Leona Craig

 

I have been awarded a scholarship funded place, (which covers my tuition fees), to study BA Performance (Actor/Musician) / Diploma in Professional Acting at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts in London. This is a 3-year course. I am driven and determined to make the most of every opportunity I can whilst training in London.

 

The course develops my skills in Performance and will help me to become industry ready for employment. Being a thoroughly Scottish Lass, I will bring home all I have learned in the Arts to share with others wherever I can. I love teaching and directing and having had a few tasters already in this area. I see myself working in this area of the profession later in my life.

 

Immersing myself into the life of my character. Seeing the joy on people’s faces when I sing. Creating a song that makes people laugh. When the choreography clicks… that’s why I perform. I enjoy the exhilaration of being on stage and entertaining people.

 

This year, I have achieved my HNC in Musical Theatre from New College Lanarkshire. It was a very worthwhile year, training in singing, dancing and acting as well as working on skills as an Ensemble. I was given other opportunities alongside performing such as Dance Captain in our Christmas Pantomime and Chorus Master for our end of year showcase. These roles required lots of hard work in rehearsals to pick up the choreography and music and also a lot of planning in between rehearsals. I also accompanied my fellow Ensemble cast members on piano in various songs during our end of year showcase.

 

In 2017, I was selected from 140 applicants to be part of Scottish Youth Theatre’s inaugural National Ensemble, a company of 21 from across Scotland. I loved every minute of the amazing opportunities we were given and the friendships we made. We took part in monthly development weekends, working with leading industry professionals in a variety of theatrical disciplines and genres as well as an intensive 6-week workshop where we devised "Dye in the Goldfish Bowl". Being part of the SYT family has been tremendous; it has given me the skills and confidence I needed to further my training. It has also afforded me with many other opportunities. I am now part of the Family Storytime Company at SYT. We worked from three well-known story titles (“The Gingerbread Man”, “The Elves and the Shoemaker” and “The Selfish Giant”), putting our own spin on the well-loved tales and culminated with a brand new show, “Captain Brave”, which we devised from scratch. We wrote to engage a young audience of 3-7 year olds, whilst also exploring the science behind the tale. My role with the company was heavily musical, where I got to compose the songs and instrumental sections. This was a great experience, being part of a professional theatre company, taking on all roles from director to stage manager, from composer to actor. We devised our shows from scratch and made them suitable for our home audience at SYT and also for taking the show on tour around the country.

 

I have also been employed by SYT as a Trainee Director, where I have worked with and been mentored by theatre practitioners in their work as well as engaging and teaching the participants of the Summer Workshops. I certainly had just as much fun as they did! All very worthwhile and valuable experiences that I will use in future work opportunities.

 

I attended the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland’s Junior Musical Theatre programme for two years, where each Sunday, I was put through intensive Musical Theatre training. It nurtured my ambition, determination and hard work. I was also a member of Perth Youth Theatre where each week I explored acting technique. This has led me to leading roles with local theatre societies including, Maria in The Sound of Music and Fantine in Les Miserables.

 

I thrive on passing on my knowledge of drama, dance and music to spark imagination and ignite excitement to learn. I have achieved my SQF Level 4 Dance Leadership with YDance. This has allowed me the opportunity to work with Live Active Leisure, our local sports provider, to run dance classes. I also, 2 years ago, volunteered on the short course, Schools out for Summer at RCS. This was a very valuable experience as it gave me a greater insight into the challenges and rewards of teaching. I enjoy planning, choreographing and teaching, as well as performing. With my degree in Performance Actor / Musicianship, I hope to pursue a career in teaching within the Arts alongside being a performer. I will look for every opportunity I can.

 

As well as playing piano and singing, I am self-taught in acoustic-guitar and I am currently learning the banjo. Actor-musicianship really inspires me as it is so innovative and captivating. I want to use my skills both as an actor and musician in future work and projects.

 

I have thoroughly enjoyed the extensive performing opportunities I have had so far. I am very curious about the world I live in and the people living in it. I want to explore further and continue to tell stories through acting, singing, music and dance. I think that achieving my degree will be the perfect next step towards my goal of becoming a professional performer. I am very excited for what the future holds, the hard work and the new challenges I will face.