July 3: Student showcases, High School Musical and theatre in education
In this week’s issue of The Stage:
Student Showcase reviews special: Reviews of graduate showcases from Birmingham School of Acting, Central School of Speech and Drama, E15 School of Acting, Guidford School of Acting, LIPA, Laban, Laine Theatre Arts, Northern School of Contemporary Dance, Circus Space. Plus reviews of the Stephen Sondheim Society Young Performer of the Year, and the Fonteyn Nureyev Young Dancers Competition.
The second series of Karen Taylor’s BBC3 sketch show promises to contain plenty of bawdy, Benny Hill-esque humour. It might not be to everyone’s taste but, as she tells Matthew Hemley, ‘inappropriate’ is her word of the moment
Best known for playing Sharon in EastEnders, Letitia Dean is now taking to the stage as the eccentric drama teacher Ms Darbus in High School Musical. She tells Alistair Smith why she loves to camp it up for the stage and reminisces about her 20-year stint on the BBC soap
Curtain Up: Christopher Renshaw, director of new West End swashbuckling musical Zorro, tells us how the musical has improved since its short UK tour
News Feature: How The Venue is relaunching as the newly-renamed Leicester Square Theatre
Insight: While other industries prepare for harsher times, a recent report by PricewaterhouseCoopers on the global outlook for the entertainment sector forecasts a relatively buoyant few years - but not without challenges
Timothy Sheader, artistic director at the Open Air Theatre, Regent’s Park, tells Mark Shenton how we went about putting his first season together. Plus, Liz Crowther talks to MIchael Coveney about her current role of Margaret in Richard III at Ludlow Festival, which sees her scaling the castle walls
As broadcasters battle to get their programmes promoted, television credits are being pushed aisde to make room for advertising upcoming schedules. How can the trend be reversed so programme makers get the credit they deserve?
Launched by the DCMS, the first every survey of amateur arts groups in England show the gap between unpaid workers and professionals has decreased. Amateur groups are producing significant profits, with a bulk of expenditure going directly into the industry — and the relationship is not just a financial one, writes Howard Bird
A Midsummer Night’s Dream is especially popular at this time of year. Susan Elkin examines why it has such widespread appeal
Training: For every person led along to the theatre in their infancy by their parents, there’s a number whose first introduction to performing arts comes from education trips to a show or seeing a touring company perform in their school. Susan Elkin examines the theatre in education initiatives available and looks at how relcutant pupils can be persuaded to participate
Maggie Brown on TV: How budget squeezes are biting | On Samir Shah’s comments about ethnic representation in the BBC | Why live TV is great
Arthur Smith: How I became a curator of old gags
Showpeople: Q&As with circus performer Arron Sparks, performing in London’s Big Dance festival, choreographer Aletta Collins, creator of the festival’s finale and Eddie Pezzopane, dancer with the New English Contemporary Ballet company
Plus the usual news, reviews and national theatre listings.
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