Little Actors Theatre is currently applying for Charitable Status. The online form is almost complete and ready for submission. The references are in, forms and declarations complete and three, four, five drafts regarding public benefit have been overhauled by the ITC. A whole load of paperwork and mind boggling ticking of boxes. But in the long run it will be for the best for Little Actors as we will be able to extend our access for all policy. Access to the arts should be a right for ALL children - not a privilege. We hope to make that possible at all of our venues in London, Liverpool and Neston.
We hope to secure more funding and to develop a volunteer programme. Most charities in the UK a volunteer reliant and although we intend to continue our professional leadership and facilitation, we hope to also nurture volunteers to support and deliver our aims. If you are interested in being involved in an enthusiastic children's arts company as a volunteer do contact us at mail@littleactorstheatre.com. You will get as much out of it as you put in!!
Thursday 12 December 2013
Monday 9 December 2013
Thursday 28 November 2013
Friday 22 November 2013
Testimonial that brought a tear to our eyes
As we are registering for Charitable Status, we have to submit references. We are lucky that our referees are The John Thaw Foundation and the Connections team at the National Theatre. We also though we would ask a parent for her comments on our work with her children. Her testimonial brought a tear to our eyes and her son's director commented that getting up every Saturday instead of a lie in, really is worth it. We are very proud that our work impacts on her family this way.
To whom it may concern
My 16 year old son, Cameron, was born with tremendous physical and medical difficulties and at first they did not know whether he would survive , or if he did, whether he would ever walk or talk. It took a long while but he eventually did both. He attends a Special School but has always enjoyed being on stage, either singing, dancing, acting or presenting all the way through school. As Cameron’s sisters were members of the Little Actors drama group in Wanstead, London, he asked if he could join when they started the Youth Theatre. He has not looked back since.
Through Little Actors he has found an intense love of Shakespeare and was given the lead role in ‘Macbeth’ Act 1 Scene 4 and that of Puck for a part scene in a ‘Midsummer Night’s Dream’. He had acted, sang and danced his way fantastically through ‘Oliver the Musical’ as Fagin two Christmases before but absolutely amazed everyone with his brilliant delivery and well observed performance in Macbeth and ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. This is what Cameron wanted to say about Little Actors himself:
“I love Little Actors because when I do a performance the audience always congratulate me because Little Actors always give me a lead role in all the plays that I have done with them in the past 3 years. It’s always given me confidence.”
On the strength of all this, Cameron decided he wanted to do the open audition for the Globe Young Players doing John Marston’s ‘The Malcontent’ at the Sam Wanamaker Theatre which we found out about through Little Actors. With help from the Little Actors Youth Theatre leader he chose absolutely the right speech from Richard III to deliver along with an acted version of Fagin’s ‘I’m Reviewing the Situation’. He was so delighted to be able to tell everyone at Little Actors that he got through to the second round for a workshop led by the play’s director studying the last act of ‘A Comedy of Errors’ and a scene from ‘Hamlet’ (which they spent a session on at Little Actors with all the other children included in order to help Cameron familiarise with it). He was up against it but acquitted himself well and felt at ease because he already had experience through Little Actors of the warm-up games they did. He was in the last 200 out of 1,000 which was amazing for a professional standard expectation, particularly as he has both language and speech problems.
As a result of his experience with Little Actors (everyone knew Cameron knew the story of Macbeth pretty much inside out) Cameron went on to play Witch No. 1 in another performance of Macbeth by his special school for the ‘Shakespeare Schools Festival’ at the Kenneth More Theatre in Ilford in October. Those children put on the most alive and characterful performance in our opinion over three mainstream schools – their deputy head said he was the proudest deputy head in the whole UK and they are going to do another performance at school before Christmas. There is such a wealth of untapped talent even out there in the world of so called ‘special needs’.
Little Actors themselves expect the children to work hard on their lines but encourage them to own their performance and to input into the staging. There is no sense of uncomfortable pressure but the children do it because they are infused with an excitement and commitment to work as a team rather than to outdo each other and are led by people who are performers themselves and know what they are talking about. I have seen all the children flourish and I would say that the Shakespeare initiative this year has awakened in several of us parents a massive enthusiasm for the Bard so that whole families can share the joy that is Shakespeare. We are so happy to know that our children have enjoyed such a wonderful introduction to not only his work but to the realms of storytelling, mime, and musical theatre too. The Youth Theatre is now busily creating their own play for a festival next March and are really looking forward to it with the burgeoning confidence that has been instilled by the wonderful Saturday morning experience that is Little Actors. We are so grateful to them.
Yours faithfully
Jo Marshall
Thursday 7 November 2013
Ensemble theatre - what's that then?
Ensemble theatre demonstrates a collaborative model or working. Basically it is group work. Everyone's contribution is valuable and essential to the whole. Little Actors uses this methodology to ensure everyone is challenged and can experiment and take risks. We make sure all abilities and interests are represented and developed. Ensemble work is also a way of developing many skills that are useful in the wider world. People learn to work supportively and they learn to value other's ideas and develop understanding. Inclusion is encouraged. To work in an ensemble manner is enriching for the participants and for the audience. Little Actors uses the ensemble approach so that all children feel involved and valued.
The picture shows an ensemble performance of 'Don't Feed the Animals' with InterACT Youth Theatre as part of the National Theatre's Connections programme.
Neston Ladies Day 2013
A lovely video about the Ladies Day in Neston. I was lucky enough to provide the voice over.
http://www.youtube.com/v/sB_P_c67cTA?autohide=1&version=3&autohide=1&feature=share&attribution_tag=3QUC6Zl7fGqOvg4XCMPyug&showinfo=1&autoplay=1
http://www.youtube.com/v/sB_P_c67cTA?autohide=1&version=3&autohide=1&feature=share&attribution_tag=3QUC6Zl7fGqOvg4XCMPyug&showinfo=1&autoplay=1
Thursday 19 September 2013
Wednesday 11 September 2013
Wednesday 4 September 2013
Neston Home: The website for Neston News, Features, Events, Information, Business & Comment (Neston)
New term begins Sat 7th. Free places available and discounts thanks to funding for inclusion of all children. Rehearsing for a drama festival.
Neston Home: The website for Neston News, Features, Events, Information, Business & Comment (Neston)
Neston Home: The website for Neston News, Features, Events, Information, Business & Comment (Neston)
Tuesday 6 August 2013
Monday 5 August 2013
Thursday 1 August 2013
Friday 26 July 2013
Yoga for All
Yoga For All
Yoga for All is an access for all fitness class offered by Little Actors Theatre. From September we will be using a new venue which is the Meeting Room at Our Lady and St John's, Telegraph Road, Heswall, CH60. Classes will recommence after the summer break on Monday 9th September at 7.15-8.45pm. A ten week block booking will cost £55. If we have enough people booked to cover costs we will then be able to offer drop in rates and also concessions (based on circumstances). This is in line with our ethos of supporting access for all. The facilitator is British Wheel of Yoga teacher Kathy Atherton.
Information from: Samantha@littleactorstheatre.com or 0151 336 4302
Yoga for All is an access for all fitness class offered by Little Actors Theatre. From September we will be using a new venue which is the Meeting Room at Our Lady and St John's, Telegraph Road, Heswall, CH60. Classes will recommence after the summer break on Monday 9th September at 7.15-8.45pm. A ten week block booking will cost £55. If we have enough people booked to cover costs we will then be able to offer drop in rates and also concessions (based on circumstances). This is in line with our ethos of supporting access for all. The facilitator is British Wheel of Yoga teacher Kathy Atherton.
Information from: Samantha@littleactorstheatre.com or 0151 336 4302
Friday 12 July 2013
A Week's Work Experience at Little Actors
Admittedly, I've always been a little apprehensive about work experience. I'd long heard horror stories about nightmare placements and supervisors from hell- one such example being a friend who spent a whole two weeks manually turning sprinklers off and on at a golf course. So, when I stepped up at school (bright eyed and with my best 'eager-to-learn' face on) and announced, "I'm interested in theatre!" I wasn't really sure what to expect. Thankfully, I'm pleased to say that Samantha and Little Actors took me on!
Even after a week at Little Actors, it's difficult to find the apposite word for the brilliant work they do. I suppose the word I'd most associate it with is 'community.' Throughout my week, I've been to meetings about arts in the community, meetings about community events and met everyone from councillors, to artists, to actors, to rotary club members. Little Actors works to make the arts accessible to everyone- and I think that's fantastic. The impression I've gained is that it's not just about teaching kids to sing, act and dance, it's about teaching them important skills that they'll use in later life. That's what really sets Little Actors apart.
Yes, I've been shown the boring side too- I think I've had the administrative equivalent of a baptism of fire (and I confess that the world of finance is still a baffling mystery to me). However, as Little Actors works with industry professionals, I've learnt about theatre from people with real experience. Samantha has taught me about Equity and auditions, and voice overs and drama schools, as well as answering every possible question I could throw at her.
I'd like to thank Samantha and Little Actors for a brilliant week, and I think they do an amazing job of bringing theatre to the public!
-Kate Collins
West Kirby Grammar School, Year 10.
Even after a week at Little Actors, it's difficult to find the apposite word for the brilliant work they do. I suppose the word I'd most associate it with is 'community.' Throughout my week, I've been to meetings about arts in the community, meetings about community events and met everyone from councillors, to artists, to actors, to rotary club members. Little Actors works to make the arts accessible to everyone- and I think that's fantastic. The impression I've gained is that it's not just about teaching kids to sing, act and dance, it's about teaching them important skills that they'll use in later life. That's what really sets Little Actors apart.
Yes, I've been shown the boring side too- I think I've had the administrative equivalent of a baptism of fire (and I confess that the world of finance is still a baffling mystery to me). However, as Little Actors works with industry professionals, I've learnt about theatre from people with real experience. Samantha has taught me about Equity and auditions, and voice overs and drama schools, as well as answering every possible question I could throw at her.
I'd like to thank Samantha and Little Actors for a brilliant week, and I think they do an amazing job of bringing theatre to the public!
-Kate Collins
West Kirby Grammar School, Year 10.
Tuesday 9 July 2013
Thursday 4 July 2013
John Thaw Foundation supports Neston Theatre School
Press Release
Professional theatre Company Little Actors Theatre, offers Neston Theatre School for children aged 2 1/2 - 11. As a result of new funding we can offer 50% discounts for low income families and free places for children from unwaged families. Funding comes from the John Thaw Foundation, Adactus Housing Association and CWaC Councillors Louise Gittins and Andy Williams. The funders support our aims to make access to the arts possible for ALL children.
Neston Theatre School will be performing at the Leverhulme Drama Festival in April 2014. We will be creating a new play for the under 12s to compete with. If anyone would like to have a challenge for their child and be involved in a prestigious festival and the experience of working with professional actors/directors/writers, then come and join us. The play will be performed at the Gladstone Theatre (and hopefully a venue in Neston). No audition required.
The project is being directed/scripted by Mike Lockley. Natasha Symms will direct/choreograph the show and Samantha Giblin will produce the show and help with the ensemble direction. The play will take the form of an ensemble with every child involved in the devising and staging of the play. Devising so far has been influenced by the works of William Shakespeare. The cast is supported by youth volunteers Jonathan Stevens, (12) Jessica Astbury (14) and Lucy Mothersdale (17) - all experienced members of InterACT Youth Theatre. They bring their own performance experience from The Lowry, with the National Theatre Connections programme, to the rehearsal room to help and mentor the younger children.
For details about this and other projects offered by Little Actors in Neston please call Samantha on 0151 336 4302 or email mail@littleactorstheatre.com. www.litleactorstheatre.com
Professional theatre Company Little Actors Theatre, offers Neston Theatre School for children aged 2 1/2 - 11. As a result of new funding we can offer 50% discounts for low income families and free places for children from unwaged families. Funding comes from the John Thaw Foundation, Adactus Housing Association and CWaC Councillors Louise Gittins and Andy Williams. The funders support our aims to make access to the arts possible for ALL children.
Neston Theatre School will be performing at the Leverhulme Drama Festival in April 2014. We will be creating a new play for the under 12s to compete with. If anyone would like to have a challenge for their child and be involved in a prestigious festival and the experience of working with professional actors/directors/writers, then come and join us. The play will be performed at the Gladstone Theatre (and hopefully a venue in Neston). No audition required.
The project is being directed/scripted by Mike Lockley. Natasha Symms will direct/choreograph the show and Samantha Giblin will produce the show and help with the ensemble direction. The play will take the form of an ensemble with every child involved in the devising and staging of the play. Devising so far has been influenced by the works of William Shakespeare. The cast is supported by youth volunteers Jonathan Stevens, (12) Jessica Astbury (14) and Lucy Mothersdale (17) - all experienced members of InterACT Youth Theatre. They bring their own performance experience from The Lowry, with the National Theatre Connections programme, to the rehearsal room to help and mentor the younger children.
For details about this and other projects offered by Little Actors in Neston please call Samantha on 0151 336 4302 or email mail@littleactorstheatre.com. www.litleactorstheatre.com
Wednesday 3 July 2013
Neston Home: The website for Neston News, Features, Events, Information, Business & Comment (Neston)
Places available including free places for low income families.
Neston Home: The website for Neston News, Features, Events, Information, Business & Comment (Neston)
Neston Home: The website for Neston News, Features, Events, Information, Business & Comment (Neston)
Thursday 27 June 2013
Wednesday 26 June 2013
Neston Home: The website for Neston News, Features, Events, Information, Business & Comment (Neston)
Free places available for children from low income families.
Neston Home: The website for Neston News, Features, Events, Information, Business & Comment (Neston)
Neston Home: The website for Neston News, Features, Events, Information, Business & Comment (Neston)
Friday 21 June 2013
How funding helps
The project is being directed/scripted by Mike Lockley. Natasha Symms will direct/choreograph the show and Samantha Giblin will produce the show and help with the ensemble direction. The play will take the form of an ensemble with every child involved in the devising and staging of the play. Devising so far has been influenced by the works of William Shakespeare. The cast is supported by youth volunteers Jonathan Stevens, (12) Jessica Astbury (14) and Lucy Mothersdale (17) - all experienced members of InterACT Youth Theatre. They bring their own performance experience at The Lowry, with the National Theatre Connections programme, to the rehearsal room to help and mentor the younger children.
Discounts are available for low income families. Fees and funds raised are used for the staging of the project. LATC would like to thank Adactus Housing Association for their funding support for this project. This local housing association has agreed for fund twenty weeks at rehearsal venue hire at the NC&YC. This is of great help to the project and really enables LATC to continue its discount scheme so that we can accommodate as many children as possible.
For details contact Samantha on 0151 336 4302 or mail@littlectorstheatre.com or www.littleactorstheatre.com
Tuesday 18 June 2013
Hello.
I have a quotation for you today that resonates with me. It is from Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sachs. On BBC Radio 4's Today Programme in Thought for the Day he said :
'If you want to survive and thrive as a people, a culture, a civilisation, celebrate the family. Hold it sacred. Eat together. Tell the story of what matters to you across the generations. Make children the most important people. Put them centre stage'
From the point of view of an arts provider who focuses on working with children this really rings true. Our future culture and civilisation relies on us nurturing our children. All children. So we want to strive for access to the arts for ALL and not just those privileged or lucky enough to access
stage schools. Here at Little Actors, we are aware of the research into how participation in the arts improves health and well being, so we try to make our clubs and classes available to all children regardless of socio-economic background. Hopefully our affordable prices and discount schemes, goes someway to helping families nurture the creativity and well being of their children.
Professional actor facilitators who are passionate about bringing drama, singing and dance to children, also helps nurture and develop creativity as well as self esteem and confidence building.
I have a quotation for you today that resonates with me. It is from Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sachs. On BBC Radio 4's Today Programme in Thought for the Day he said :
'If you want to survive and thrive as a people, a culture, a civilisation, celebrate the family. Hold it sacred. Eat together. Tell the story of what matters to you across the generations. Make children the most important people. Put them centre stage'
From the point of view of an arts provider who focuses on working with children this really rings true. Our future culture and civilisation relies on us nurturing our children. All children. So we want to strive for access to the arts for ALL and not just those privileged or lucky enough to access
stage schools. Here at Little Actors, we are aware of the research into how participation in the arts improves health and well being, so we try to make our clubs and classes available to all children regardless of socio-economic background. Hopefully our affordable prices and discount schemes, goes someway to helping families nurture the creativity and well being of their children.
Professional actor facilitators who are passionate about bringing drama, singing and dance to children, also helps nurture and develop creativity as well as self esteem and confidence building.
Wednesday 5 June 2013
So the second half of the summer term is upon us. Only a count down of a few weeks to the end of term. Then the onslaught of the summer holidays. Personally, I love having my children round and for me 6 weeks free time isn't enough. But I am aware they can get bored so I do seek out activities for them as well as the days out, the down days and the camping trips. At Little Actors we have organised a summer performing arts course for primary school children. Taking place at the NC&YC, Burton Road, Neston CH64 9RE. The children will be split into infants and juniors so that they are taught at age appropriate levels. The children will experience classes in drama, singing and dance and they will create a play to perform to friends and family at the end of the week.
Thanks to funding from Neston Town Council, we can offer FREE places to low income families. Otherwise the fees is only £50.
Dates - 5-9th August
Time - 10am - 3pm
Bring - suitable clothing. Jazz shoes or bare feet for dance. packed lunch (no nuts please).
A tuck shop will be available.
See the website for details www.littleactorstheatre.com
Thanks to funding from Neston Town Council, we can offer FREE places to low income families. Otherwise the fees is only £50.
Dates - 5-9th August
Time - 10am - 3pm
Bring - suitable clothing. Jazz shoes or bare feet for dance. packed lunch (no nuts please).
A tuck shop will be available.
See the website for details www.littleactorstheatre.com
Thursday 23 May 2013
As we approach half term and look forward to a break, I have to look at how to wind up the admin on Little Actors before the big summer holiday. How can I plan ahead and make ourselves more visible? How do we get more people in to access our classes? From DramaTots to theatre Club to my youth theatres, not to forget our adult classes. So now we are seriously looking at becoming a registered charity so we can widen our fund finding horizon so we can underpin our project funding with core funding. Although I have been very successful in securing small pots of funding to support small community projects, but the core funding costs struggle to be met. As we want to develop, then we have to make changes that will have a positive impact.
We are also busy developing our agency partnership. Especially as some of our children have had high profile auditions ('Charlie and the Chocolate Factory', 'Priscilla Queen of the Desert' and 'Billy Elliot').
So Little Actors is very much looking forward to developing our community work to make access to the arts possible for all children who want to access it.
We are also busy developing our agency partnership. Especially as some of our children have had high profile auditions ('Charlie and the Chocolate Factory', 'Priscilla Queen of the Desert' and 'Billy Elliot').
So Little Actors is very much looking forward to developing our community work to make access to the arts possible for all children who want to access it.
Wednesday 15 May 2013
Monday 13 May 2013
National Theatre Connections: Acquiring rights to perform Connections plays
National Theatre Connections: Acquiring rights to perform Connections plays: By Katie Town, General Manager, NT Learning The Connections back catalogue National Theatre Connections began in 1995 in response to ...
Thursday 2 May 2013
So what do we do at Little Actors
www.littleactorstheatre.com
Well we offer professionally led performing arts activities for children aged from 2 1/2 in Neston, Wanstead (London) and Childwall (Liverpool). We believe that access to the arts should be a right for all children and not a privilege. So we offer 50% discounts for low income families. Research shows that participation in the arts improves health and well being. All of our facilitators are professional actors who bring industry standards to the rehearsal space.
In Neston at Neston Theatre School we plan to participate in the 2014 Leverhulme Drama Festival. A new approach for us but a new challenge for the staff and children alike.
Participation in the arts, specifically drama, dance and singing, for children improves self-esteem, self-confidence, team skills, literary appreciation, communication skills etc. It helps with the development of gross and fine motor skills as well as co-ordination. We also promote community cohesion by participating in local events in the Neston area.
Well we offer professionally led performing arts activities for children aged from 2 1/2 in Neston, Wanstead (London) and Childwall (Liverpool). We believe that access to the arts should be a right for all children and not a privilege. So we offer 50% discounts for low income families. Research shows that participation in the arts improves health and well being. All of our facilitators are professional actors who bring industry standards to the rehearsal space.
In Neston at Neston Theatre School we plan to participate in the 2014 Leverhulme Drama Festival. A new approach for us but a new challenge for the staff and children alike.
Participation in the arts, specifically drama, dance and singing, for children improves self-esteem, self-confidence, team skills, literary appreciation, communication skills etc. It helps with the development of gross and fine motor skills as well as co-ordination. We also promote community cohesion by participating in local events in the Neston area.
Tuesday 30 April 2013
Blogging: Little Actors web siteI want to link a blog to m...
Blogging: Little Actors web site
I want to link a blog to m...: Little Actors web site I want to link a blog to my website. The search goes on by trial and error to work all this blogging stuff out. A...
I want to link a blog to m...: Little Actors web site I want to link a blog to my website. The search goes on by trial and error to work all this blogging stuff out. A...
Little Actors web site
I want to link a blog to my website. The search goes on by trial and error to work all this blogging stuff out. A mine field for me. Anyway onwards and upwards. There is a link to my website above.
I want to link a blog to my website. The search goes on by trial and error to work all this blogging stuff out. A mine field for me. Anyway onwards and upwards. There is a link to my website above.
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