A Theatre School that has been running for many years in Bishop Auckland has found new premises in Newton Aycliffe opening up opportunities for local 6 – 16 year olds.
Applause Theatre School which offers Dance, Drama and Vocal lessons found themselves, like many others, in a tight spot when the National Lockdown of March 2020 closed them down. They had been successfully running their extracurricular Theatrical Education School at St John’s RC School in Bishop Auckland for many years but when restrictions were lifted for educational groups understandably St John’s were not too keen on allowing the group back, just at that point whilst the finer points of the Governments rules were being ironed out.
Nevertheless, Kate Ruddick, the Principal at Applause, was keen to get her group back to some normality and searched for new premises from which to operate, eventually finding Newton Aycliffe Youth Centre with what she described as ‘first rate facilities’.
Applause offers students something different to do every Friday after school. By using the performing arts as a base, they create a safe place for individuals to gain skills for the stage but also for life, learning to work as part of a team to create a performance, encouraging, to go solo for added confidence and helping to improve mental health by taking part in fun and rewarding activities.
The Principal of Applause, Kate Ruddick, said: “Finding these facilities has been a godsend, they really are superb and means that we can continue what we started all those years ago. I have been teaching in this field for over twenty years and never have I felt so much for the mental health and wellbeing of our students as during these lockdown periods”.
Applause Theatre School for 6 to 16 years olds, runs on a Friday from 5pm at Newton Aycliffe Youth and Community Centre with an hour to sing, an hour to dance and an hour of drama. If you are interested, you can call 01388 664066 for more information or email learning@playful.com
