Being Someone Else - My performing Arts Experience
I love being someone else. It's brilliant. A different name,age,personality and I can have a different accent too. I can be a killer one week or the next I can have three kids with a adulterous hubby the next. It's all in the name of acting. Of course, I am not a killer and I am not actually married with any kids - would be nice to be a mum one day soon. Maybe in a few years. (Kids and marriage that is)
I have always loved singing and acting. They are my two main passions in life. I was aged 6 when i was cast in the Christmas nativity as 'Narrator No.8'. I also played 'Mum' in a piece made for assembly. I loved acting in school but after year 9 I never thought about taking drama for my GCSEs. I was still very much into it though. I was forever singing and acting upstairs in my room. I enjoyed learning lines for plays. And from year 7-9 I would always volunteer to be in the Summer/Christmas choir. I left my first secondary school halfway through year 9. I really do regret not doing a drama GCSE as performing is something I LOVE! It would probabaly be the only GCSE I would have excelled in - I wasn't overly academic though I loved English,Art and Drama. I was not that great at Art though.
I didn't have to worry for long though. No sooner as I had left school, I decided i was not going to college - until I found out that I would be paid. I did a Vocational Access Course (Known as VAC for short) and on Monday afternoon, I joined Millennium Volunteers Barnsley's Drama club. I was happy to be back doing what i loved. You see, in the world of professional acting there is a lot of discrimination. Larger people (Like myself) do not get offered many roles which I think is very unfair. People like me should get a chance just like everyone else. There are very few larger actors. I think casting directors want everyone to be model stick thin. If this IS the case then they need to get with the times and realise that larger people should be given a fair trial. When they audition, it's like they are going to get a no straight away even before they open their mouths to talk - just because they are too big for the part.
I played the part of Older Princess in MV's production of The Princess Who Stole Christmas - in January 2006. Then in March 2006 I sang two solos and did a duet at the college's 'Big event - Easter concert. That was actually the last time I got on stage to do anything until 2009. I auditioned for a place on the Performing arts course at Barnsley College and I was accepted - then I couldn't enroll as I was moving to Leeds. I was devastated. I auditioned twice for Leeds Thomas Danby for the same course. I got turned down twice and they never told me why but when I auditioned for Newbury college and again, Barnsley college for the same course as I auditioned for at Leeds - I got in on both of them. I still feel to this day that I was discriminated against by Leeds Thomas Danby because of my weight. I had to turn down Barnsley again because I could not find anywhere to live. I was devastated yet again. I would love to audition for Drama school but I would need some kind of student finance and somewhere to live if I got in - plus the audition fee. Life is too expensive! I need to win the Euromillions :)
In the Summer of 2009 I auditioned for a place at Newbury College. I was delighted and amazed to be told I was in. I was just so happy. While I was at college I played a pirate in Peter Pan. We got to perform to schools while doing Peter Pan. Of course, us pirates got booed every time. I played myself in 'Teen Issues' and Amber in 'Heartbreak Beautiful'. Amber was probably my favourite role. I got to swear and do/say things that I would never do/say in real life. We did some promotion as well to bring people to the course. Now, there was really no point in that because they pulled the course from the curriculum months later. The highlight of my time on the course was getting to perform 'Over The Rainbow' at the end of year show. If I could do it again and do things differently, I would sing a different song and I wouldn't have worn sports gear as Amber, I would have worn and actual school uniform like most did. I had a few personal issues which I ended up bringing to college, not deliberately. I was also emotional most of the time. I felt, looking back, that it probably kind of clouded my ability to concentrate fully on my roles when it came to rehearsals. In between my year at college, I managed to get an unpaid gig performing at St Nicholas' hall in Newbury as part of a Christmas Cabaret. I did two songs. Both X Factor winners singles (Well, they WERE released for Christmas) and I managed to score a part as an unpaid extra in the film 'The Sweet Shop' as a schoolgirl. Also starring Gemma Atkinson, it was filmed where I lived. The parts I was in were done at my sisters old secondary school so I didn't have to travel very far. About five minutes walk away.
All I need now is an agent. Meanwhile, I continue to write. I completed the script to my first very short film which I aim to get filmed soon and uploaded to Youtube. I am in the process of brainstorming ideas for my first crime story,my first real romace story and I have written a lot of songs. Acting is something I love because I like being someone other than myself as it helps me to just forget who I really am and can concentrate on playing tahat character. I will always love performing and it's what I am to do until I no longer enjoy it. Even when I had my job all I really wanted to do was act. Acting is what I want to do, singing and writing comes a close second.
I have always loved singing and acting. They are my two main passions in life. I was aged 6 when i was cast in the Christmas nativity as 'Narrator No.8'. I also played 'Mum' in a piece made for assembly. I loved acting in school but after year 9 I never thought about taking drama for my GCSEs. I was still very much into it though. I was forever singing and acting upstairs in my room. I enjoyed learning lines for plays. And from year 7-9 I would always volunteer to be in the Summer/Christmas choir. I left my first secondary school halfway through year 9. I really do regret not doing a drama GCSE as performing is something I LOVE! It would probabaly be the only GCSE I would have excelled in - I wasn't overly academic though I loved English,Art and Drama. I was not that great at Art though.
I didn't have to worry for long though. No sooner as I had left school, I decided i was not going to college - until I found out that I would be paid. I did a Vocational Access Course (Known as VAC for short) and on Monday afternoon, I joined Millennium Volunteers Barnsley's Drama club. I was happy to be back doing what i loved. You see, in the world of professional acting there is a lot of discrimination. Larger people (Like myself) do not get offered many roles which I think is very unfair. People like me should get a chance just like everyone else. There are very few larger actors. I think casting directors want everyone to be model stick thin. If this IS the case then they need to get with the times and realise that larger people should be given a fair trial. When they audition, it's like they are going to get a no straight away even before they open their mouths to talk - just because they are too big for the part.
I played the part of Older Princess in MV's production of The Princess Who Stole Christmas - in January 2006. Then in March 2006 I sang two solos and did a duet at the college's 'Big event - Easter concert. That was actually the last time I got on stage to do anything until 2009. I auditioned for a place on the Performing arts course at Barnsley College and I was accepted - then I couldn't enroll as I was moving to Leeds. I was devastated. I auditioned twice for Leeds Thomas Danby for the same course. I got turned down twice and they never told me why but when I auditioned for Newbury college and again, Barnsley college for the same course as I auditioned for at Leeds - I got in on both of them. I still feel to this day that I was discriminated against by Leeds Thomas Danby because of my weight. I had to turn down Barnsley again because I could not find anywhere to live. I was devastated yet again. I would love to audition for Drama school but I would need some kind of student finance and somewhere to live if I got in - plus the audition fee. Life is too expensive! I need to win the Euromillions :)
In the Summer of 2009 I auditioned for a place at Newbury College. I was delighted and amazed to be told I was in. I was just so happy. While I was at college I played a pirate in Peter Pan. We got to perform to schools while doing Peter Pan. Of course, us pirates got booed every time. I played myself in 'Teen Issues' and Amber in 'Heartbreak Beautiful'. Amber was probably my favourite role. I got to swear and do/say things that I would never do/say in real life. We did some promotion as well to bring people to the course. Now, there was really no point in that because they pulled the course from the curriculum months later. The highlight of my time on the course was getting to perform 'Over The Rainbow' at the end of year show. If I could do it again and do things differently, I would sing a different song and I wouldn't have worn sports gear as Amber, I would have worn and actual school uniform like most did. I had a few personal issues which I ended up bringing to college, not deliberately. I was also emotional most of the time. I felt, looking back, that it probably kind of clouded my ability to concentrate fully on my roles when it came to rehearsals. In between my year at college, I managed to get an unpaid gig performing at St Nicholas' hall in Newbury as part of a Christmas Cabaret. I did two songs. Both X Factor winners singles (Well, they WERE released for Christmas) and I managed to score a part as an unpaid extra in the film 'The Sweet Shop' as a schoolgirl. Also starring Gemma Atkinson, it was filmed where I lived. The parts I was in were done at my sisters old secondary school so I didn't have to travel very far. About five minutes walk away.
All I need now is an agent. Meanwhile, I continue to write. I completed the script to my first very short film which I aim to get filmed soon and uploaded to Youtube. I am in the process of brainstorming ideas for my first crime story,my first real romace story and I have written a lot of songs. Acting is something I love because I like being someone other than myself as it helps me to just forget who I really am and can concentrate on playing tahat character. I will always love performing and it's what I am to do until I no longer enjoy it. Even when I had my job all I really wanted to do was act. Acting is what I want to do, singing and writing comes a close second.
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