National Youth Music Theatre
Encyclopedia
The National Youth Music Theatre or NYMT is a UK organisation for young people in the field of musical theatre
, based in London
. It runs acting auditions, workshop
s, and musical theatre productions. It is constituted as a company and registered charity
under English law, formerly named Children's Music Theatre Limited.
In August 2010, the NYMT staged a daring production of Stephen Sondheim’s classic musical Sweeney Todd
in London. This production, directed by Martin Constantine, celebrated the composer's 80th birthday by taking this thrilling show out of a conventional theatre space and staging it within a converted Victorian warehouse in the city’s East End – Village Underground, near Spitalfields Market.
In August 2010, Jude Law became a new Patron of NYMT, alongside Tom Chambers. Jude is a former member of NYMT (1987-1990).
Auditions are held annually for cast, musicians and technical crew. Workshops are held during most school holidays. Participants should be aged between 11 and 21 years.
To find out more about these and to download an application form, visit the official website: http://www.nymt.org.uk
The company quickly became “The Children’s Music Theatre”, using young performers auditioned and selected from schools throughout the UK, creating a centre of excellence with many new productions, rave reviews, awards and plaudits which meant a high profile in the arts. With this profile, which by now included invitations to perform at The National Theatre and to create new music theatre works for the BBC and Granada Television, came the opportunity to inspire and educate young people through preparing for and presenting performance at the highest level. The NYMT was, as always, rich in all but funds and moved from strength to strength.
In 1985 there was a change of name and, in the same year, the first residential workshops took place, producing strong casts for summer productions. In 1984 Frank Dunlop, the new Artistic Director of the Edinburgh International Festival, invited the company to present an opera on the Festival programme. Such was the success of this that, in 1986, he presented two more NYMT productions, which raised the profile of the company to new heights. Then, in 1987, Richard Stilgoe offered NYMT the opportunity to première his new musical, Bodywork and, as a result, Edinburgh 1987 was, in Jeremy’s words, “crazy, hilarious and fantastical”. Huge audiences and rave reviews were followed by a Royal Gala Performance with HRH The Prince Edward in the audience and, emboldened by prestigious new associations, Jeremy invited HRH to become President of NYMT. In the same year, 1988, NYMT found a new sponsor, Nationwide, and moved to Sadlers Wells, providing an annual 3-week “season” and an office with a telephone. Success indeed!
An excellent first season at Sadlers Wells led to the BBC broadcast of The Ragged Child the following Christmas, a host of productions across the UK and others as far afield as New York, Toronto, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Taiwan, Norway and Greece. During this time NYMT’s new President attended at least one performance of every single production; an astute, honest and perceptive critic, who contributed hugely to NYMT’s development during these busy years.
In 1991, when the Nationwide sponsorship drew to a close, Andrew Lloyd-Webber generously took over the reins and gave the company a new lease of life which included an extraordinary short season on Broadway in the 2,600 seat City Center Theater with The Threepenny Opera and Pendragon - which won Critic's Choice in the New York Times and which also won the coveted HAMADA Edinburgh Festival Award. Bursting out of Sadlers Wells, the company moved its offices to The Royal Opera House in 1992.
In 1996, NYMT was at last recognised by the DfEE with a 3-year grant. Bugsy Malone proved an unexpected hit that year, so much so that it transferred to the Queen's Theatre in the West End at Christmas 1997 for an 11 week capacity run. The following busy years saw NYMT spread its workshops into Northern Ireland, the North East and East Anglia and, during this time, Howard Goodall and Charles Hart gave NYMT The Kissing Dance, which enjoyed a Christmas season at the Royal Opera House’s Linbury Studio Theatre, and they followed this with The Dreaming. The NYMT in 2000 were the first company to visit the new Glyndebourne Opera House with a new production of The Ragged Child.
NYMT's production of Oklahoma! which opened at the Waterfront, Belfast in 2002, moved to the Cardiff International Festival of Musicals and was warmly received by the national press when it came to the West End's Peacock Theatre for Easter 2003. In the summer of 2003, the NYMT was honoured by Sir Alan Ayckbourn who wrote and directed a new work, Orvin, Champion of Champions, for the NYMT, which he presented in his own theatre, the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough, as part of the theatre's summer season.
The following two years saw a quieter period while the company took stock and drew breath. This period included a programme of development workshops in association with The Disney Corporation and Josef Weinberger to develop new musical theatre works, and in early 2004, the organisation was given indications that it would receive financial backing from the Arts Council. However, in the spring of 2005 it was announced that no funding would be forthcoming. In the meantime, under the Chairmanship of Maggie Semple, and thanks to goodwill and support from many sources, the NYMT was able to announce a re-launch in 2006 with a production of The Dreaming for the Tonbridge Arts Festival. NYMT was also honoured with the responsibility of providing the entertainment for Her Majesty The Queen at her private dinner to celebrate Her 80th birthday in Windsor Castle in April 2006.
This was followed in 2007 with two performances directed by Caroline Leslie: Fiddler on the Roof
at the Bridewell Theatre in April and Little Me at the Bloomsbury Theatre in August. In 2008, the NYMT presented to critical acclaim a new production of Richard Taylor and Russell Labey’s version of Whistle Down the Wind
at the Greenwich Theatre. The director was Paul Hegarty and the musical director, Jeremy Walker.
As part of NYMT's Workshop Productions initiative, aimed at developing new musicals with young people, the company produced All Above Board - with book and lyrics by Hal S. Davies and music by Mike Eastman - at the Bridewell Theatre, London, in October 2008.
In the summer of 2009 the NYMT staged a new production, directed by Andrew Pearson, of Howard Goodall and Melvyn Bragg's The Hired Man
. Following performances at the New Hull Truck Theatre, the show was reprised in London at RADA's Jerwood Vanbrugh Theatre in aid of the Lord Mayor's Appeal and in the presence of Lord Bragg. In the same year, NYMT showcased a new work, Totally Over You, based on a play by Mark Ravenhill and with music by Eurobeat, The Musical creator, Craig Christie. This work in progress, directed by Suzi Graham-Adriani, was performed at the Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue.
In the 2010 New Year's Honours List, Jeremy James Taylor was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (O.B.E.) ‘in recognition of services to Young People and Musical Theatre’. In August of the same year, and in celebration of Stephen Sondheim's 80th birthday, the NYMT staged a daring production of his musical thriller Sweeney Todd
in London. This production, directed by Martin Constantine and Sarah Redmond, was staged within a converted Victorian warehouse in the city’s East End – Village Underground, near Spitalfields Market. With a brilliant cast of 30 - and a 25-piece orchestra of outstanding young players under the musical direction of Jeremy Walker - the production garnered 5-star reviews.
Highlights of the 2011 season included an invitation from Her Majesty The Queen and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh to perform for a reception at Buckingham Palace celebrating Young People in the Performing Arts. The specially commissioned performance in the ballroom, which had been inspired by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet
, also featured the English National Ballet, Flawless, Alleviate and the Docklands Sinfonia. NYMT singers and dancers joined Joe McElderry in Something's Coming from Bernstein's West Side Story
and accompanied Rumer in the finale, performing Taylor Swift's Love Story. Choreography was by Cristian Valle and the music was directed by Mike Batt. Then, in June, NYMT performed again for West End LIVE in Trafalgar Square. The programme included extracts from Sweeney Todd
and, from the finale of Bernstein's Candide, Make Our Garden Grow. In July came the International Youth Arts Festival for which, at the invitation of Creative Youth, NYMT staged a new production of Sweeney Todd
at the Rose Theatre, Kingston. The 70-strong company was directed by Sarah Redmond with new design by Holly Seager. Musical direction was by Jeremy Walker.
Plans for 2012 include a collaboration with American musical theatre composer, lyricist and playwright, Jason Robert Brown
, to produce his musical, 13
in London's West End and under the direction of the composer.
Over 35 years NYMT has had a huge cast. It has also, as well as staging some of the great classics of musical theatre, created a considerable and important body of new music theatre works for performance by young people. Some of the brilliant and inspirational young performers have gone on to enrich the professional stage. All have taken with them exceptional skills, memories and a drive to support education in the arts which bodes well for our country’s development.
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
, based in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. It runs acting auditions, workshop
Workshop
A workshop is a room or building which provides both the area and tools that may be required for the manufacture or repair of manufactured goods...
s, and musical theatre productions. It is constituted as a company and registered charity
Charitable organization
A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization . It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization (NPO). It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A...
under English law, formerly named Children's Music Theatre Limited.
Recent events
On 9 May 2011, Her Majesty The Queen and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh gave a reception at Buckingham Palace to celebrate Young People in the Performing Arts. Fifteen members of the National Youth Music Theatre spent the weekend rehearsing in the palace in preparation for their performance alongside the English National Ballet, Flawless, Alleviate and the Docklands Sinfonia in a specially commissioned theatre performance in the Ballroom, which had been inspired by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. NYMT singers and dancers joined X-Factor winner, Joe McElderry in "Something's Coming" from Bernstein's "West Side Story", excitingly choreographed by Cristian Valle. They also accompanied Rumer in the finale, performing Taylor Swift's "Love Story". The music was directed by Mike Batt.In August 2010, the NYMT staged a daring production of Stephen Sondheim’s classic musical Sweeney Todd
Sweeney Todd (musical)
Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a 1979 musical thriller with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and libretto by Hugh Wheeler. The musical is based on the 1973 play Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Christopher Bond....
in London. This production, directed by Martin Constantine, celebrated the composer's 80th birthday by taking this thrilling show out of a conventional theatre space and staging it within a converted Victorian warehouse in the city’s East End – Village Underground, near Spitalfields Market.
In August 2010, Jude Law became a new Patron of NYMT, alongside Tom Chambers. Jude is a former member of NYMT (1987-1990).
Auditions are held annually for cast, musicians and technical crew. Workshops are held during most school holidays. Participants should be aged between 11 and 21 years.
To find out more about these and to download an application form, visit the official website: http://www.nymt.org.uk
History
Founded in 1976 by Jeremy James Taylor, the National Youth Music Theatre’s beginnings were at Belmont, the Mill Hill Junior School. Here, under JJT’s direction and inspired by Ben Jonson’s moving epitaph on an actor who died very young, an 11-13 cast created and invented The Ballad of Salomon Pavey. Following its school performance, an adventurous and enlightened headmaster allowed his ambitious director to take the whole thing to the Edinburgh Fringe where it won fine reviews, excellent audiences, a Fringe First Award and an invitation to bring it to London as part of Her Majesty’s Silver Jubilee Celebrations. (The visit by a school company also started the ‘trend’ for schools and youth groups to take shows to the Edinburgh Fringe - a development which has grown to mammoth proportions over the years).The company quickly became “The Children’s Music Theatre”, using young performers auditioned and selected from schools throughout the UK, creating a centre of excellence with many new productions, rave reviews, awards and plaudits which meant a high profile in the arts. With this profile, which by now included invitations to perform at The National Theatre and to create new music theatre works for the BBC and Granada Television, came the opportunity to inspire and educate young people through preparing for and presenting performance at the highest level. The NYMT was, as always, rich in all but funds and moved from strength to strength.
In 1985 there was a change of name and, in the same year, the first residential workshops took place, producing strong casts for summer productions. In 1984 Frank Dunlop, the new Artistic Director of the Edinburgh International Festival, invited the company to present an opera on the Festival programme. Such was the success of this that, in 1986, he presented two more NYMT productions, which raised the profile of the company to new heights. Then, in 1987, Richard Stilgoe offered NYMT the opportunity to première his new musical, Bodywork and, as a result, Edinburgh 1987 was, in Jeremy’s words, “crazy, hilarious and fantastical”. Huge audiences and rave reviews were followed by a Royal Gala Performance with HRH The Prince Edward in the audience and, emboldened by prestigious new associations, Jeremy invited HRH to become President of NYMT. In the same year, 1988, NYMT found a new sponsor, Nationwide, and moved to Sadlers Wells, providing an annual 3-week “season” and an office with a telephone. Success indeed!
An excellent first season at Sadlers Wells led to the BBC broadcast of The Ragged Child the following Christmas, a host of productions across the UK and others as far afield as New York, Toronto, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Taiwan, Norway and Greece. During this time NYMT’s new President attended at least one performance of every single production; an astute, honest and perceptive critic, who contributed hugely to NYMT’s development during these busy years.
In 1991, when the Nationwide sponsorship drew to a close, Andrew Lloyd-Webber generously took over the reins and gave the company a new lease of life which included an extraordinary short season on Broadway in the 2,600 seat City Center Theater with The Threepenny Opera and Pendragon - which won Critic's Choice in the New York Times and which also won the coveted HAMADA Edinburgh Festival Award. Bursting out of Sadlers Wells, the company moved its offices to The Royal Opera House in 1992.
In 1996, NYMT was at last recognised by the DfEE with a 3-year grant. Bugsy Malone proved an unexpected hit that year, so much so that it transferred to the Queen's Theatre in the West End at Christmas 1997 for an 11 week capacity run. The following busy years saw NYMT spread its workshops into Northern Ireland, the North East and East Anglia and, during this time, Howard Goodall and Charles Hart gave NYMT The Kissing Dance, which enjoyed a Christmas season at the Royal Opera House’s Linbury Studio Theatre, and they followed this with The Dreaming. The NYMT in 2000 were the first company to visit the new Glyndebourne Opera House with a new production of The Ragged Child.
NYMT's production of Oklahoma! which opened at the Waterfront, Belfast in 2002, moved to the Cardiff International Festival of Musicals and was warmly received by the national press when it came to the West End's Peacock Theatre for Easter 2003. In the summer of 2003, the NYMT was honoured by Sir Alan Ayckbourn who wrote and directed a new work, Orvin, Champion of Champions, for the NYMT, which he presented in his own theatre, the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough, as part of the theatre's summer season.
The following two years saw a quieter period while the company took stock and drew breath. This period included a programme of development workshops in association with The Disney Corporation and Josef Weinberger to develop new musical theatre works, and in early 2004, the organisation was given indications that it would receive financial backing from the Arts Council. However, in the spring of 2005 it was announced that no funding would be forthcoming. In the meantime, under the Chairmanship of Maggie Semple, and thanks to goodwill and support from many sources, the NYMT was able to announce a re-launch in 2006 with a production of The Dreaming for the Tonbridge Arts Festival. NYMT was also honoured with the responsibility of providing the entertainment for Her Majesty The Queen at her private dinner to celebrate Her 80th birthday in Windsor Castle in April 2006.
This was followed in 2007 with two performances directed by Caroline Leslie: Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem...
at the Bridewell Theatre in April and Little Me at the Bloomsbury Theatre in August. In 2008, the NYMT presented to critical acclaim a new production of Richard Taylor and Russell Labey’s version of Whistle Down the Wind
Whistle Down the Wind
Whistle Down the Wind may refer to:* Whistle Down the Wind , a film directed by Bryan Forbes* Whistle Down the Wind , a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the film...
at the Greenwich Theatre. The director was Paul Hegarty and the musical director, Jeremy Walker.
As part of NYMT's Workshop Productions initiative, aimed at developing new musicals with young people, the company produced All Above Board - with book and lyrics by Hal S. Davies and music by Mike Eastman - at the Bridewell Theatre, London, in October 2008.
In the summer of 2009 the NYMT staged a new production, directed by Andrew Pearson, of Howard Goodall and Melvyn Bragg's The Hired Man
The Hired Man
The Hired Man is a novel by Melvyn Bragg, first published in 1969. It is the first part of Bragg's Cumbrian Trilogy.The story is set predominantly in the rural area around Thurston , from the 1890s to the 1920s, and follows the life of John Tallentire, a farm labourer and coal miner...
. Following performances at the New Hull Truck Theatre, the show was reprised in London at RADA's Jerwood Vanbrugh Theatre in aid of the Lord Mayor's Appeal and in the presence of Lord Bragg. In the same year, NYMT showcased a new work, Totally Over You, based on a play by Mark Ravenhill and with music by Eurobeat, The Musical creator, Craig Christie. This work in progress, directed by Suzi Graham-Adriani, was performed at the Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue.
In the 2010 New Year's Honours List, Jeremy James Taylor was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (O.B.E.) ‘in recognition of services to Young People and Musical Theatre’. In August of the same year, and in celebration of Stephen Sondheim's 80th birthday, the NYMT staged a daring production of his musical thriller Sweeney Todd
Sweeney Todd (musical)
Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a 1979 musical thriller with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and libretto by Hugh Wheeler. The musical is based on the 1973 play Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Christopher Bond....
in London. This production, directed by Martin Constantine and Sarah Redmond, was staged within a converted Victorian warehouse in the city’s East End – Village Underground, near Spitalfields Market. With a brilliant cast of 30 - and a 25-piece orchestra of outstanding young players under the musical direction of Jeremy Walker - the production garnered 5-star reviews.
Highlights of the 2011 season included an invitation from Her Majesty The Queen and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh to perform for a reception at Buckingham Palace celebrating Young People in the Performing Arts. The specially commissioned performance in the ballroom, which had been inspired by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written early in the career of playwright William Shakespeare about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately unite their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular archetypal stories of young, teenage lovers.Romeo and Juliet belongs to a...
, also featured the English National Ballet, Flawless, Alleviate and the Docklands Sinfonia. NYMT singers and dancers joined Joe McElderry in Something's Coming from Bernstein's West Side Story
West Side Story
West Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
and accompanied Rumer in the finale, performing Taylor Swift's Love Story. Choreography was by Cristian Valle and the music was directed by Mike Batt. Then, in June, NYMT performed again for West End LIVE in Trafalgar Square. The programme included extracts from Sweeney Todd
Sweeney Todd (musical)
Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a 1979 musical thriller with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and libretto by Hugh Wheeler. The musical is based on the 1973 play Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Christopher Bond....
and, from the finale of Bernstein's Candide, Make Our Garden Grow. In July came the International Youth Arts Festival for which, at the invitation of Creative Youth, NYMT staged a new production of Sweeney Todd
Sweeney Todd (musical)
Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a 1979 musical thriller with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and libretto by Hugh Wheeler. The musical is based on the 1973 play Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Christopher Bond....
at the Rose Theatre, Kingston. The 70-strong company was directed by Sarah Redmond with new design by Holly Seager. Musical direction was by Jeremy Walker.
Plans for 2012 include a collaboration with American musical theatre composer, lyricist and playwright, Jason Robert Brown
Jason Robert Brown
Jason Robert Brown is an American musical theater composer, lyricist, and playwright. Brown's music sensibility fuses pop-rock stylings with theatrical lyrics...
, to produce his musical, 13
13 (musical)
13 is a musical with lyrics and music by Jason Robert Brown and a book by Dan Elish, with Robert Horn newly joining as co-librettist. The story concerns the life of 13-year-old Evan Goldman as he moves from New York City to Appleton, Indiana, and his dilemma when the move conflicts with the...
in London's West End and under the direction of the composer.
Over 35 years NYMT has had a huge cast. It has also, as well as staging some of the great classics of musical theatre, created a considerable and important body of new music theatre works for performance by young people. Some of the brilliant and inspirational young performers have gone on to enrich the professional stage. All have taken with them exceptional skills, memories and a drive to support education in the arts which bodes well for our country’s development.
Past accolades
- The Scotsman Fringe First Award (Numerous Occasions)
- Radio Forth Award for Outstanding Musical Production
- Edinburgh Festival Hamada Award
Former members
- Rae BakerRae BakerRae Baker , is an English actress.-Biography:Born to a carpenter father, her brother Kevin is an electronics engineer...
- Ben BarnesBen Barnes (actor)Benjamin Thomas "Ben" Barnes is an English actor, best known for his portrayal of Caspian X in The Chronicles of Narnia films Prince Caspian and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.-Early life and education:...
- Joseph BeattieJoseph BeattieJoseph Beattie is an English actor, known for portraying Malachi in the second season of Hex and Henry Crawford in Mansfield Park.-Background:...
- Gina BeckGina BeckGina Beck is an English actress and singer known primarily for her roles in leading musical theatre productions. Gina recently starred as Christine Daaé in Cameron Mackintosh's production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera in London's West End for two years...
- Jamie BellJamie BellAndrew James Matfin "Jamie" Bell is an English actor. He is best known for his roles in the films Billy Elliot , King Kong , Hallam Foe , Jumper , Defiance , The Eagle and The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn .- Early life :Bell was born in Billingham, in the Borough of...
- Charlotte BellamyCharlotte BellamyCharlotte Bellamy is an English actress.-Early life:Bellamy attended Middlesex University studying Performance Arts, graduating in 1993.-Acting career:...
- James BourneJames BourneJames Elliot Bourne is an English singer-songwriter and co-founder of pop bands Son of Dork and Busted. He is currently pursuing a solo career under the name Future Boy. His albums have sold over six million copies...
- Lucy BradshawLucy BradshawLucy-Anne Bradshaw is a British actress and singer, known for playing Cathy in the original production of Whistle Down the Wind by National Youth Music Theatre and Miss Kenton in the musical adaptation of The Remains of the Day...
- Jamie Campbell BowerJamie Campbell BowerJames "Jamie" Campbell M. Bower is an English actor, singer and former model. Bower is best known for his role as Anthony Hope in Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, his role of Caius in The Twilight Saga: New Moon and his role of King Arthur in the Starz original series...
- Paul CattermolePaul CattermolePaul Gerald Cattermole , St Albans, Hertfordshire, England) is an English singer and actor. He was previously a member of S Club 7, and was the lead singer of the band Skua and latterly Charlie Bullitt until he left in October 2005....
- Tom ChambersTom Chambers (actor)Tom Chambers is a British actor, known for his role as Sam Strachan in the BBC medical drama Holby City. He also won the sixth season of Strictly Come Dancing with his partner Camilla Dallerup.-Personal life:...
- Christian CoulsonChristian CoulsonChristian Coulson is an English actor best known for playing Tom Marvolo Riddle in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.-Early life:...
- Peter DarlingPeter DarlingPeter Darling is an English dancer and choreographer best known for his award-winning work in Billy Elliot the Musical.-External links:...
- Kerry EllisKerry EllisKerry Jane Ellis is an English stage actress and singer who is best known for her work in musical theatre and subsequent crossover into music...
- Cordelia Farnworth
- Connie FisherConnie FisherConnie Fisher is a Welsh actress and singer, who won the BBC One talent contest, How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?...
- Tiffany Graves
- Katie HallKatie HallKatie Beatrice Hall , served as a U.S. Representative from Indiana from 1982 to 1985. She was born Katie Beatrice Green in Mound Bayou, Bolivar County, Mississippi. She attended the public schools of Mound Bayou. Hall received a B.S. from Mississippi Valley State University, Itta Bena, Mississippi...
- Nigel HarmanNigel HarmanNigel Derek Harman is an English actor, most famous for his role as Dennis Rickman in the UK soap opera EastEnders. He has worked extensively in theatre, with the stage being described as his "first love"...
- Andrew HewittAndrew Hewitt-Training and performance:Andrew was classically trained from childhood as a pianist and tenor singer. He won music scholarships and entrance bursaries to Westminster Abbey Choir, Uppingham School, the National Youth Music Theatre, St Johns College, Cambridge University and the Guildhall School of...
- Tom HollanderTom HollanderThomas Anthony "Tom" Hollander is a British actor who has appeared in productions such as Enigma, Gosford Park, Cambridge Spies, Pride and Prejudice, Pirates of the Caribbean, In the Loop, Valkyrie and Hanna.-Early life:Tom Hollander was born in Bristol and raised in Oxford, Oxfordshire, the son...
- Konnie HuqKonnie HuqKanak Asha "Konnie" Huq is a British television presenter, who is best known for being the longest-serving female presenter of Blue Peter, having presented it from 1 December 1997 until 23 January 2008...
- Michael JibsonMichael JibsonMichael Jibson is an English actor born in 1980, Hull, East Yorkshire, England. He is married to the stage actress Caroline Sheen. His father, Tim Jibson, was the programme director of KCFM in Hull. His brother is the actor Paul Jibson...
- Laura Michelle KellyLaura Michelle KellyLaura Michelle Kelly is an English actress and singer who achieved critical acclaim in the role of Mary Poppins in the musical of the same name.-Musical theatre:...
- Jude LawJude LawDavid Jude Heyworth Law , known professionally as Jude Law, is an English actor, film producer and director.He began acting with the National Youth Music Theatre in 1987, and had his first television role in 1989...
- Matt LucasMatt LucasMatthew Richard "Matt" Lucas is an English comedian, screenwriter and actor best known for his acclaimed work with David Walliams in the television show Little Britain; as well as for his portrayals of the scorekeeping baby George Dawes in the comedy panel game Shooting Stars, Tweedledee and...
- Jonny Lee MillerJonny Lee MillerJonathan "Jonny" Lee Miller is an English actor. During the initial days he was best known for his roles in the 1996 films Trainspotting and Hackers...
- Torquil Munro
- Jamie Muscato
- Amy NuttallAmy NuttallAmy Nuttall is an English actress and singer most notable for playing the role of Chloe Atkinson in the long-running ITV soap opera Emmerdale from 2000 until 2005.-Early life:...
- Chiké OkonkwoChiké OkonkwoChiké Okonkwo is an English actor, known for portraying PC Clark in New Tricks and DC Callum Gada in Paradox.-Background:Born and raised in Kingston upon Thames, Okonkwo is of Nigerian descent...
- Jodie Oliver
- Gloria Onitiri
- Malinda Parris
- Mica Penniman
- Sue PerkinsSue PerkinsSue Perkins is an English comedienne, broadcaster, actress, and writer.-Education:Perkins was educated at Croham Hurst School, an independent school for girls in Croydon in South London, at the same time as the BBC Breakfast News presenter Susanna Reid...
- Stuart Matthew Price
- Lara PulverLara PulverLara Pulver is an English actress who has received nominations for the 2008 Laurence Olivier Awards and 'Whatsonstage' Theatregoers Choice Awards.-Career:...
- Zoe Rainey
- Danielle Rayner
- Eddie RedmayneEddie RedmayneEdward John David "Eddie" Redmayne is an English actor and model. Redmayne won the 2010 Tony Award as best featured actor in a play for his performance in Red.-Early life:...
- Sheridan SmithSheridan SmithSheridan Smith is an English actress and singer who is best known for her contributions to the British sitcoms Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, Gavin & Stacey and Benidorm. She has also become a recognised face in West End theatre, where she has appeared in Little Shop of Horrors,...
- Hannah SpearrittHannah SpearrittHannah Louise Spearritt is an English actress and singer. She was previously a member of the pop group S Club 7. She is also known for playing the role of Abby Maitland in the British drama Primeval....
- Nicky SpenceNicky SpenceNicky Spence is a Scottish tenor performing in opera, oratorio and concerts.-Early years:Spence was born in Dumfries in 1983. According to the biography on his web site "although struggling from a broken home, he thrived in life with a huge love of performing and working in his local chippy to...
- Clive StandenClive StandenClive Standen is an English actor best known for playing Sir Gawain in the Starz series Camelot as well as 'Archer', the brother of Robin Hood in the BBC TV series Robin Hood and Private Carl Harris in the British sci-fi show Doctor Who.-Acting:Standen's first experience of stunts, horse...
- Richard StilgoeRichard StilgoeRichard Henry Simpson Stilgoe OBE is a British songwriter, lyricist and musician. He is noted for clever wordplay as much as for his music....
- Mary StockleyMary StockleyMary Stockley is a British stage, television and film actress.A former member of the National Youth Music Theatre, Stockley studied drama at university. She made her first television appearance in 2001 in the TV movie Being Dom Jolly, in 2002 going on to play Kate Matherson in eight episodes of...
- Jim SturgessJim SturgessJames Anthony "Jim" Sturgess is an English actor and singer-songwriter. His breakthrough role was appearing as Jude in the musical romance drama film Across the Universe .-Early life:...
- David ThaxtonDavid ThaxtonDavid Thaxton is a British musical theatre and opera performer. He recently starred in the Donmar Warehouse's Passion, for which he won the 2011 Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical. He previously appeared as Enjolras in the West End production of Les Misérables...
- Dominic Tighe
- Peter WhitePeter WhitePeter White, PC was a Canadian parliamentarian.White was born into a family that had established its homestead at the junction of the Muskrat and Ottawa Rivers where the town of Pembroke, Ontario was soon established...
- Andrew WrightAndrew WrightAndrew Wright is a Canadian multimedia artist from Ottawa, Ontario. He is best known for his work with video and large-scale photography. He holds a specialist degree in Art and Art History from the University of Toronto and a Masters in Fine Arts at the University of Windsor...
Past productions
- Aesop
- All Above Board
- Andrew Lloyd Webber 50th Birthday Tribute
- Annie
- Arthur Andersen Reception
- Aurelius
- The Ballad of Salomon Pavey
- The Beggar's Opera
- Bendigo Boswell
- Billy
- Bodywork
- Born of Glass
- Brilliant the Dinosaur
- Bugsy Malone
- Bury St Edmund's Cathedral
- Captain Stirrick
- The Caucasian Chalk CircleThe Caucasian Chalk CircleThe Caucasian Chalk Circle is a play by the German modernist playwright Bertolt Brecht. An example of Brecht's epic theatre, the play is a parable about a peasant girl who rescues a baby and becomes a better mother than its natural parents....
- The CBI Conference
- The Children's Royal Variety Show
- Creation
- Drake
- The Dreaming
- El Retablo De Maese Pedro
- Facade
- The Factory Children
- Four Walls
- Fiddler on the Roof
- Goblin Market
- Guys and Dolls
- Helen Come Home (or Achilles the Heel)
- The Hired ManThe Hired ManThe Hired Man is a novel by Melvyn Bragg, first published in 1969. It is the first part of Bragg's Cumbrian Trilogy.The story is set predominantly in the rural area around Thurston , from the 1890s to the 1920s, and follows the life of John Tallentire, a farm labourer and coal miner...
- The Indian Queen
- Into the Woods
- Jack Spratt VC
- Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat
- The Kissing Dance
- The Leaving of Liverpool
- Let's Make an Opera
- Lighting The Candle
- Little Me
- The Little Rats
- The Lord Shaftesbury Memorial Concert
- Master Peter's Puppet Show
- Nos Vie En Rose
- Not Quite Bedtime
- Noye's Fludde
- October's Children
- Oklahoma!Oklahoma!Oklahoma! is the first musical written by composer Richard Rodgers and librettist Oscar Hammerstein II. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs' 1931 play, Green Grow the Lilacs. Set in Oklahoma Territory outside the town of Claremore in 1906, it tells the story of cowboy Curly McLain and his romance...
- Oliver!
- Once Upon a War
- Orvin
- Overture and Beginners
- Pal Joey
- Pendragon
- Play Extinct
- Poppy
- The Powder Monkeys
- The Queen's Anniversary Gala Concert
- The Ragged Child
- The Roman Invasion of Ramsbottom
- Saint Francis
- Spider Dance
- Stonehenge Arms Park
- Such Sweet Thunder
- Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet StreetSweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet StreetSweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a 1936 British film produced and directed by George King.-Plot:The film features Tod Slaughter in one of his most famous roles as barber Sweeney Todd. Sweeney Todd was wrongly sentenced to life in prison. After his release 15 years later, he begins...
- The Tailor of Gloucester
- The Threepenny Opera
- Tin Pan Ali (or The Sesame Street Racket)
- Totally Over You
- The Tower of Babel
- The Ugly Duckling
- Whistle Down The Wind
- Witches!
- The Wizard of Oz
- You Must Remember This