West End Studio Series
To begin our inaugural season as the National Youth Musical Theatre Training Company of Ireland, we travel to all corners of the country with the most celebrated and loved names of the West End. Our 2020 West End Studio Series, is a collection of masterclasses carefully designed to bring you to the next step of your musical theatre training. Whether you are currently studying the craft in drama school or university, or rehearsing for your next professional, school or community musical, this series invites young actors of all levels to participate in what will be a unique training experience, as a West-End studio comes to your city.
David Shannon
Audition Masterclass
Galway, March 8th 2020
Join IYMT Ambassador, and West End star, David Shannon as he leads an intensive Audition Masterclass that will be focused around your own material, skills and needs. Designed to help young Irish actors who are currently preparing for an upcoming audition. Whether its for your dream third-level drama school, local or school musical or in preparation for our national auditions for our first National Youth Production, this masterclass will help you get a step closer to that dream.
David most recently played Kevin T and Others in the 2019 Olivier-winning Come From Away. Other credits include Valjean in Les Misérables, Phantom in Phantom of the Opera, Miss Trunchbull in Matilda The Musical and John in The Beautiful Game (Olivier-nominated).
Killian Donnelly
Acting through Song and Audition Technique Masterclass
Dublin, March 22nd 2020
Currently playing the title role of Phantom in the upcoming UK & Ireland Tour of Phantom of the Opera, the Olivier award-winning Killian Donnelly travels back to his home city to pass on his experience and years of expertise to the next generation of Irish actors and musical theatre lovers. In this Acting through Song and Audition-based workshop, Killian will work with young actors to help with their story telling through song and mastering their audition technique.
Killian was most recently seen as Jean Valjean in the International Tour of Les Misérables, having previously played the role in the West End. Other credits include Charlie Price in Kinky Boots in the West End (Olivier-nominated) and on Broadway, Huey in Memphis (Olivier-award winning), Deco in The Commitments, Tony in Billy Elliot, and Combeferre in the 2012 Les Misérables motion picture.
Fra Fee
Acting through Song Masterclass
Cork, April 26th 2020
Northern Irish stage and screen actor, Fra Fee, returns to Ireland to deliver an Acting Through Song Masterclass to aspiring young actors in Cork. At the top of both theatre and musical theatre industries in the West End and Broadway, Fra’s masterclass will focus specifically on developing the actor, and working with text.
Fra most recently played Owen in the National Theatre’s production of Translations (London). Other credits include: Courfeyrac in Tom Hooper’s 2012 Les Misérables motion picture, Michael Carney in The Ferryman (Royal Court, West End and Broadway; 2018 WhatsOnStage Award for Best Supportying Actor in a play), As You Like It (Nataional Theatre, London), The Last Five Years (Lyric Theatre Belfast), Candide (Menier Chocolate Factory) and On the Town (BBC Proms).
Lauren Ward
The Actor and the Text Masterclass
Dublin, March 29th 2020
Direct from Dear Evan Hansen on the West End, Lauren Ward travels to Ireland for the first time to share her experience and expertise with the next generation of Irish actors. Lauren’s Studio Session, entitled the Actor and the Text, will focus on two areas of musical theatre training; acting through song (a personal one-to-one session where actors will prepare two contrasting songs to work on with Lauren), and scene into song (an acting session exploring iconic scenes from some of the genre’s most celebrated musicals). This session is ideal for actors preparing for drama school, or for those who wish to get a flavour of studying musical theatre at third level.
Lauren is an American actress, best known for originating the role of Miss Honey in Matilda the Musical (RSC, West End & Broadway); a role for which she received a Tony-nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Lauren also originated the title role in Violet (receiving a Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Actress in a Musical) as well as originating the role of Cynthia Murphy in the West End production of Dear Evan Hansen. Other credits include; Carousel, Follies (Broadway); Caroline or Change, The Sound of Music, A Winter’s Tale, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (West End).