BOA holds it s second Alumni Morning! More information on pages 2 and 3.

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1 MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR! BOA ALUMNI CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER BOA holds it s second Alumni Morning! More information on pages 2 and 3. L-R - Jagon Edge, Rohan Simmons, Hannah Turton (BOA Alumni Relations Officer), Adam Sparkes, Eve O Driscoll and Stacey Sandford. Principal s Message We are rapidly approaching the end of another long and busy term. It s fabulous to read how well you are all doing and thank you for keeping in touch. You are always welcome to pop in and see us. BOA continues to really buzz. The Heads of House recently competed in Strictly BOA, which almost brought the academy to a stop but it was great fun and raised money for Children in Need. The performances, digital and VAD events (far too many to mention!) have been superb and it is lovely to see ex-students supporting these events. Have a great Christmas and a Happy New Year. Gaynor Cheshire In This Issue; Page Alumni Morning 2017 Page News from BOA Page News from the Old Rep Page Success Stories Page Your Future in Photos Page 20 - One to Watch Page 21 - Upcoming Performances & Events Page Alice in Wonderland PAGE 1

2 Alumni Morning On Friday 29 th September 2017, BOA held it s second Alumni Morning which was a huge success. Aiming to provide advice and guidance to our current Year 13 students, 5 of our alumni from across the different pathways were invited back for a question and answer session, with questions focusing upon progression routes and what to expect after leaving BOA. The alumni were able to offer useful advice by discussing their own personal experiences across the breadth of University, Vocational schools, Gap Years, Apprenticeships and Employment. Questions regarding open days, applications, interviews, auditions, and gap year experience were popular amongst our Year 13 cohort, which our alumni were happy to answer and assist with. You have to go and get it. Do not wait for it to come to you. It won t, Definitely do something that you re passionate about and Use the opportunities you have here (at BOA) to network were just a few of the valuable pieces of advice which seemed to really inspire the audience. The two hour-long sessions were filled with questions, debates and advice, which we feel will motivate our students when applying for their chosen progression routes over the forthcoming months. Gaining guidance from people who were in their shoes a few years ago will hopefully give the students a sense of achievement and confidence in themselves when choosing their career paths for the future. PAGE 2

3 Following the Event, the Alumni were extremely positive about how the morning had played out. Many of them expressed that they wish they could have had something similar when they were in Year 13 as the advice and knowledge would have been truly valuable. After hearing this feedback, we are confident that next year s Alumni Morning will be successful and beneficial to our students. It is also important for us to keep in contact with our alumni and keep them up to date with performances and events that are happening at BOA. We d like to say a massive thank you to our alumni as this event would not have been possible without them. We wish them every success for the future. Thank you Jagon Edge (Class of 2016) Music Technology Pathway Rohan Simmons (Class of 2016) Music Technology Pathway Adam Sparkes (Class of 2013) Acting Pathway Eve O Driscoll (Class of 2013) Dance Pathway Stacey Sandford (Class of 2014) Technical Theatre Arts Pathway PAGE 3

4 News from BOA... On Friday 15 th September, Year 11 GCSE Drama students took part in a workshop with acting practitioners at BOA, in preparation for the students Curtain Raiser Performance at the Old Rep Theatre on Thursday 5 th October. In the workshop, students experimented with dance and physical theatre. Following the Curtain Raiser, BOA staff and students watched a performance of Loaded at the Old Rep on Friday 6 th October. This was a brilliant opportunity for the GCSE students to be involved in a professional workshop run by practitioners, and to gain more of an understanding of physical theatre. The students performed really well at the Curtain Raiser and made their teachers proud (especially Mr Penn!). Following on from last year, Susie Self is back at BOA giving workshops to a select group of students in preparation for her Opera Quilt Song which she is currently composing and producing. Over 30 BOA students auditioned to take part in the workshops, of which 16 were chosen and placed into groups depending on their vocal range. The workshops will be taking place at BOA over the next academic year, to produce material and workshop ideas for the Opera. BOA students will then be able to audition for parts in the Opera, which will be staged in PAGE 4

5 On Friday 13th October 2017, the BOA Dance students performed a Flash Mob in Grand Central to support Guide Dogs for the Blind. The students had a brilliant time performing and their audience were extremely enthusiastic, dancing and singing along with them. BOA have been helping to raise money for Guide Dogs for the Blind over this past term, and have so far raised a massive 3,000! Below are some photographs taken during rehearsals, when a few of the dogs in training came along to watch our students perform! Birmingham Ormiston Academy Autumn Term 2017 PAGE 5

6 News from BOA... Congratulations to Year 13 Visual Art and Design student, James Burbidge on successfully redesigning the BOA Alumni logo! We d like to say a massive thank you to James for his help with this project alongside his studies. On Tuesday 31st October, the Year 10 BTEC Acting students performed an abridged version of William Shakespeare s Henry V at the Old Rep Theatre, as part of the Shakespeare Schools Festival. The students performed alongside 3 other schools on the evening whose performances included The Winter s Tale, Much Ado About Nothing and The Tempest. BOA students performed exceptionally well on the evening and really enjoyed the whole experience. Year 11 GCSE Drama students went to see Blood Brothers at De Montfort Hall in Leicester on Monday 16th October. The play is this year s set text for the GCSE qualification, so the performance helped with the students understanding of the play. BOA and the Old Rep Theatre have been working in partnership with SAMPAD over the last academic year, utilising the Arts to educate students on culture. This year, SAMPAD have delivered workshops to a selection of students on the Partition of India. In continuation of this project, Year 10 Acting and Dance students performed in a participatory event to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Partition of India on Thursday 9th November at Victoria Square in Birmingham. The event was a brilliant celebration and attracted a large audience in the city centre. PAGE 6

7 On Friday 24th November, the BOA Head s of House competed in a Strictly BOA competition, raising a massive for Children in Need! Mr Underwood, Mrs Gotheridge-Davies, Miss Rickard, Dr Kennedy, Miss Atkins and Miss Mason all danced their socks off to raise money for a brilliant cause. The event was a huge success and all Heads of House did an amazing job! Photos: The Heads of House strutting their stuff! On the same day as the Strictly BOA event, 26 students were given the opportunity to see a production of Dracula at the Curve Theatre in Leicester, performed by students on the Acting: Musical Theatre course at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. The performance was a modernised twist on Bram Stoker s classic tale, incorporating social media and modern music. PAGE 7

8 News from The Old Rep... Our Christmas production of Alice in Wonderland is now in full swing! This is the third production produced by BOA featuring a professional cast and an ensemble made up of BOA students with Technical Theatre Arts students supporting the technical aspects of the production. Rehearsals for Alice in Wonderland began in October half term at BOA with the cast, creatives and The Old Rep team getting the chance to put names to faces. Photo: cast, creative and The Old Rep team at BOA during rehearsals Whilst the cast and creatives have been working on the production, the marketing team at The Old Rep have transformed the Box Office and Bars into the intriguing world of Wonderland. Photo Right: Old Rep Theatre Foyer Photo Left: BBC WM s Sunny & Shay On Wednesday 15th November The Old Rep celebrated The Stage s #LoveTheatreDay, a chance for theatres to take to social media to share their love of theatre. As part of the day BBC West Midlands aired an outside broadcast from The Old Rep, where they interviewed members of the Alice cast and creative team discussing the development process of the production and delving into their memorable experiences of theatres. We also gave our social media followers a sneak peak behind the scenes. PAGE 8

9 During November you may have noticed Alice in Wonderland digital adverts around Birmingham. The advert was created by a current BOA digital arts student, Rico Vina Uzcatia. The show successfully opened on Monday 20th November and runs until Saturday 30th December. The Old Rep invites the BOA Alumni to join us on a magical adventure down the rabbit hole and into Wonderland this Christmas! For an exclusive Alumni offer of 50% off the selected shows below, use code BOAALUM at Saturday 23 December, 10.15am & 1.30pm Wednesday 27 December, 5.30pm Thursday 28 December, 5.30pm Friday 29 December, 1.30pm & 5.30pm Saturday 30 December, 1.30pm We hope to see you in Wonderland very soon! PAGE 9

10 BOA Alumni Success Stories... I must say I m really missing my BOA days! I d like to tell you about the new website I have started to promote myself as an actress. My most recent blog post is all about auditioning for Drama School. It s full of tips and advice after going through it myself this year, and also what to do if you don t get in. I thought it might be a good resource to share with the current Year 13 students. It would be great to have a few more people read it and hopefully people can relate to what I m writing about. The link is annabradley/blog Anna Bradley, Acting, 2017 I m really missing my BOA days! I am currently filming for BBC One s new prime time comedy quiz show Ready or Not. This is a really exciting role in which I play the host s assistant as we surprise unsuspecting contestants. As an actress, I have enjoyed a regular role in The Archers as Rosa Makepeace and worked alongside Lenny Henry on the BBC Film Danny and the Human Zoo. Most recently, I have played the lead role of Anita in Anita and Me for the BBC, in association with Oscar-winning production company Grain Media. As a comedian, I have been highly commended as Funny Women s Ones To Watch and my writing has been used for Radio 4 s NewsJack. My sketch group Hot Mess have recently won the Chort s Award and were semi-finalist in this year s Sketch Off competition. Please find our recent mockumentary about the recent general election here: v=nut2lfbd808. I work as a drama facilitator in schools and as a freelancer at the National Youth Theatre in between acting jobs, which has been great as I ve been able to use my skills in a variety of situations. I hope everything is going brilliantly at BOA, I d love to come back and visit sometime! Anna Piper, Acting, 2013 PAGE 10

11 I have been awarded Miss West Midlands for 2017 after taking part in the Miss British Empire Competitions. Alongside this, I was accepted onto the Birmingham School of Acting Foundation Course! Brook Tranter, Acting, 2017 A year ago, I directed my first play, a fourcharacter thriller called Guilty Secret, which was a real success. Recently, I have joined a fantastic theatre company in Coventry called The Wheatsheaf Players and have been involved in two wonderful productions, Teechers by John Godber and Mary Shelley s Frankenstein, where I was given my dream of an opportunity to play Victor Frankenstein himself! Both productions were great successes and I am teaming up with them again to put on their Christmas show, A Christmas Carol. Daniel Peckett, Acting, 2014 I hope everything is going brilliantly at BOA, I d love to come back and visit sometime! I am now part of the BAFTA-awarded Nottingham TV Workshop Group, and signed with Waring & McKenna Agency based in London. Most recently, I performed with the British Theatre Academy in London for the Musical In The Heights at the Stockwell Playhouse. Elan Butler, Acting, 2017 I have now completed my Apprenticeship at ITV and was offered a job by the Head of Production at ITV Studios after my work experience on Dancing on Ice in May. Since then, I have worked on a variety of productions including Pride of Britain 2017, Paul O Grady s For the Love of Dogs, Gino s Hidden Italy, along with other undisclosed programmes. William Gladstone, Broadcast, 2016 PAGE 11

12 BOA Alumni Success Stories... After leaving BOA I went on to work in California working as a Lifeguard and Ski Boat Driver as well as a general Camp Counsellor. After only being hired to work there for 2 months, I was selected out of 65 staff to stay and work for an extra month along with 4 others! These were honestly the best 3 months of my life as they gave me some great life skills, as well as allowing me to visit some great places such as Santa Monica, Los Angeles, San Francisco and San José! A highlight for me was climbing Half Dome in Yosemite National Park. We started our hike at 11:45pm (it s cooler to hike at night because of the heat) and got to the top at 5:30am! Now, I m working within Events Management at the National Exhibition Centre and hope to return to the US within the next few months! So, if you re worried about progression routes after BOA then take some advice from someone who always had a back-up plan... Don t let anyone tell you that you can t do anything or there s not much of a chance because a career like this is something that takes a very long part of your life to eventually get where you want to be. But, you always have to have something to fall back on. DO that work experience placement. GO to those job interviews. TRAVEL the world if you can. TRY new things even if they take some time to get used to. Your dream may take some time but if it s in your heart then you ll try again if you fail. Take a break from your dream, try something new and then if that doesn t work, see if your passion still lies within your dream career because then you ll know that it really was a dream and not just a phase or a hobby. Joe Pollard, Musical Theatre, 2017 PAGE 12

13 I have been given the opportunity to go and train on a dance scholarship at the Dance School in Atlanta, Georgia which my friend is the Director of. The school is called Compass Dance Academy and covers all styles of dance. Linda Wells, who is the Director wants to give me some more training around Dance, but also to train me in Mission in Arts, to help further with my future plans for The Carey Project. I will be leaving in January and will stay for 5 months. Not only will I be training in Dance but I will be learning about Dance Therapy with people who have suffered trauma like war refugees and shipwreck. This is such an exciting time not only for me but also for the project as whilst I m over there, lots of connections will be formed as well as other potential opportunities for the project. Lydia Borg, The Carey Project Founder and Musical Theatre Alumni, 2013 Follow Lydia s journey on The Carey Project s social media accounts to show thecareyproject PAGE 13

14 BOA Alumni Success Stories... I thought I d to say I achieved a place at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) on the degree course, starting from September the 18th Coming up to the end of the first term I have thoroughly enjoyed it, and living in Liverpool. I would love to come back and speak or do a workshop to the younger years as I spent 4 years, from year 10, at BOA so was a massive step in my career. Darcey Wortley, Dance, 2017 Currently, I'm still working towards releasing a charity album that I helped to drive forward with the help of facilities at BOA and loads of classmates - and when it releases soon, it will have been a BOA students work and all the proceeds will go to Cancer Research UK, no matter what the final sales come to. Other than that, I'm now in my own band and we are about 1 month away from starting to play the circuit in Guildford, where I'm now based. I also now attend the Academy of Contemporary Music (ACM) where everyday I'm getting to network with passionate, driven people wanting to go into the music industry. Joshua Howells, Music, 2017 Hello! I am still training at Laine Theatre Arts, now in my 2nd year. I managed to get a 50% scholarship from Betty Laine at the end of last year to secure me through my training! I am about to start my first professional job as a dancer in Worcester s Swan Theatre Pantomime which is Sleeping Beauty on Wednesday 20th December! I m very excited for this! I hope everything is all going well at BOA! Freya Melling, Dance, 2016 Since leaving BOA, I ve played shows as a DJ in Belgium, Amsterdam & the UK. I ve been supported by some of the world s biggest DJ s including Martin Garrix, Tiesto and Oliver Heldens on my newest remixes and original tracks. One of my tracks has also totalled 47 millions plays on YouTube! Ellis Lawrie, Music Technology, 2017 PAGE 14

15 I thought that I'd send an just to give you an update and catch-up on what I've been getting up to since I left BOA with The Band Musical Tour. We're about to start in Llandudno having just finished in Southampton, this will be our 5th venue so far, including Manchester, Sheffield and Bradford. It's all been very exciting with Take That having a huge involvement and the musical being a great success so far. About 4 weeks ago now in Bradford I made my professional debut as I went on for one of the boys for the first time. It was fantastic and I loved it! I then went on to perform 4 more times in Bradford due to one of the boys' leg playing up as a result of the intense work that they do during the show. My most recent performance was Saturday night just gone in Southampton, which was incredible, 2,300 seats sold out, and it was the most amazing experience I could have wished for! We now have 2 weeks in Llandudno and then another 2 in Stoke before we finish for a 4 week break at Christmas, only to then start again and not stop until July! Thank you for all your support throughout my time at BOA. Harry Fabulous Brown, Musical Theatre, 2017 Thank you for all your support throughout my time at BOA Photo (Left): Harry Brown whilst on stage during his performance of The Band. PAGE 15

16 Your Future in Photos PAGE 16

17 Hope Newman, Lauren Homer, Harry Sheasby and Andy Smith who all studied on the Musical Theatre pathway at BOA have been performing in Disneyland for the past 6 months. 2. They were able to fit in some sight-seeing in between their Disney duties! 3. Acting Alumni Brook Tranter being awarded Miss West Midlands 2017 at the Miss British Empire 2017 Competition. 4. William Gladstone who left BOA in 2016 has now completed his Apprenticeship at ITV and has been offered a permanent position at ITV Studios. 5. Matthew Perry, Musical Theatre Alumni started Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts in September, studying the Performance (Musical Theatre) degree. 6.Musical Theatre Alumni Jack Gardner, Joshua Edge, Zoe Adkins and Steph Goodall will be starring in the World s Biggest Pantomime in December, alongside Bradley Walsh and Martin Kemp. 7. BOA Alumni, Daniel Peckett has recently starred in Frankenstein and Teechers with The Wheatsheaf Players Theatre Company. Birmingham Ormiston Academy Autumn Term 2017 PAGE 17

18 Your Future in Photos Birmingham Ormiston Academy Autumn Term 2017 PAGE 18

19 8. Musical Theatre Alumni, Emma Robotham-Hunt is currently starring in her West End debut performance of Matilda after graduating from Urdang Academy earlier this year. 9. Laura Lomax, Emily Johnson and Katie Mainwood are currently performing in Chichester University s production of Annie Get Your Gun. All three Alumni are really enjoying their Musical Theatre (Triple Threat) course which they started in September Freya Melling who studied on the Dance pathway at BOA is currently in her first professional production as a dancer in Worcester s Swan Theatre Pantomime of Sleeping Beauty. 11. Music Alumni, Ellis Lawrie has been DJ ing in Belgium, Amsterdam and the UK, whilst collaborating with world famous DJ s. 12. Joshua Howells (right) and Ben Jackson-Blythe (left) have been working hard on creating their Charity Album. The proceeds will be going to Cancer Research UK. Alumni Workshops BOA are looking for Alumni across all pathways who would be interested in delivering workshops and talks to our current students at BOA, in the hope of integrating your experience into our current students progression. Thank you to those who have already shown your interest. Workshops are due to commence in the new year and we will be in touch shortly. BOA would like to say thank you to Jessica Reeve, who studied on the Dance pathway and left in 2013 to study at Urdang Academy. Jessica now performs on cruise ships, and was able to deliver a 3-hour Audition Workshop to our current Year 13 Dance students whilst on her vacation break. This experience is invaluable for our students as it prepares them for Vocational and Higher Education training. If you are interested, please boa-alumni@boa-academy.co.uk and explain which areas you would like to deliver a workshop in. We look forward to hearing from you! PAGE 19

20 One to Watch... I ve been working with B Good Picture Company for around 2 years on various projects. They re a film company based in London looking to do things a little bit differently. This past year has been mainly focused on an autobiographical Documentary about famous activist and actor, Sir Ian McKellen. The film is sort of a reflection of Ian s life that covers his childhood, career on stage and screen, activism, and love of regional English theatres. We got to interview Ian quite a bit and there was a real modesty that came through which I think we capture in the film. He has an openness that I think is very particular to his profession - he s spent his life being other people and now he s a bit of a wizard in empathy. Always addressing alternative modes of perspective. I ended up co editing the feature film with Joe Stephenson who also directed the film. It was a real challenge narrowing down that kind of openness into a coherent narrative - I always knew it was going to be an interesting project but I was not prepared for how much of a role model he became, hopefully that s the case for the film too. We premiered the documentary in Rome early this month and the ambition is to bring it to film festivals world wide and cinemas within the UK next year. Harry Yendell, Acting, 2014 PAGE 20

21 Upcoming Performances & Events... WHAT? WHERE? WHEN? Year 11 Dance Pathway The School of Oz Year 11 & 13 Visual Art & Design Pathway Vision Year 13 Music Pathway From Old to New Year 11 Musical Theatre Pathway Bring it On Year 11 GCSE Drama Acting Showcase BOA Theatre BOA Theatre BOA Theatre Old Rep Theatre BOA Theatre 15th, 16th & 17th January 2018 at 7:00pm 22nd January 2018 at 6:00pm 30th & 31st January & 1st February 2018 at 7:00pm 8th, 9th & 10th February 2018 at 7:00pm & 2:00pm on 10th February 14th March 2018 at 7:00pm Year 13 Musical Theatre Pathway Sister Act Old Rep Theatre 22nd, 23rd & 24th March 2018 at 7:00pm & 2:00pm on 24th March Year 13 Dance Pathway Once BOA Theatre 26th, 27th & 28th March 2018 at 7:00pm Our current students really appreciate the continued support of our Alumni coming to watch their performances and attend their events. Tickets can be booked via BOA Reception or Some BOA performances are also held at the Old Rep Theatre. Tickets for these shows can be booked at We look forward to seeing you there! PAGE 21

22 Alice in Wonderland... PAGE 22

23 Remember to take advantage of the exclusive Alumni offer of 50% off the selected shows below! Use code BOAALUM at Saturday 23 December, 10.15am & 1.30pm Wednesday 27 December, 5.30pm Thursday 28 December, 5.30pm Friday 29 December, 1.30pm & 5.30pm Saturday 30 December, 1.30pm PAGE 23

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