Fitzroy St London W1T 5JR Tel: 0207 255 4300 Fax: 0207 387 2161 Email: theatre@samuelfrench-london.co.uk

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photography [Inset circle] David Levine; [Clockwise] Martin Kemp, ‘Puppet’, Paul Nicholls, Anna Madeley, ‘Fairy’, Angela Griffin and Boy George

Words: Hannah Berry

life through a lens

DAVID

LEVINE

48

10am

I am poised by my computer, dictaphone in one hand, mobile in the other. After tapping in the number, there are a short couple of rings before I hear a voice at the other end. “Can you call me back in 40?” It’s just another manic day in the life of the iconic photographer, David Levine.

Born and bred in London, David never had any other ambition than to pursue his passion in photography. He describes his parents as neither ‘encouraging nor discouraging’ but it didn’t really matter as his mind was set and no-one could have stopped him from going after his dream.

His earliest memory with a camera, was holding his Uncle’s in his hands at the age of six. He then went on to study photography at school and from there managed to get a photographer’s assistant role after “fixing some Scottish guys stereo”. He remained with that guy for four years and made the decision to embark on his own when the clients were starting to call him directly to ask if he would do the jobs. His boss never found out.

Levine’s focus lay in music and fashion photography (it still does). The work came in steadily and his clients were never displeased with the result. However, his big break came after Boy George happened to see the photographs he had done for a mutual friend. George rang Levine immediately and demanded Levine take his portrait. “I basically was famous overnight for making Boy George look like a woman.” The result was awe-inspiring and the work started to pick-up-pace: Adam Ant, Kylie Minogue and The Cure are just a handful of names that posed infront of his lense.

His work took him across the pond to New York and then to Tokyo; incidentally, the former would be where he would wake up to spend his ideal day, the latter would be a nightmare.

“There are so many people to please and lots of red tape to get through in Japan.”

Has he ever said ‘No’ to anyone? “I’ve had discussions with clients and suggested alternatives to some names, yeah,” but his lips remain sealed and he won’t name any names.

There are, however, still many people he would love to shoot – Boy George being one of them, adding a ‘before and after’ aspect to his portfolio, another dimension to his portraits.

And he doesn’t believe that we’ve seen the best of him yet, “That’s what keeps you going.

The moment you think, ‘That’s my best work,’ you’re done and it’s time to hang up the camera and find something else to do.” A very modest and refreshing point of view from the man who counts David Bailey among his ‘friends’ though he explains, “Photographers are some of the most critical and fiercely protective people you will ever meet, they never really like to hang out with each other”.

But he has never been one for rules. When a certain actor turned up and his people proceeded to present Levine with a list of ‘dos and don’ts’ he merely turned round to him and said, “What’s the point if you’re not going to let me do my job?” The actor’s people may have nearly passed out in shock but the person in question just laughed and let Levine get on with it. The result was far better than it would have ever been if he had allowed himself to be constrained in such a way. Also, if he ever walks up to you at a party and proceeds to tell you that your recent shots are “crap” and that you should let him have a go, don’t be surprised.

“It’s a good ice-breaker and a great way to judge their character.” He certainly has balls.

His career is not all fun and games. When I was contacting Levine about setting up this interview, I thought I was emailing him personally but was a little curious when I got a reply from, what I later found out, was his agent. “The musicians are not the only ones who get hounded. I get hate mail from people who don’t like a picture I have taken of their idol. I get weird stuff too. Some years ago, a young girl wrote to me and literally offered herself to me, in whatever capacity I wanted. After that, I never opened a piece of mail again. It all goes through my agent.”

I always think that you can judge a good photographer by how he makes you feel within the first minute. With Levine, I felt like I was talking to an old friend. His work, however, speaks for itself. ● www.davidlevine.co.uk

49

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PUBLISHING EDITOR Phil Matthews editor@thedramastudent.co.uk

ART DIRECTOR Fabio Marcolini design@thedramastudent.co.uk

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Josh Boyd-Rochford BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Matthew Bannerman IT CONSULTANT Dominic Fallows DISTRIBUTION Paul McGuire CONTRIBUTORS Karla Crome, Knight Hooson, Daniella Gibb, Michael Culkin, Louise Grainger, Yvonne I’Anson, Simon Dunmore, Kevin Wyatt-Lown, Jeremy Irvine, Sarah Clark, Paul L Martin, Odile Rault, Amy Smith, Charlie Vose and Hannah Berry.

COVER IMAGE Robert Lindsay by Cambridge Jones Published by MarcoMatt Media LLP Top Floor, 66 Wansey Street London SE17 1JP Tel: 020 7701 4536 Fax: 070 9284 6523 www.thedramastudent.co.uk editor@thedramastudent.co.uk SUBSCRIPTION 12 months subscription 4 issues - £12.90 ISSN 2041-7330 © Copyright MarcoMatt Media LLP 2009 all rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced in whole or part without the written permission of the publishers.

The views and opinions expressed by contributors may not necessarily represent the views of the Editor and the publishers.

MarcoMatt Media LLP take no responsibility for claims made in advertisements featured in this magazine. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but its accuracy and the opinions based thereon are not guaranteed.

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To advertise here call us on 020 7701 4536 or email sales@thedramastudent.co.uk From choosing your sripts to directing you during the recordingsession, making it as simple and as easy as possible.

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I’ll Always Think Of You That Way Mackenzie & McGuire bring you a comic play about two unlikely friends who meet in rehab.

‘Deftly written, impeccably acted. Must see’ Telegraph Monday 15 Sun 21 March 8pm Tickets £8 / £7

4 minutes from Caledonian Road Tube Station