Q&A: Drama and Theatre Arts, Catherine’s Story

With a brand new group of students having just started on St Mary’s University, Twickenham’s Drama and Theatre Arts course last month, 2013 graduate Catherine Cooper gave an interview to talk about her recent success in Theatre and share some helpful tips for new students. What did you study at St Mary’s? “I studied BA Drama and Theatre Arts, which was a three-year course.” How did you find the course? “I enjoyed the course enormously - being able to have full days of practical acting and performance training partnered with the studying of all aspects of theatre enabled me to develop my physical and academic skills at the same time. What was great about the course was that it allowed me to expand on knowledge on other aspects and jobs within the theatre industry. This ranged from costume, stage management right through to marketing and selling our own shows. “During our second and third year my classmates and I put on several productions and taking on backstage roles in some performances, and acting in the others. This was exactly the first-hand experience we needed. Once reaching the end of the third year we could make stronger choices about which path we wanted to follow. St Mary's supported our decisions and did everything they could to prepare us for after graduation.  I think due to the success of students going into the backstage elements of theatre there is now a pure Technical Theatre degree starting next year.” What made you apply to study at St Mary’s initially? “The reason the course appealed so much to me before I applied was because I could still continue my love for stage management with acting. When choosing drama schools and universities my choices were limited to acting or stage management, and the course at St Mary’s allowed me to work on both.” What are some of your greatest achievements since graduating? “I have been very lucky working in theatre since finishing in May 2013. Throughout my time at St Mary’s I was doing lots of work in fringe theatre around London (Finborough Theatre, Theatre 503, The White Bear, Etctera Theatre), gaining experience and contacts along the way to build up to graduation. “From May I went on to Stage Manage a show called 'Pilgrims' at the Etctera theatre in Camden, after that I was Deputy Stage Manager at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with the Assembly venues for two months with two separate shows. This was an unforgettable experience. The amount I was able to learn and the friends I made were invaluable to my future in theatre.”What projects are you working on at the moment? “Since the end of December last year I have been working as a Deputy Stage Manager for Bill Kenwright Ltd. Our current show, Black Coffee, is part of the Agatha Christie Company’s yearly tour, and it tours all over the country. Some of the more memorable places we have taken the show are places like Edinburgh, York, Dublin and Bath. “I feel very privileged to be part of it and we are actually now coming to the end of this tour with only eight weeks left after being on the road for almost 10 months. We came to the Richmond Theatre in February and will be coming to the Rose Theatre in Kingston 13th to 18th October. It's so lovely to come back to and be working at the theatres I spent so much time at when I was studying. Working for such a well-known company within months of graduating was a big achievement for me.” How would you say the course at St Mary’s impacted what you went onto do after graduating? “Each year on the course allowed us to take on more responsibility for the shows that we produced. This helped us become more confident in working on our own and it didn't feel such a shock after graduating. Having our own theatre and studio spaces on campus was another bonus to the course. I also had the chance to work with the lecturers and visiting directors on the shows, such as Mitch Mitchellson, Imogen Bond, Ian Redford and Louise Burns, which was a fantastic opportunity. Working alongside experienced members of the theatre industry every day is something that we were very lucky to have. The passion for creating theatre among all members of staff in the drama department is huge and it definitely rubs off on its students. I have very fond memories of my three years there, and I am very grateful for the experience.” What advice would you give to new students starting on a Drama course? “I would say to them try and get as much experience working in theatre as possible. Joining the Drama Society is also a great thing to do. Just get involved, you can even help out on the second and third year shows - it's all great experience. “Making contacts is the most important thing you can do and if you’re willing to get stuck in there are plenty of theatre companies that will want to work with you. Also go and see as much theatre as possible while you can get student rates and free tickets! There are so many shows to see all year round, produced by fellow drama students - so there are no excuses!” What do you have coming up for the future? “I will be Deputy Stage Manager for next year's Agatha Christie tour, 'And Then There Were None', which is the 10th anniversary tour.” St Mary’s offers a wide-range of Drama-related courses at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels available to study in 2015. For more information visit the website.