Ashley Ross
Hello everyone!
It's week two of our student blogs. We are all on a huge high following a fantastic fundraiser this week which took place at Browns in Covent Garden. We raised lots of money towards this years' show so a huge thank you to all of those who attended, donated or contributed in any way. Much appreciated! View the photos from the evening here https://www.artiststheatreschool.com/fundraisers-social-events
This week's student blog comes from first year student, Ashley Ross.
Ashley:
Hello, my name is Ashley and this is my first year at ATS so of course I am eager to showcase what I can do and prove to everyone why I earned my place here.
This year I have been cast in both 'Gizmo' by Alan Ayckbourn and 'You, Me and Wii' by Sue Townsend.
In 'Gizmo' I am taking on the role of Lando; a hitman who is void of any sense of emotion or compassion. He is the sole cause for Ben needing the GIZMO implant. Ben witnessed a murder, where Lando was the perpetrator, when Ben was working as a barman. Lando is unaware of this until an unrelated encounter causes Ben to cross paths with Lando once again, and Lando recognises him.
My character is fearless and selfish. He doesn't care about anybody or anything and won't have any qualms in eliminating anything that may disrupt his life or work.
I have also been cast as Vincent in 'You, Me and Wii'. Vincent is an ex Iraqi soldier who suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Vincent is not a bad man but he is clearly very troubled and struggles to channel his emotions making him become agitated. While PTSD may seem a taboo subject to the family, he leans on the emotional stability of his Nana, Sheila, in the absence of any professional help or support, which he clearly needs.
Both of my characters are a world apart from each other and it has been a welcomed challenge and huge learning curve for me. With this being my first year at ATS, it has been very exciting, but that doesn't mean for a second that it has been plain sailing. You get what you put in and you really do have to be willing to work hard if you want to achieve the best standards. For example, I've found that with the complexities of the character of Vincent, that I have had to do a lot of research and study very hard on the traits and causes of PTSD as well as the differences between the types of upbringing and opportunities a character has faced in their life before I can begin to even set the foundations for that character and his personality.
There will be plenty of hard work ahead in the coming months, and being directed throughout by Amanda Redman is an absolute privilege. She knows exactly what she's doing and how to constructively get the best from an individual. The fact that she cares to such a degree about us and all of our productions is a testament to how professional ATS is. We have the help of many great tutors along our journey who equally have all been a huge support to the development of my roles since joining ATS. If you are serious about acting and willing to work hard then you won't find a drama school anywhere else that offers so many incredible and diverse opportunities.
It's week two of our student blogs. We are all on a huge high following a fantastic fundraiser this week which took place at Browns in Covent Garden. We raised lots of money towards this years' show so a huge thank you to all of those who attended, donated or contributed in any way. Much appreciated! View the photos from the evening here https://www.artiststheatreschool.com/fundraisers-social-events
This week's student blog comes from first year student, Ashley Ross.
Ashley:
Hello, my name is Ashley and this is my first year at ATS so of course I am eager to showcase what I can do and prove to everyone why I earned my place here.
This year I have been cast in both 'Gizmo' by Alan Ayckbourn and 'You, Me and Wii' by Sue Townsend.
In 'Gizmo' I am taking on the role of Lando; a hitman who is void of any sense of emotion or compassion. He is the sole cause for Ben needing the GIZMO implant. Ben witnessed a murder, where Lando was the perpetrator, when Ben was working as a barman. Lando is unaware of this until an unrelated encounter causes Ben to cross paths with Lando once again, and Lando recognises him.
My character is fearless and selfish. He doesn't care about anybody or anything and won't have any qualms in eliminating anything that may disrupt his life or work.
I have also been cast as Vincent in 'You, Me and Wii'. Vincent is an ex Iraqi soldier who suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Vincent is not a bad man but he is clearly very troubled and struggles to channel his emotions making him become agitated. While PTSD may seem a taboo subject to the family, he leans on the emotional stability of his Nana, Sheila, in the absence of any professional help or support, which he clearly needs.
Both of my characters are a world apart from each other and it has been a welcomed challenge and huge learning curve for me. With this being my first year at ATS, it has been very exciting, but that doesn't mean for a second that it has been plain sailing. You get what you put in and you really do have to be willing to work hard if you want to achieve the best standards. For example, I've found that with the complexities of the character of Vincent, that I have had to do a lot of research and study very hard on the traits and causes of PTSD as well as the differences between the types of upbringing and opportunities a character has faced in their life before I can begin to even set the foundations for that character and his personality.
There will be plenty of hard work ahead in the coming months, and being directed throughout by Amanda Redman is an absolute privilege. She knows exactly what she's doing and how to constructively get the best from an individual. The fact that she cares to such a degree about us and all of our productions is a testament to how professional ATS is. We have the help of many great tutors along our journey who equally have all been a huge support to the development of my roles since joining ATS. If you are serious about acting and willing to work hard then you won't find a drama school anywhere else that offers so many incredible and diverse opportunities.
- Ashley Ross
ATS' production of ''Gizmo' and 'Women, Power and Politics' directed by Amanda Redman will run from 18th - 20th July at Questors Theatre in Ealing. Tickets will be available nearer the time.
Join us for our blog next week which will be written by Emma Duke.
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