On Saturday, six of our students travelled over to St Ives School to audition for the National Youth Theatre. The day involved a 3 hour workshop with two practitioners from the company, followed by a one to one audition. TPAT colleagues from St Ives, Helston and Mullion joined forces to facilitate this event. There are not necessarily any regional auditions this far west, so to create this opportunity made the audition much more accessible for our students.
The two practitioners Aaron and Bryer led the workshop that brought together the students who all share a passion for theatre and acting. The workshop gave the participants a chance to experiment with improvisation techniques and loosen up in readiness for their one to one audition.
After lunch, the Mullion students gathered together and supported each other in anticipation of being called through. It was the first time any of them had taken part in a proper audition and the nerves were kicking in. They had all prepared a 2 minute monologue of their choice. The day before we had all gathered to watch the monologues and give feedback. It was wonderful to see how each actor presented their unique talents, evoking laughter, intrigue and tears. As each person returned from their 10 minute slot, experiences were shared and congratulations given. Everyone felt as if they had done their best in their monologue performance although there was some consternation about how well they had answered the questions asked.
It is now a waiting game as emails will be sent out around the time of the Coronation weekend in May. If successful, they will become a member of the National Youth Theatre until the age of 26. This will give them access to a summer residency this year along with online / in person workshops, events, mentoring and ultimately the next level of preparations for this year’s performing company. Everyone who took part on Saturday will have access to part of the NYT online hub for one year. Many young people have to audition multiple times before getting in and I think all of our students would say that they have learnt a great deal from this ‘first audition’ experience.
Tee-J Randall
