What year did you attend?
2011-12 and then returned to appear in 2014 production, 55 Days.
Your best memory from Drama Studio?
Throwing the tennis ball around before Kieran’s lessons. Not particularly exciting sounding but was always a great reminder that all good acting is about connection, attention and also not fretting if something goes wrong or you drop it! ‘A mistake is a little piece of art’ haha. A good lesson for everyone not just actors.
What skills have you found most helpful from your time in Drama Studio?
I found work with Kieran on Michael Chekov's technique massively helpful and have taken many exercises and techniques from those classes which I still use today when stuck!
Why would you recommend Drama Studio?
It will give you a taste of the structure of a Drama school course and the discipline and rigour that will be asked of you. It will help you transition from someone interested in acting into someone who conducts themselves like a professional. Also, it’s a great chance to do things that will push you out of your comfort zone and afford you the oppurtunity to fail and grow. So then, if you decide to go to Drama school after you’ll be much more confident.
Tell us about a standout lesson.
When working individually with Peter Ballance on a scene for Carol Churchill’s Light Shining in Buckinghamshire. I was a preacher giving a sermon and he really opened my eyes to the level of detail and specificity of thought that goes into really making something live off the page.
Describe your time in Drama Studio in three words?
Challenging, Eye-Opening
What are you doing now?
Currently living and working in London. Just finished a run at the Lyric Theatre, Belfast, of All Mods Cons and currently preparing a play my friend and I have written for its production at a new writing festival here in August.
Did it help you get in to Drama School?
Massively, Philip helped me work on my audition pieces, giving me great direction and helping me polish them to their full potential.
Were you able to get good advice on applications?
Yeah, was put in touch with people who had attended courses I was interested in so they could give me an insight into what they were like and any help or advice I needed, Philip and Kieran were always willing to assist.
*Photography from All Mod Cons rehearsals.