Welcome to PQA Bridgnorth

Contents:

A Taster Day at PQA

An Introduction

What Happens at PQA

Meet the Team

More About Us

Parents Information

Term Dates

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Where are we? PQA Bridgnorth runs at

The Endowed School.

Northgate

Bridgnorth

WV16 4ER

Once you enter the gates turn right and

follow the drive to the end, once you see

the blue Land Rover Discovery with the

PQA advert on the back you have found

us…

What you need to know for a taster day; Arrive for 9.45 so that we have a chance to

introduce your child to both PQA and

someone to be a buddy for the day. If they

are 6-9 years old then we will also

introduce them to Naomi our specialist

Green Group teaching assistant.

Bring a snack and a drink, we have a 5

minute break during the morning where

kids have a chance to recharge.

Wear comfortable clothes suitable for

dancing and trainers or pumps, Jazz shoes

are not essential but if you have them

already then bring them along.

A Taster Day at PQA Bridgnorth

Join us for a FREE taster. Join in all of the lessons and meet everyone to see what PQA is all about. 9.45am till 1pm Every Saturday.

Try Out PQA With a FREE Taster Day

Bridgnorth Creating Thrills and Skills for Life

Hello to everybody and welcome to our PQA newsletters.

PQA is a rapidly growing player in providing Performing Arts Training to young people, the Bridgnorth Academy is now over 3 years old.

Drama is a vital part of our lives and here at PQA we offer a unique perspective on how it is made. Musical theatre combines the 2 disciplines of singing and dancing in a realistic way, offering children the opportunity to perform regularly both as a group and, if they wish, individually. Comedy and Drama reflects that the 2 share the same skill set, often at the same time.

Unique to PQA is Film and TV, the future of entertainment whether in 3D cinemas or multimedia extravaganzas combining

film and live action on a stage. The skills are different on film, often acting without scenery or co-stars on ‘green screen’.

It is important to reflect that drama is entertainment, and the PQA idea is that fun comes before the desire for fame. We have a group of people who firmly believe that the enjoyment to be gained from performing and learning is an end in itself.

That said, this is a tough industry and studens need to learn that there is a direct link between effort and results. Those of use who have been involved for any time in the business have seen performers shouted at or dismissed because they are not demonstrating the levels of effort and commitment required.

The staff will encourage a student to put in effort but we cannot force them to do it,

we do notice though and very often those singled out in lessons for praise are singled out for their effort not their ability.

Even for those who do not pursue a career in the performing arts there are valuable lessons to learn from performing arts training, lessons that will set you up for life.

We are especially keen to stretch students in all disciplines, our West End theatre events and drama festival performances are right at the top end in performance terms, they are challenging for the students but the rewards for those who apply themselves are great.

PQA, NOT JUST SINGING AND DANCING.

The students spend roughly an hour in each discipline each week. This can change as we approach showcases and more time is needed in the featured discipline or contributions required from other teachers.

We may also drop classes if we have a Masterclass scheduled, these are outside experts we bring in to teach specific skills. Each group gets to spend an hour picking up these skills.

How We Work

Creative StagesThis is how we measure progress for the students. Each student will receive a report on their progress once a year with a brief explanation of how they are progressing.It is a measure of progress for each child, simply standing in front of the group may be a major achievement for one child while others could be a veritable Bonny Langford. We do not expect every child to be at the same level, and within th academy we try to share roles as best we can, of course different criteria apply when casting for bigger event, but even then, application and effort count far more than ability.

EXAMPLE TIMETABLE…

OUR ETHOS We endeavour to offer all

students the chance to shine within their capabilities, when planning activities within the school we do our best to ensure that everyone has a go and is encouraged to try something new…

Different rules apply though if we are looking to cast a big production that will be seen by the public, then we will cast on who is best for the role although application and effort are the most important factors and we have and will offer a role to someone who is less good but works really hard rather than a more talented individual who puts in no effort.

Performing Arts is a tough industry, it is the only one where looks are an acceptable measure of suitability for the job and at castings it is not uncommon to be dismisssed without having said a word because you don’t look right, and casting directors waste no time in telling you. Students and parents have to be realistic and learn to accept this.

Quote

“...not all of you will become a performer, not many will be on the stage but all of you will, i hope, leave here better able to express yourselves”.

Juliano Mer Khamis

Israeli/Palestinian Stage Director.

Julian

Principal Hi, my name is Julian and I am delighted to be the principal at PQA Bridgnorth.

I have spent the last 20 odd years training to be and practicing as a barrister. In my view it is no surprise that so many dramas regularly feature court room scenes, to paraphrase Anthony Burgess, “all human life is here”. Certainly the lawyers involved are actors, working to a script; albeit one they have written themselves.

Over the years I have been involved in the arts as a lighting technician and chaperoning my son to a huge variety of shows and performances (I know what it’s like).

Recently I gave up the law and am extremely happy to be bringing PQA to students both here and in Wolverhampton.

Marguerite

Principal Marguerite is a lawyer too and since retiring works part time as a Coroner…which is nothing like Quincy for those old enough to remember.

Her main passion is cooking especially baking and occasionally the results make their way to PQA.

Marguerite is passionate about theatre and loves to see plays as often as we are able.

As a lawyer she brings an understanding of performance and technique to PQA along with an organisational flair.

Julian and Marguerite share the strategic planning for the 2 academies, shuffling the competing interests of the different disciplines while trying to ensure that we can offer exciting opportunities to all of our students…

Meet the Team

Quote

“We all dream a lot - some are lucky, some are not. But if you think it, want it, dream it, then it's real. You are what you feel”.

Tim Rice.

Harry

Harry has been involved in

musical theatre for many

years. Over the years

Harry has also pursued

other performance

avenues from singing in

bands, to comparing and performing in cabaret but

she has always come back to musical theatre.

Harry has been lucky enough to travel and work in

some amazing places. Including Australia and

America, most recently coming back from working on

Evil Dead the Musical at Planet Hollywood in Las

Vegas.

Before that Harry was involved in shows at The Grand

theatre in Wolverhampton, shows such as Legally

Blonde where she played on of the principal

characters, Paulette and Grease, playing Marty.

FILM &TELEVISION

PQA_Quickscreen_Module Banners2013.indd 2 22/02/2013 13:42

Kerry Vice Principal

Kerry is a professionally trained actress with prior experience working with children.

Originally from Bridgnorth, Kerry attended The Endowed School and developed a passion for acting from a young age.

At 19 she made the move to New York, where she embarked on a two-year degree course in Acting at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. It was here that she truly discovered her passion, not only for performing but also for teaching. She realised what a gift it could be to pass on the knowledge and ability that she had been taught.

After completing her training Kerry has performed in a range of theatrical and film productions both in the UK and the USA.

Kerry had previously enjoyed working as a teaching assistant in a children’s art class. Now based back in Bridgnorth, she embraced the opportunity of returning to The Endowed School and working at The Pauline Quirke Academy. She remembers what it is like to be enchanted by the acting world from a young age and is very excited to begin working with children and young adults, in a fun loving environment where they can really learn to express

Quote

If you become a teacher, by your pupils you'll be taught.

Oscar Hammerstein II

COMEDY& DRAMA

PQA_Quickscreen_Module Banners2013.indd 1 22/02/2013 13:42

Quote

“There is no crime in going from one artistic extreme to another; these are, after all, human flaws, and there is no art if there is no humanity”.

Harvey Perr on Jim

Morrison

Ben

Ben graduated from Manchester Metropolitan School of Theatre with an Honours Degree in Acting. During his time at University, he not only pursued his passion for acting but also developed a keen interest in directing and writing.

During his final year at University, Ben was selected to direct a live action piece of drama at Castlefields Art Gallery, where the exhibits were used as a backdrop for a performance of David Osbaldeston’s “Out of Time”

With his “Director’s Hat” firmly in place, Ben then went on to devise, direct and write an original piece of work “Held by the Habit” for his dissertation. This one-act play was then submitted to a new writers’ competition and was subsequently selected to be performed at a London Theatre.

Since graduating, Ben has worked as a Film and Media Assistant and Youth support worker at a sixth form college and, more recently, has been assisting and directing A level students in preparation for their university auditions. He also has experience of supporting students who are working towards their LAMDA speech examinations and has delivered drama workshops to children from the ages of 5-16 years. Ben particularly enjoyed writing a short piece which was performed by these students at their Christmas production, thereby revealing his talent for writing comedy!

Ben has continued his interest in all things creative and during the last year has written a script for a short film, composed a number of songs (lyrics and melodies – which he loves to sing!) and has also written a short story for a Classical Greek Dance piece which won first place at the National Classical Greek Dance Festival.

On meeting Ben, you cannot fail to feel his enthusiasm, passion and energy for his craft. He is committed and dedicated to supporting young people in reaching their potential, whilst also providing some fun along the way! Ben is very much looking forward to meeting and working with the young people at PQA.

JAKE, assistant teacher and techy guy!!!!

Jake is 19 and from Bridgnorth where he has been performing since he was 3. He began in school performances and progressed via a number of performing arts academies to professional work at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre and Birmingham Hippodrome in Beauty and the Beast and Fiddler on the Roof for UK Productions and also appeared in Dr Doolittle, Joseph and many others. He appeared in Frankenstein at Litchfield Rep where he played the Doctors younger brother in film flashbacks to accompany the live action on stage.

His favourite roles have been Puck and John Proctor in productions along with roles in musicals at school annually for the past 12 years. Jake was the voice of Sam Thompson, the lead male character in a mobile phone based audio enhanced comic called Team MOBILE, the first of it’s kind with 3 editions released on iPhone and iPad. After a short stint as a musician he turned to film inspired by his work with PQA and began making movies locally.

He currently attends Westminster University film school, known to be the best for aspiring film makers with several Oscars every year amongst it’s alumni. He has spent the time there makingh lots of films and TV shows working with professionals from the BBC and industry.

Naomi – Teaching Assistant

Naomi is from Bridgnorth and is delighted to be working with members of

PQA as a teaching assistant. Her main passion is dance which she started

at the age of 3 and still continues today also helping younger dancers to improve and succeed in exams. She is looking forward to working with the

PQA students and being involved in the productions that we have lined up.

Nick, Volunteer

Assistant…

Nick began with PQA on day 1 back in 2011 when he was just 13. A popular member of Red Group he produced some memorable roles in films where his abilities particularly shone when pathos was required… He was also Mr Anderson (the bad guy) in our West End performance in 2013.

Tim and Jen, volunteers

Tim joined on the same day as his brother Nick and he too has left after A levels. Jen is just about to take A2 levels. Both appear occasionally as assistants and provide invaluable help at shows with their knowledge of both backstage craft and the students themselves. It is not unusual to see them appearing on stage or in films even though they are no longer students… Like Nick both are members of our sister organisation Act@Bridgnorth, an adults drama and film club.

PQA_Quickscreen_Poppets.indd 1 11/9/12 18:28:37

Natalie I enjoy working with younger children Natalie started acting as a child when she starred in a lenor commercial. She has been in quite a few adverts and had minor roles in tv shows eg: soldier soldier and killer net.

She has been performing across the uk in a live musical comedy act since 2008 and has won an award for comedy presented by Frank Skinner.

She works in education at the moment and will be training to be a Drama and Media Teacher in September. and watching them progress in skills as well as confidence, which I believe is the key to success.

Quick Facts

A good start !!! 1. You are never too young to learn. Not strictly true, we have found that children will develope the attention spans needed for Poppets somewhere between 3 and 4.

2. It’ll be just a creche. PQA has a very strict approach to Poppets content, it must be of value in the children's developement and it must be fun. They are kept occupied the whole time and learn loads

3. Nuts and Bolts. We do not expect them to cope with Film and TV as a discrete subject, we will take the camera into Poppets occasionally to give them the experience of being on TV, They love it, we also try to use them in showcases where we can

4. Not just singing and dancing. We try to offer an experience of as any different performing styles as we can, Poppets can only really do a few weeks on a topic before they get bored, so we change it regularly..

5. Dressing up. Much more than in the older disciplines we use dressing up, we all know they love it!!!

6. Crafty Sometimes, just for fun, we make things.

Quote

“The future belongs to young people with an education and the imagination to create”. Barack Obama.

Poppets lesson plans

Tilly produces lesson guides that are given out to parents to demonstrate what the children are doing in their classes. Usually this is on a monthly basis but not always.

PQA_Quickscreen_Poppets.indd 1 11/9/12 18:28:37

PQA Acting Agency

Quirky Kidz is our talent agency, anybody is free to join if they wish. Students are accepted during one term of the year so I will let students know when this is going to be. It’s not for everybody and students have to be ready to face disappointment, very few get work and fewer still have any degree of success but the joy of even limited success is worth the effort.

PQA Film Festival!!! This will take place every other year and will feature entries from a number of the PQA academies, all are invited to submit their films and a number will be selected to go on to final judging to be held as a red carpet event at the Empire Leicester Square London. Many of you will know this as the venue for all of the major film premiers so it is a really exciting opportunity for the students. We will aim to make this the centre of our film making and to try to enter at least one film each time, the films will be 5-10 minutes long and based on ideas from the students themselves. They will act, direct and film under the guidance of Kerry and other staff and then the films are edited on state of the art equipment.

PQA Students Opportunities!

What we do

•One student in a BBC TV Series, Peaky Blinders,

running at peak times

•7 students in a major feature film out in 2017, “The

Girl Who Brings Gifts”

•30+ students on stage with the Moldovan National

Opera in La Boheme and Aida

•Students in Raised By Wolves on BBC

•4 Poppets filming for a local toy company advertising

campaign

•10 students filming for a new Channel 4 Pilot

•Our Red Group Students performing in a fantastic

show of Summer Songs

•27 students taking RADA Shakespeare exams

•Bridgnorth students performing Shakespeare in a

fabulous church setting.

•a student providing the voice for a character in a

major games console release

YOU could be next!!!!

PQA Staff and Students on set…

Dress code. Please can children attend in black trousers,

combats, joggers, leggings...you get the idea!

Dance Shoes While these are not essential Emily would prefer it if jazz shoes or dance trainers were worn. The musical theatre module will be very high energy and take place on a wooden floor, they genuinely help.

Food and Drink. Every week we will have a short break after the 2nd

session, a chance for students to socialise and take a breather. Please send a snack and most importantly a drink with your child. They will be working hard and need the energy.

Jewellery While it is important that the students enjoy

themselves and that we reflect the fact that this is a weekend activity it is equally important that everybody is as safe as possible. Please keep jewellery to a minimum, ear studs are OK but bigger earrings can and do get caught in hair or by the fingers of others, necklaces are easily caught by flailing hands and rings catch the hair of others.

Red Carpet Show. Once every 2 years or

so we will have a cinema screening of work done in Film and TV. We did the first of these in October 2012 and it was a huge success with the films being shown to over 200 people on Screen 1 at Bridgnorth Majestic.

Parents Page!

Find us on

Facebook

PQA Bridgnorth has it’s own facebook page. We will use this to post messages occasionally and to promote upcoming events.

PQA at Her Majesty’s Theatre

Every few years Bridgnorth Academy will be taking part in a special evening of Musical Theatre to be performed on stage at Her Majesty’s Theatre in London’s West End. Students will act, dance and sing in a proffesionally produced performance and parents will be able to buy tickets to see the show. So far we have performed in 2 of these shows, Fright

Night in 2013 and The Lazy Ace in 2016. Because of the demand for these shows we have now added a second West End theatre and will soon be introducing regional shows in Birmingham too. This is a specataclar event and one the students love to perform in. A MUSICAL COMEDY AT

HER MAJESTY’S THEATREHAYMARKET LONDON 2016

THE PAULINE QUIRKE ACADEMYOF PERFORMING ARTS PRESENTS

ON THE LAS VEGAS STRIP, NOTHING’S AS IT SEEMS…

Master Classes We like our students to work with the best in the business, so alongside our normal classes, we also arrange visits from various specialist tutors – covering everything from stage combat and clowning to special effects make-up and street dance.These are professionals at the top of their game who run sessions

for us in-between their work on well-known TV programmes, West End shows and music videos for famous artistes.

PQA students will experience 2 masterclasses during a typical year.

We are always looking for suitable bookings for these.

Term Dates

•Autumn Term 2016 3 September to 17 December

•Spring 2017 7 January to 8 April

•Summer 2017 29 April to 29 July

Occasional workshops…

We try where possible to fill in staff absences with workshops arranged with our team of back-up staff. They may continue with pieces that the students have been working on with the regular teacher, bringing a new dimension or angle to it, or they may step outside the current scheme of work in the subject and do a specialist workshop as a one off. A good example of this is a workshop for scriptwriting that we have

run at both academies with a local scriptwriter for the BBC and other drama companies. Alex came in and took over the Film and TV classes with an hour of exercises demonstrating character developement and script structure. The classes were fun and entertaining and allowed the students to explore a new angle that we cannot usually cover in our regular classes. We also have a link to the Dance Captain on a major show who will run a workshop based on that show for us. I try to cultivate these links in order to always have such opportunities available to cover classes.

Principal: Julian Elcock

e-mail: Bridgnorth@pqacademy.com

Mobile: 07838 11 51 52

THINGS TO DO WHILE YOU WAIT

Bec’s Coffee: Highly recommended independent coffee shop, loads of room upstairs too.