London Road film review

Firstly,  picture a musical.  Seeing all the big numbers like defying gravity and One day more (that's Les Mis folks) and the backing dancers smiling like they have a gun pointed at their heads? Yup. Then put all that in a film - in comes John Travolta in a woman's body suit - and still more cheese and glitz is crammed in to make your normal musical movie bonanza.
Well put all of that on the scrap heap because London Road is nothing like that! There are no glittering costumes or RP lardidar singing numbers in sight.  And by god it is brilliant for it.
Set in 2006/2007 in Ipswich when five prostitutes were murdered by Steve Wright,  who lived on London Road when he committed the murders. It is a musical retelling of how a community re-healed itself and just kept on going despite the circumstances.
If that's not unusual enough it was all done using verbatim theatre,  meaning that the interviews conducted by writer Alecky Blythe with residents were spoken word for word by the actors. Including copying the individual's speech patterns and faults!
I was completely swept away by it, yet I didn't feel patronised or belittled by the way the story was set out, which sometimes happens in musicals. And above all, the people felt real and normal, like the sort of people who walk past you in the street.
Directed by Rufus Norris and a cast staring Olivia Coleman,  Anita Dobson and Tom Hardy this film is a must see. And worth all the five star reviews it will attract.

A National Theatre Live production, out on general release 12th June.


Terri :D

National Youth Theatre Results...

Hi all,
Firstly I hope everyone is enjoying the unusual sunny weather we're experiancing here in England.

However what I really came here to write about was the fact that - as some of you already know - the results came for the National Youth Theatre auditions yesterday. And after three years of trying...

I FINALLY GOT INTO THE NATIONAL YOUTH THEATRE!

I'm so overwhelmingly happy! I cannot express the joy I'm experiancing here with mere words it is utterly... gshfehqfwhg

I cannot wait for summer now, like I've already set up a Facebook page for the summer Course so I can start to get to know my fellow NYT peeps. So please join if your coming to this years course so we can chat and get to know each other and plan the ball of fun that I'm predicting it will be!

All I can say to anyone who's thinking of applying or re-applying for NYT is go for it,  and,  as my dad said to me this morning "there's a lot to be said about persistance".

Adios (and I hope there are many film geeks enjoying Age of Ultron)
Terri :D

Why I'm successful amongst my failings

Firstly hello all.
It's been ages since I wrote on here,  but don't fret I haven't forgotten about this beautiful little site. I have been intending to write on here for a while but alas I have been rather dyslexic and not known how to string the words together.

So lets get straight to the point.  I have finished my drama school auditions this year and have had a groundbreaking ZERO recalls.  Ensuring that I will not be attending drama school next year.

Now many people who have been through the drama school process - twice like me- would be feeling pretty disheartened and would be giving up on the dream of attending drama school. But no sir! Not I! This biatch ain't hauled herself round the country just to give up when a couple of people sitting behind a desk decide that your not right for them.

Besides I've learnt so freaking much this year I would say that I've scored lucky in not getting in this time round because when I do get in I'm going to have so much more to give to the industry when I graduate.

PLUS it means I get another chance to get into RADA and Guildhall again!
This next year I'm nailing down exactly what I want from Drama School and ensure that I get the experiance I've paid for.
Have started my personal statement draft and have found a few plays I want to investigate further,  so yeah third time lucky I guess.

Hope to write more soon,
Terri :D

Helllooo 2015/ Manchester Met Audition 2.0/BSA audition/ tones more

Hello All!

First things first- HAPPY FRICKING NEW YEAR- hope you all had a good 'un.

Now many of you may be complaining that I haven't wrote anything in a while. Thats because I had nothing to write about, with my boring job and lack of auditions. BUT NOW I only work saturdays and boy do I have alot going on.

I've had two auditions and two workshops and it's only the first week of january. My First Audition I had was Manchester Met, which I won't go into huge detail about as you can refer back to my first audition post of the school (see Jan 2014). However this time I experianced the weirdest thing yet.to.date.

It was in the audition (to fill you in it's important to know that at Man Met you do your peices in front of a small group who are also auditioning) and the first girl got up. She was doing Constance from King John as her Shakespeare. During the speech she pulled out a chunk of her hair, scattered it on the floor and kept repeating "I'm not mad".

Personally I thought otherwise.

But then for her second peice, the whole monologue was about her and her mates waxing their viginas, and halfway through her pretended to stare at a lazered vigina and grinned.

I was not prepered for that.

The girl next to me was in hysterics, the lady on the pannel was trying so hard to keep her face straight that she looked like a lipless tomato. 

So it any of you guys meet a girl called Julia doing a King John speech- brace yourself.

Still yet to hear from that.

I had BSA yesterday- got the rejection letter today 😁. But to be honest I enjoyed the day so much that I'm happy to have the oppotunity to go back there again 😄.

I'm going to reserve a whole post so I can talk about that audition process propperly so you guys know what to prepare.

Also (in other news); I started the Contact Young Company programme yesterday, which was fabulous! If you don't know Contact theatre is a contempary theatre in Manchester and hold a young persons company that you have to audition for, and luckily I got in along with 4 others. I have been told by several people that it is the place to go if you are serious about working in theatre and need experiance, because they treat you like professional actors and there is a high chance to get work out of it.

Also just had a workshop with Ian Smith from the Television Company in Leeds, I won a place via the ideastap website. You had to learn a bit from a play called he's talking by Nicholas Wright. It's a really interesting play and I'm very tempted to use it as part of my audition peices.

Ian Smith I found him very rude but very funny, and I can see that he's great at bringing people out of their shells.

It might lead on to something else but I'm not sure if I'd want to do that.

Got My Royal Conservatoire of Scotland audition next week which I'm very excited for. Then LAMDA after!

Cannot bloody wait.

Adios then, 

Got to hop on a train. 

Terri :D

7 tips for Drama school audition's Repost

Hi everyone
Sorry once again for not writing in a while,  since starting my Christmas job, I've not had a great deal of time to do much else.
But since I've got my first audition in 3 weeks... IM SOOOOO EXCITED! I have been reading some blogs to help me out, and I loved this one and wanted to share it so enjoy!

7 tips for drama auditions

ANDY JOHNSON  3 FEBRUARY 2014
Auditioning for drama school can be a nerve-wracking experience. Andy Johnson is an actor, a director, and the author of 'The Excellent Audition Guide'. He shared 7 tips for engaging an audition panel, and keeping yourself engaged too.'The Excellent Audition Guide' is available from Nick Hern Books.

1. Don’t ‘just start’

Over eighty per cent of the people I see doing an audition just launch in.They simply ‘do’ their monologue, without giving much thought to the world they’re creating, or the audience they’re playing to.Some are not that bad – even quite good. But because of the way they ‘just start’, it is plain that they’re only going through the motions. Your job in any performance is to invite the audience into the world of your character. This has the effect of creating a distance between them and their audience – and you don’t want that.Your job in any performance, and especially in an audition, is to invite the audience into the world of your character. The members of the audition panel need to enter that world with you.They have to become engrossed and absorbed. If you ‘just start’, it is harder for them to do this. You must give them a chance to come with you.

2. Think of it as a two-minute play

To really maximize your chances of succeeding in your audition, you need to think of it as a two-minute show.More than that, think of it as a show the panel will watch with all the focus and attention with which they would watch a two-hour show, only condensed down into an intense two minutes between you and them.Therefore, as with any play, your show has to have changes of mood, tone, pace and atmosphere. Change is crucial, even in a two-minute show.Think about it. Nobody would sit through a play that stays in the same gear the whole time.Any text or production that flatlines into one mood will prove boring and colourless. This applies whether the mood is sadness, anger, grief, or anything else.A good show needs to be a journey. It should employ movement and surprise in the telling of the story. Change is good.

3. Evoke the world of the play

Bring the whole of the world of the play onto the stage with you. It’s not just about the bit you’re doing for your audition, in isolation.An entire universe of events, ideas and moments must take shape in those two minutes. Everything needs to be distilled into an intense, rich experience.To bring the world of the play onto the stage with your character, ask yourself these questions:Who are you?Where have you just come from or been?What happened to bring you here?Why are you here now?What do you want? And how badly do you want it?Who are you talking to?Why are you talking to them? And what makes you start talking?What are you afraid of? What would be the worst outcome for you?How are all these things affecting your behaviour?Work with these questions often. They will be of use continuously.

4. Fix your focus before you begin

For your sake and that of the panel, take time to connect with what you want to achieve, or even avoid, in your performance.Remind yourself not to wonder if the panel likes you or what you are doing.Resolve not to judge them, or your work. Time and effort spent on wondering, judging and conjecture is wasted focus and energy.Tell yourself that you are not here to get into drama school – you are just here to do your best, most focused and connected work.Assure yourself that nerves are good, because you can use those nerves as a positive force, instead of allowing them to work against you.When you’ve done this, create the physical world and surroundings of the character. Where are you? What time is it? Are you hot or cold? Is it winter or summer? Get into detail.If you spend time on this in your rehearsal work, you can ‘pop’ all of this into place in seconds. You will then be in your world and that of the character, not in the dreaded audition room – bonus!

5. Give your character a reason to start speaking

Hear in your head the lines that have just been said to your character. This may well be what is prompting your character to react, to decide to speak. Hear in your head the lines that have just been said to your character. Alternatively, run through what has just happened to you and why it happened. This will propel you into why you are speaking and what you, as the character, want.Remember: we speak because we have to. Just before we utter words, there is a compelling urge, a tingle, to vocalise our thoughts.We may be reacting to what’s just been said. We may have to seek justice, put facts straight, change someone’s mind or actions, get somebody to do something.There are many reasons to pipe up. But they are all driven by a thought.We speak until that thought has been given expression, and then, unless there’s another thought, we stop.

6. See your monologue as a duologue waiting to happen

Quite often, auditionees make their own character the only focus of the monologue.Get used to including the other person in your thinking and ideas, from early work right up to and including the execution of your audition.They, the other person, should be constantly involved.What do they look like, sound like, smell like? Do you want them to speak or react?

7. End the monologue well

A lot of performers end really badly, without style or conviction. Stay with the end moment. Let the glow settle. They disengage from the world of the character way too soon after the last line. This gives the impression that they have not engaged at all.Stay with the end moment, and let the glow of what you have been doing settle. Stay in it and be proud.Don’t step away with any kind of sheepish, self-destructive look.Don’t apologise verbally, or with a self-effacing countenance.Even if you think you were rubbish, the panel may well have seen something that interested them. In all probability, you will be your worst critic.Let them be the judge of all that. Free yourself from that burden.End with a bang, not with a whimper. You owe it to yourself.7 tips for drama auditions

ANDY JOHNSON  3 FEBRUARY 2014Auditioning for drama school can be a nerve-wracking experience. Andy Johnson is an actor, a director, and the author of 'The Excellent Audition Guide'. He shared 7 tips for engaging an audition panel, and keeping yourself engaged too.'The Excellent Audition Guide' is available from Nick Hern Books.

1. Don’t ‘just start’

Over eighty per cent of the people I see doing an audition just launch in.They simply ‘do’ their monologue, without giving much thought to the world they’re creating, or the audience they’re playing to.Some are not that bad – even quite good. But because of the way they ‘just start’, it is plain that they’re only going through the motions. Your job in any performance is to invite the audience into the world of your character. This has the effect of creating a distance between them and their audience – and you don’t want that.Your job in any performance, and especially in an audition, is to invite the audience into the world of your character. The members of the audition panel need to enter that world with you.They have to become engrossed and absorbed. If you ‘just start’, it is harder for them to do this. You must give them a chance to come with you.

2. Think of it as a two-minute play

To really maximize your chances of succeeding in your audition, you need to think of it as a two-minute show.More than that, think of it as a show the panel will watch with all the focus and attention with which they would watch a two-hour show, only condensed down into an intense two minutes between you and them.Therefore, as with any play, your show has to have changes of mood, tone, pace and atmosphere. Change is crucial, even in a two-minute show.Think about it. Nobody would sit through a play that stays in the same gear the whole time.Any text or production that flatlines into one mood will prove boring and colourless. This applies whether the mood is sadness, anger, grief, or anything else.A good show needs to be a journey. It should employ movement and surprise in the telling of the story. Change is good.

3. Evoke the world of the play

Bring the whole of the world of the play onto the stage with you. It’s not just about the bit you’re doing for your audition, in isolation.An entire universe of events, ideas and moments must take shape in those two minutes. Everything needs to be distilled into an intense, rich experience.To bring the world of the play onto the stage with your character, ask yourself these questions:Who are you?Where have you just come from or been?What happened to bring you here?Why are you here now?What do you want? And how badly do you want it?Who are you talking to?Why are you talking to them? And what makes you start talking?What are you afraid of? What would be the worst outcome for you?How are all these things affecting your behaviour?Work with these questions often. They will be of use continuously.

4. Fix your focus before you begin

For your sake and that of the panel, take time to connect with what you want to achieve, or even avoid, in your performance.Remind yourself not to wonder if the panel likes you or what you are doing.Resolve not to judge them, or your work. Time and effort spent on wondering, judging and conjecture is wasted focus and energy.Tell yourself that you are not here to get into drama school – you are just here to do your best, most focused and connected work.Assure yourself that nerves are good, because you can use those nerves as a positive force, instead of allowing them to work against you.When you’ve done this, create the physical world and surroundings of the character. Where are you? What time is it? Are you hot or cold? Is it winter or summer? Get into detail.If you spend time on this in your rehearsal work, you can ‘pop’ all of this into place in seconds. You will then be in your world and that of the character, not in the dreaded audition room – bonus!

5. Give your character a reason to start speaking

Hear in your head the lines that have just been said to your character. This may well be what is prompting your character to react, to decide to speak. Hear in your head the lines that have just been said to your character. Alternatively, run through what has just happened to you and why it happened. This will propel you into why you are speaking and what you, as the character, want.Remember: we speak because we have to. Just before we utter words, there is a compelling urge, a tingle, to vocalise our thoughts.We may be reacting to what’s just been said. We may have to seek justice, put facts straight, change someone’s mind or actions, get somebody to do something.There are many reasons to pipe up. But they are all driven by a thought.We speak until that thought has been given expression, and then, unless there’s another thought, we stop.

6. See your monologue as a duologue waiting to happen

Quite often, auditionees make their own character the only focus of the monologue.Get used to including the other person in your thinking and ideas, from early work right up to and including the execution of your audition.They, the other person, should be constantly involved.What do they look like, sound like, smell like? Do you want them to speak or react?

7. End the monologue well

A lot of performers end really badly, without style or conviction. Stay with the end moment. Let the glow settle. They disengage from the world of the character way too soon after the last line. This gives the impression that they have not engaged at all.Stay with the end moment, and let the glow of what you have been doing settle. Stay in it and be proud.Don’t step away with any kind of sheepish, self-destructive look.Don’t apologise verbally, or with a self-effacing countenance.Even if you think you were rubbish, the panel may well have seen something that interested them. In all probability, you will be your worst critic.Let them be the judge of all that. Free yourself from that burden.End with a bang, not with a whimper. You owe it to yourself.

Out of the Fire and into the frying pan!

Firstly, Hello you lot!
Secondly, bugger roo I haven't written in over 6 weeks!
This post is just to let you guys know that I haven't died and I'm still totally in for the big guns when I get round to applying to Drama School.

I have just been extremly busy.
For example; During the past 6 weeks I have:
-Applied to over 50 jobs (and managed to get 1!)
-Been on several open days to Guildhall, Rose Bruford and RCS
- Seen the most amazing theatre including the RSC's Henry the IV (parts 1 & 2) and Much ado about Nothing, Romeo and Juliet, Frankenstein and Hamlet (again)
-Been to Rome
- Gone on two Acting course's with the RSC and NYT
- Applied to ten Drama School's
-Wrote a 5000 word essay on temptation in literature
- Seen the most incredible musicians like George Ezra live
- Had the best coffee cake ever.Fact.

So you could understand why I haven't had the opportunity to write recently.
Will also inform you that I am going to get even more busy as I will be starting my new job tomorrow so wish me luck!

Will probably write when my first audition comes up (The Lir in Ireland)
But for now,
TALLY HO!

The Old Vic's A Streetcar Named Desire: The Review.

Hi again,

So yesterday I watched the Old Vic's latest production of A streetcar named desire, directed by Benidict Andrews, via the National Theatre Live scheme at my local cinema.

Having not much knowledge about the play before seeing it, I didn't know what to expect. So I let my Dad tag along and watch it with me.  It was quite ranchy, which made the experiance of watching it with my Dad quite arkward...

But it was brilliant all the same. 

To people who haven't heard of the play, it was written by Tennesse Williams and it was the 1952 movie version of this play that help start Marlon Brando's acting legacy. The play is set in southen america and there are three main characters. Estella, her Husband Stanley and her drunkard sister Miss Dubuoise who has come to stay with them in their tiny place while she gets her life back into order, but its already too late for that.

Gillian Anderson, who play the miserble drunk sister, was good. But I felt that it took her a while to  really get into her role and show us her skills. The real attraction of the play was Stanley himself. As while he didnt have that much to say, he was able to create the tension and the unearthing sense that he was going to snap at any second whenever he came onto the stage.

The play itself was set in the round and the set, ie a see through rectangular apartment, revolved so the audience  members each had a different perspective of the play, an idea which I found unique and interesting to watch.

I would compleatley recomend going to see this play as it was gripping, mesmerising and a utter joy to watch.

In terms of what I'm doing next - in terms of drama school applications -  I've applied for a audition at an agency in manchester and I'm going to be seeing a performance of romeo and juliet at the Victoria Baths in Manchester next week, so I will write a review of that when I have time.

For now though,

Cheerio,

Terri ;D.