Picture: Leanne Dixon
Great news for young people dreaming of being on stage, preparations are now well under way for the British Youth Music Theatre’s National Audition Tour, taking place in January and February 2022 and visiting 15 different cities across the UK and Ireland.
Every year BYMT, the leading youth musical theatre organisation for young people, auditions more than 1,000 young performers aged 11-21. Over 300 of those hopefuls go on to take part in a two to three-week residential project, working alongside theatre professionals and performing in a brand new full-scale musical.
For the majority of young people involved it’s their first big musical theatre project and the first time they have been away from home for such a long time.
In August 2021 12-year-old Alice from Woking was incredibly excited to play the lead in her first BYMT show, Why the Whales Came at the Theatre Royal Plymouth, as she explains: “When I first came to BYMT I was quite nervous at the start, I’d never done anything as big as this. But the second I walked through the door everyone was so warm and welcoming that they made me really feel at home.”
Alice and Ben were excited to play lead roles in the BYMT show Why the Whales Came. Picture: Gemma Smith
Essex-based Ben, who also played a high-profile role in Why the Whales Came says that the best part of his BYMT experience was right before the very first show: “It was the moment at which all our hard work had come to fruition, and everyone was eager to get on stage.
“As the lights came up and the music faded in, the performance of a lifetime had begun. It was the most incredible feeling being able to see the musical that I had worked on and helped create for the past two weeks come to life, a feeling like no other.”
Intense creative training with West End theatre professionals is a big part of each project. That means plenty of hard work – 10 hours rehearsals each day (with plenty of breaks of course) – but that is what is required to build a full-scale new show from the ground up in just two to three weeks.
It’s a fantastic opportunity to learn how to adapt to a professional rehearsal room, build up stamina and develop singing, acting and dancing skills. Not only that, but the young artists taking part benefit from their confidence being boosted, making like-minded friends from all over the UK and overseas, having a lot of fun and receiving a Grade 8 from Trinity College London at the end of the project.
“As the lights came up and the music faded in, the performance of a lifetime had begun. It was the most incredible feeling being able to see the musical that I had worked on and helped create for the past two weeks come to life, a feeling like no other”
For 15-year-old Eleanor from Gloucestershire, who played a lead role in BYMT’s show Nightshade at London’s Bridewell, it was the best experience of her life so far: “It was like being part of a West End show. The best thing about the project was that it was so professionally done and I really got a flavour of what it would be like to be doing this as my career.
“My confidence was sky high by the end of the project. I feel more strongly than ever that I want to become a professional performer.”
Picture: Gavin King
Eighteen-year-old Londoner Sophie [pictured] feels lucky to have taken part in three BYMT shows, working with directors Des Kennedy (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child), Charlotte Westenra (The Old Vic, The Arcola, Donmar Warehouse) and Luke Sheppard (In The Heights, & Juliet).
She comments: “I had seen the production of In The Heights directed by Luke Sheppard at the King’s Cross Theatre seven times. Having him working with me and creating my character was just such a unique experience.”
New BYMT recruits follow in the footsteps of an impressive list of alumni featuring the likes of Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith and Charlotte Ritchie, as well as a whole host of West End stars.
Step forward successful West End performer Grace Mouat, star of Six and & Juliet, who had the “time of her life” in three BYMT projects. She then went on to get a First-Class Honours Degree in Musical Theatre at the Guildford School of Acting.
West End performer Grace Mouat: Her time at BYMT had a great impact on her career
Mouat adds: “I honestly believe that the skills and experiences I gained from BYMT had a huge impact on crafting the performer I am today and really complemented my training at GSA. I reaped the benefits from every BYMT project including how to work in a professional environment alongside developing my confidence and pick-up skills.
“BYMT projects ignited my love for musical theatre and I am now lucky enough to have been a part of two new West End musicals since graduating in 2018. If you are considering applying for a BYMT project, I truly cannot recommend it enough and I wish you all the best.”
The National Audition Tour organisers are also very keen to point out that BYMT offers over 100 bursaries each year, covering up to 75% of the course fees for more than 30% of their participants.
This financial boost made all the difference to 19-year-old Denise from Newcastle who performed in BYMT’s Fight Like A Girl at Mountview in London in August 2019, as she explains: “I’m very grateful to BYMT. If it wasn’t for the bursary I received I wouldn’t have been able to do the course. My experience was insightful and life-changing.”
Around 30-40% of young people who have worked with BYMT are making their way in the creative industries and developing successful careers as West End performers, TV and film actors, singers and songwriters, dancers, directors, producers, composers and more.
Between them 19-year-old Myla from London and 21-year-old Edan from Aberdeen have taken part in five and four BYMT projects respectively (including lead roles in the company’s Fight Like A Girl). They are now both are studying musical theatre professionally.
Myla and Edan on stage together during their time with BYMT. They are both now studying musical theatre professionally. Picture: Leanne Dixon
Myla attends Italia Conti: “I can see the progression through my BYMT years from when I first took part at the age of 13 to my last show Fight Like A Girl at the age 17. I did Fight Like A Girl after my first year of training at Italia Conti and I realised that I could use all the skills I had learnt and transfer them to a character.”
Edan attends MGA Stage Academy in Edinburgh: “I enjoy my time with BYMT so much. Acting provides that escape from life, that adrenaline that gets the blood rushing, the chance to make people smile, cry, laugh or jaw drop in awe of what they’re experiencing during a performance. My studies are going very well.”
Special memories are also made outside of the formal musical theatre projects with Cabaret Nights allowing young people the opportunity to showcase their talent in any form.
“If it wasn’t for the bursary I received I wouldn’t have been able to do the course. My experience was insightful and life-changing”
Eighteen-year-old Ollie from Leeds, who performed in BYMT’s new show The Night The War Ended at the Theatre Royal Margate last August, loved the excitement of being involved in this event: “The Cabaret Night brought us all so much closer as a cast because it allowed us to show our proficiency as artists and bring our skills to the table completely away from the context of the show. We had instrumentalists, gymnasts, whistlers, singers, Irish dancers and so many other amazing acts.”
So do you want to become part of the BYMT family and make special memories like all the young performers we have quoted above?
BYMT’s National Auditions are now open for booking. If you would like to get a real taster of what it’s like to be a musical theatre performer or you know someone who would, follow the link below and book your slot.
www.britishyouthmusictheatre.org/auditions
SHARE THIS POST:
Comments are closed.