Amy studied NC, HNC and HND in Drama at the College having always wanted to be an actor. Amy chose WCS partly because the College has a wide range of courses including drama and she had heard good things, but it was really her audition that convinced Amy the College was the place for her. Amy says about her audition:
“There was such a nice vibe in the room, they were really enthusiastic, and it felt like a creative audition. I thought doing the course at the College would be a creative, fun time and it wouldn’t be stressful - it would be about developing myself.”
During the course Amy had the opportunity to take part in a play as one of her first performances after some encouragement from one of her lecturers to do it. Remembering the play Amy says:
“My teacher really encouraged me to do it and once I did, it was a huge boost to my confidence to go try new things, as it was a big challenge.”
If you are thinking about applying to the College to do drama, then Amy says to go for it, as if you get nothing else you will have a nice experience and learn to do the thing you already love. About her time at the College Amy says:
“Doing my HNC at WCS were the favourite years of my life as being at college and learning new things alongside my classmates and lecturers was the best. Also, my absolute best friend in the world is someone I met whilst studying at WCS!”
Amy says that there is a lot of pressure in the acting industry to do your best all the time, but she found the College a safe place to learn her craft, make mistakes and to learn from them and enhance her technique. Amy went on to study at the Royal Conservatoire which was a dream come true for her and she feels it was her time at the College that enabled her to finally get in. Amy told us:
“It took me years to get into the Royal Conservatoire and I put it down to my course at the College for why I finally got in. It gave me the experience and built my confidence.”
Even after leaving the College Amy says the support from the staff was still there with her former lecturers coming to watch her shows. Amy gives a special mention to WCS lecturer Jim McLaughlin about who she says:
“Jim, who taught me, absolutely changed my life. He was the one that really made me believe it was possible and I truly I don’t think I’d be where I am if I’d not met him.”
After graduating from the RC and taking a year out Amy was offered the role in Hollyoaks and has never looked back. She feels she is lucky to have landed such a long-term, rewarding position in an industry where jobs are rarely settled or secure. However, she says:
“If you have confidence in yourself and work hard you will get results. It’s important to believe in yourself and to not let yourself be affected by negativity. If you want to live “the dream” then you need to put everything into it and go out and get it.”
If you feel you have what it takes or simply want to develop as an actor, then WCS has a course for you.