Emily Roberts
It's just less than one week until curtain up! We only have tickets for the Saturday matinee so get your hands on them now as they are on limited availability. Get them here .
Also, if you want to audition, this will be taking place 25th and 26th July. Fill in an application form from our website and return to us. Website link here
So to celebrate our impending show, we have a blog from our fabulous assistant director and ex-ATS student, Emily Roberts. She will be discussing her experiences and also has some last minute individual advice for each of our actor's.
EMILY:
Hello I’m Emily, Assistant Director for this year’s ATS showcase. I can’t believe we are less than one week away to ‘curtain up’. What an exciting year to be involved in, with such great plays and talent, I feel very privileged to have been a part of it.
I started off with ATS as an actress in 2012 and after a fantastic two years I decided to make the leap for drama school. Now having completed a postgraduate diploma at Drama Studio London I wanted to come back as Assistant Director to learn the skill of teaching/directing alongside my acting career. It has been fascinating to sit on the other side of the stage and I have thoroughly enjoyed this whole year seeing the cast members grow and develop as performers. By drawing on what I know and passing it on to others I also feel that I have cemented some of my acting skills which has made me realise how far I have come on my own journey since I started with ATS all those years ago.
During rehearsals some of the cast have needed more guidance than others depending on their experience and the demands of the role/s and I am hoping, however great or small, that I have managed to give some direction or advice to each of the ATS cast throughout this process and hopefully they can take it forward with them in the future. I have also really enjoyed learning off of Amanda and Julianne. To observe their way of giving direction and communicating to the cast has been really invaluable and it has made me appreciate more so the enormity of a director’s job to bring everything together. ATS is definitely a well-oiled machine and it has honestly been a joy every week to come in and to be a part of a team whereby we are all working towards the same goal.
Every week the cast have all worked extremely hard and it really does show because they have come on leaps and bounds since they started their journey back in January. I have watched them all individually blossom over the past year and I am unbelievably proud of each and every one of them and the work they have achieved. Being an actress myself sometimes it’s difficult to see my own progress and it’s easy to forget to reflect so I wanted to use this blog to highlight some of the things I feel the cast have individually achieved along the way;
ASHLEY You have created two very different and believable characters for both Lando in "Gizmo" and Vincent in "You Me and Wii" and I have loved watching you go further with your choices every week. With Lando you have managed to successfully create a dark and slimy ‘Fagin’ type character and then in contrast to this is Vincent, a normal lad who is suffering from PTSD and I feel you have captured the essence of this disorder with great maturity. You’re always extremely focussed and committed in rehearsals and it’s been a joy to work with you this year.
CAMERON You have come on so far since you started with ATS. On the technical side you’ve had to face everything from, diction to ‘singing ends of lines’ to units and objectives and not to mention ‘squirrel strokers’ (emphasis on the ‘squirrel - not strokers!’). You have taken all the direction thrown at you on board with a smile and continued to come back each week building on the feedback. It’s also been great to see your confidence grow with the character Manny in "Gizmo", as I know he is a character that is out of your comfort zone but you have completely taken hold and gone for it which has been fabulous to see.
DOM I have loved watching your character Bill develop in "The Panel". You have worked really hard at creating detailed moments with other cast members which has resulted in some extremely funny moments. You have very strong natural comic timing in all three of your roles in "The Panel" and "Gizmo", and it’s wonderful to watch you in rehearsals exploring with comedy. You are also a trustworthy and professional performer who can always be depended on by cast and directors to take direction well and to perform at a high standard in every rehearsal and performance.
EMMA A star in the making! I can tell when you do something you give it every part of your being and it shows in your work. With Henrietta in "The Milliner and the Weaver" you have managed to capture a strong ‘earth mother’ quality which is hard to achieve when you are not a mother yourself. However, when watching your performance, I truly believe that you do run a household of six children. Then also playing the physically challenging role of an undercover police officer Cevril in "Gizmo", both are demanding parts which absolutely show off your versatility as a performer.
EMILY What a huge journey you have been on this year. Again, three completely different roles which have pushed you out of your comfort zone with Elspeth in "The Milliner and the Weaver", Courtney in "You Me and Wii" and Dart in "Gizmo". You have managed to conquer so many hurdles with aspects such as; physical, finding theatrical facial expressions and using your body to show emotion. Then the technical; speaking with both an Irish and Leicester accent and also voice and projection. Lastly the emotional; accessing powerful emotions and finding where they come from within your body. I have seen your confidence really blossom over the last year which has been beautiful to watch.
GRAEME What a great person you are to have on a team! Providing humour in rehearsals which is always needed and also a very giving, professional, supportive and hard-working actor. It has been delightful to see David in "The Panel" develop into a dithering, polite and matter of fact character, creating some brilliant moments of frustration and conflict with other characters and therefore comedy gold to the audience. Then a completely different side to you with Ted in "Gizmo", a bored and selfish nurse who again provides a wonderful contrast and therefore conflict with Ben which is highly entertaining for an audience.
JOSH I am super impressed with the detailed work you have done this year. You have created two extremely strong and different characters with Rust in "Gizmo" and Mark in "You Me and Wii". Both of them are at opposite ends of the spectrum and you have worked hard to avoid making them caricatures and instead making them very truthful. You have a lot of natural talent Josh and I hope you continue on this path of developing your craft as I know you will go far if you do.
KYM Another lovely newbie to ATS. You have done some fabulous work this year Kym. You have the tough job of starting off the play "Gizmo" by having to keep the energy up along with thinking about projection and diction. Your energy and projection have both improved tremendously and during rehearsals you have always taken direction on board very quickly. You are a great team player and always calm under pressure which are all brilliant traits to have within a group so hold onto them for future.
LAWRENCE As the longest running ATS cast member you have definitely set the standard for everyone. You are a super reliable, professional and trustworthy performer who has also given other cast members a great deal of help and support along the way. As for your characters I have loved watching both David Best and Keith develop in "Gizmo". Both characters are on opposite ends of the scale and you have done some really detailed work to make them wonderfully entertaining. Lastly both you and the cast of "The Panel" have worked so hard on this play to make it super slick. I am genuinely proud of all of you for the work and effort that has gone into it.
MAX What a journey you have had! Not only are you playing the lead in "Gizmo" but you have also had the great task of not being able to move your body from the shoulders down unless someone else is moving with you in perfect synchro. It is not a challenge many performers would ever have to take on so I hope you feel truly proud of what you have achieved. You have grown and developed hugely over the past seven months with the emotional, physical and technical side of acting. You have a positive energy in rehearsals and you are always very keen and eager to work hard. I know it has been tough on you at times however I am certain the reward will come through for you in the end.
SIANA I have loved watching your character Selina develop in "You Me and Wii". I remember at one point in rehearsals you realised you were trying to ‘put on a character’ and then you had a break through moment of changing tack. You had figured out that you needed to find the character from within yourself. This is probably one of the biggest lessons for you and such a valuable one to have learnt. You decided to own the character and worked from the inside out rather than from the outside in. Well done for overcoming this hurdle and try to remember for future that there will always be something you can connect to emotionally to create a fully rounded character.
SIMON You have worked tremendously hard on all three plays that you are in and you have also come a very long way since the start. The technical hurdles you have had to overcome such as; diction, learning an accent and singing, will all stand you in good stead for the future. Your character work is really detailed with Thomas in "The Milliner and the Weaver" and Jason in "The Panel" and I can see you are fully connected and switched on emotionally and physically to every role that you play. I have also enjoyed watching your confidence grow over the year and I know you have a lot more to give in the future.
SUZY Another longstanding member of ATS and a true team player, helping out with props and organising everything behind the scenes to ensure the smooth running of the production. You were given a gift of two very different roles this year which has pushed you out of your comfort zone. I know with Nerys in "Gizmo" it was more of a physical challenge, creating an ‘army style’ character as well as being in sync with another human being, which is hard enough in itself! Then alongside that, playing the role of Kerry, a mother of two teenage children in "You Me and Wii" which again is tough when you do not have that experience to draw upon as an actor. I feel you have taken on the challenge and worked extremely hard to take ownership of both characters and made them strong and believable. I know after this year you will now be confident to tackle any role thrown at you in the future.
VELVET Taking on the role of the grandmother Sheila in "You Me and Wii" was a huge challenge and I have great admiration of how you have sculpted a character whereby we believe she is the matriarch of the family and we do not see your age as the performer. It is very hard to do when you are a lot younger than the part but you have found a character that is grounded vocally and physically and one hundred percent truthful. You have very strong instincts for comedy and in both the plays "You Me and Wii" and "Gizmo", playing the role of Bernice, you have tuned into the invaluable comedic moments which is hugely entertaining and joyous to watch.
Finally, I just want to say thank you to all of you for welcoming me in and for always taking on board my suggestions. You have been a fabulous group to work with and it has honestly been one of the most rewarding and uplifting experiences of my life. Now go out there and smash it you lovely bunch!
Also, if you want to audition, this will be taking place 25th and 26th July. Fill in an application form from our website and return to us. Website link here
So to celebrate our impending show, we have a blog from our fabulous assistant director and ex-ATS student, Emily Roberts. She will be discussing her experiences and also has some last minute individual advice for each of our actor's.
Hello I’m Emily, Assistant Director for this year’s ATS showcase. I can’t believe we are less than one week away to ‘curtain up’. What an exciting year to be involved in, with such great plays and talent, I feel very privileged to have been a part of it.
I started off with ATS as an actress in 2012 and after a fantastic two years I decided to make the leap for drama school. Now having completed a postgraduate diploma at Drama Studio London I wanted to come back as Assistant Director to learn the skill of teaching/directing alongside my acting career. It has been fascinating to sit on the other side of the stage and I have thoroughly enjoyed this whole year seeing the cast members grow and develop as performers. By drawing on what I know and passing it on to others I also feel that I have cemented some of my acting skills which has made me realise how far I have come on my own journey since I started with ATS all those years ago.
During rehearsals some of the cast have needed more guidance than others depending on their experience and the demands of the role/s and I am hoping, however great or small, that I have managed to give some direction or advice to each of the ATS cast throughout this process and hopefully they can take it forward with them in the future. I have also really enjoyed learning off of Amanda and Julianne. To observe their way of giving direction and communicating to the cast has been really invaluable and it has made me appreciate more so the enormity of a director’s job to bring everything together. ATS is definitely a well-oiled machine and it has honestly been a joy every week to come in and to be a part of a team whereby we are all working towards the same goal.
Every week the cast have all worked extremely hard and it really does show because they have come on leaps and bounds since they started their journey back in January. I have watched them all individually blossom over the past year and I am unbelievably proud of each and every one of them and the work they have achieved. Being an actress myself sometimes it’s difficult to see my own progress and it’s easy to forget to reflect so I wanted to use this blog to highlight some of the things I feel the cast have individually achieved along the way;
ASHLEY You have created two very different and believable characters for both Lando in "Gizmo" and Vincent in "You Me and Wii" and I have loved watching you go further with your choices every week. With Lando you have managed to successfully create a dark and slimy ‘Fagin’ type character and then in contrast to this is Vincent, a normal lad who is suffering from PTSD and I feel you have captured the essence of this disorder with great maturity. You’re always extremely focussed and committed in rehearsals and it’s been a joy to work with you this year.
CAMERON You have come on so far since you started with ATS. On the technical side you’ve had to face everything from, diction to ‘singing ends of lines’ to units and objectives and not to mention ‘squirrel strokers’ (emphasis on the ‘squirrel - not strokers!’). You have taken all the direction thrown at you on board with a smile and continued to come back each week building on the feedback. It’s also been great to see your confidence grow with the character Manny in "Gizmo", as I know he is a character that is out of your comfort zone but you have completely taken hold and gone for it which has been fabulous to see.
DOM I have loved watching your character Bill develop in "The Panel". You have worked really hard at creating detailed moments with other cast members which has resulted in some extremely funny moments. You have very strong natural comic timing in all three of your roles in "The Panel" and "Gizmo", and it’s wonderful to watch you in rehearsals exploring with comedy. You are also a trustworthy and professional performer who can always be depended on by cast and directors to take direction well and to perform at a high standard in every rehearsal and performance.
EMMA A star in the making! I can tell when you do something you give it every part of your being and it shows in your work. With Henrietta in "The Milliner and the Weaver" you have managed to capture a strong ‘earth mother’ quality which is hard to achieve when you are not a mother yourself. However, when watching your performance, I truly believe that you do run a household of six children. Then also playing the physically challenging role of an undercover police officer Cevril in "Gizmo", both are demanding parts which absolutely show off your versatility as a performer.
EMILY What a huge journey you have been on this year. Again, three completely different roles which have pushed you out of your comfort zone with Elspeth in "The Milliner and the Weaver", Courtney in "You Me and Wii" and Dart in "Gizmo". You have managed to conquer so many hurdles with aspects such as; physical, finding theatrical facial expressions and using your body to show emotion. Then the technical; speaking with both an Irish and Leicester accent and also voice and projection. Lastly the emotional; accessing powerful emotions and finding where they come from within your body. I have seen your confidence really blossom over the last year which has been beautiful to watch.
GRAEME What a great person you are to have on a team! Providing humour in rehearsals which is always needed and also a very giving, professional, supportive and hard-working actor. It has been delightful to see David in "The Panel" develop into a dithering, polite and matter of fact character, creating some brilliant moments of frustration and conflict with other characters and therefore comedy gold to the audience. Then a completely different side to you with Ted in "Gizmo", a bored and selfish nurse who again provides a wonderful contrast and therefore conflict with Ben which is highly entertaining for an audience.
JOSH I am super impressed with the detailed work you have done this year. You have created two extremely strong and different characters with Rust in "Gizmo" and Mark in "You Me and Wii". Both of them are at opposite ends of the spectrum and you have worked hard to avoid making them caricatures and instead making them very truthful. You have a lot of natural talent Josh and I hope you continue on this path of developing your craft as I know you will go far if you do.
KYM Another lovely newbie to ATS. You have done some fabulous work this year Kym. You have the tough job of starting off the play "Gizmo" by having to keep the energy up along with thinking about projection and diction. Your energy and projection have both improved tremendously and during rehearsals you have always taken direction on board very quickly. You are a great team player and always calm under pressure which are all brilliant traits to have within a group so hold onto them for future.
LAWRENCE As the longest running ATS cast member you have definitely set the standard for everyone. You are a super reliable, professional and trustworthy performer who has also given other cast members a great deal of help and support along the way. As for your characters I have loved watching both David Best and Keith develop in "Gizmo". Both characters are on opposite ends of the scale and you have done some really detailed work to make them wonderfully entertaining. Lastly both you and the cast of "The Panel" have worked so hard on this play to make it super slick. I am genuinely proud of all of you for the work and effort that has gone into it.
MAX What a journey you have had! Not only are you playing the lead in "Gizmo" but you have also had the great task of not being able to move your body from the shoulders down unless someone else is moving with you in perfect synchro. It is not a challenge many performers would ever have to take on so I hope you feel truly proud of what you have achieved. You have grown and developed hugely over the past seven months with the emotional, physical and technical side of acting. You have a positive energy in rehearsals and you are always very keen and eager to work hard. I know it has been tough on you at times however I am certain the reward will come through for you in the end.
SIANA I have loved watching your character Selina develop in "You Me and Wii". I remember at one point in rehearsals you realised you were trying to ‘put on a character’ and then you had a break through moment of changing tack. You had figured out that you needed to find the character from within yourself. This is probably one of the biggest lessons for you and such a valuable one to have learnt. You decided to own the character and worked from the inside out rather than from the outside in. Well done for overcoming this hurdle and try to remember for future that there will always be something you can connect to emotionally to create a fully rounded character.
SIMON You have worked tremendously hard on all three plays that you are in and you have also come a very long way since the start. The technical hurdles you have had to overcome such as; diction, learning an accent and singing, will all stand you in good stead for the future. Your character work is really detailed with Thomas in "The Milliner and the Weaver" and Jason in "The Panel" and I can see you are fully connected and switched on emotionally and physically to every role that you play. I have also enjoyed watching your confidence grow over the year and I know you have a lot more to give in the future.
SUZY Another longstanding member of ATS and a true team player, helping out with props and organising everything behind the scenes to ensure the smooth running of the production. You were given a gift of two very different roles this year which has pushed you out of your comfort zone. I know with Nerys in "Gizmo" it was more of a physical challenge, creating an ‘army style’ character as well as being in sync with another human being, which is hard enough in itself! Then alongside that, playing the role of Kerry, a mother of two teenage children in "You Me and Wii" which again is tough when you do not have that experience to draw upon as an actor. I feel you have taken on the challenge and worked extremely hard to take ownership of both characters and made them strong and believable. I know after this year you will now be confident to tackle any role thrown at you in the future.
VELVET Taking on the role of the grandmother Sheila in "You Me and Wii" was a huge challenge and I have great admiration of how you have sculpted a character whereby we believe she is the matriarch of the family and we do not see your age as the performer. It is very hard to do when you are a lot younger than the part but you have found a character that is grounded vocally and physically and one hundred percent truthful. You have very strong instincts for comedy and in both the plays "You Me and Wii" and "Gizmo", playing the role of Bernice, you have tuned into the invaluable comedic moments which is hugely entertaining and joyous to watch.
Finally, I just want to say thank you to all of you for welcoming me in and for always taking on board my suggestions. You have been a fabulous group to work with and it has honestly been one of the most rewarding and uplifting experiences of my life. Now go out there and smash it you lovely bunch!
- Emily Roberts
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