Hermione, one of our GCSE Drama and Dance pupils will be hard at work over the summer producing a musical as part of the British Youth Music Theatre. This organisation which features alumni such as Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith creates a musical every summer. Hermione, along with thousands of other hopefuls, took part in a set of virtual auditions. She had to perform a dance piece, sing and act – all over the internet and at home! To get a sense of the scale of the project, these virtual auditions were held across the country; and it is a testament to Hermione that she was selected from such a vast pool of talent. As Hermione commented about the process “it was really fun, it was like a series of workshops”.
Hermione will be taking part in a summer placement which will see an in-person performance, and this aspect is certainly one that Hermione is excited by, she is “looking forward to it – working with others will be exciting”. We cannot wait to hear updates from Hermione and although we do not know quite where it will be performed, she has said “the experience of it will be brilliant”. We are nearly as excited as Hermione and in September will certainly be asking her to share her experiences in more detail.
Melissa, Lower Sixth, recently heard that she had been successfully selected to take part in the National Youth Theatre. Initially sending in an audition reel, Melissa was given a call-back and asked to attend a virtual audition. This virtual audition process saw Melissa not only perform a piece of drama, but also saw her having to answer questions and then show how she responded to direction by developing and refining her piece. Melissa described the process as “really exciting but nerve-racking”! At the end of this gruelling process over the internet Melissa waited to hear the news. As Melissa said, “So many people auditioned, the chances of not getting in were greater than getting in”. We are pleased to see that Melissa’s talents obviously shone through her audition work and she was selected to take part.
The project will also take place over the summer, and in Melissa’s own words “I really want to do it and am excited to do it”. We shall wait to hear how it has gone from Melissa and are looking forward to updates over the coming months. We hope that Melissa will also be able to share her experiences in September as well!
