AYR COLLEGE PERFORMING ARTS HNC
2 YEAR COURSE starting 2001
CUMBRIA INSTITUTE OF THE ARTS
PERFORMING ARTS BA HONOURS
3 YEAR COURSE starting 2003
Why did you choose CIA?
it was close enough to home to visit when i wanted and i could have control over the course by performing from the first year. Some courses don't allow you to perform publicly until 2nd or 3rd year.
i had already been performing for two years on my previous course.
Why did you choose a performing arts course?
Performing arts meant that i could be involved in all aspects of the theatre i didn't have to specialize. i did film, dance, community theatre and musical theatre.
How did you find Carlisle?
To begin with i found it very daunting as I came from a very small place but once I had settled in to college and settled in to the city - i loved it - lots of nice friends, nice place. In fact I still live there and am intending to stay!
What specifically did you like or not like about the course?
I had mixed experiences on the course. Some projects I was involved in bombed but some were fantastic, such as the drama and performance module in the first year.
What was good about it?
We worked with a guest director who was very talented. We were treated as a professional company and that made us all step up our game and commit to the project.
Did the course equip you to find work after you left?
We were given professional development which consisted of help with our portfolio and important contact lists (these would have been useful had I been living in London!) but nothing else. We were told that it would be very difficult to find work in Cumbria. However, through a friend within the college I gained access to Creative Partnerships, AimHigher and the college student training and outreach project. Manuel Riviero de la Martine gave me work on a project in Alston which is how I met Jilly and came to work for BlueJam. Cheers Manuel!
I do feel that having an art college in this area is invaluable but there should be more of a focus on how to gain work in Cumbria and create your own projects, and not be encouraging all our artists to leave.
What are your plans/goals long term?
I am planning to stay very involved in BlueJam, I feel the project needs another driving force behind it and I'm encouraged within BlueJam to be more creative so I hope to do things like set up early years sessions and more drama-related workshops.