Personal Statement

This year I undertook a work placement with Backbone Theatre Company assisting in their after school drama classes which they call “Drama Club”. In this placement I worked with a small class of around five students aged 11-14, assisting in drama education workshops as well as devising a show for child protection week. I worked mostly with Chris Beckey who takes the classes every week, as well as some classes with Kath Quigley. I chose this placement because I believed it would equip me with the essential skills I need for my future career path in drama education.

I started my placement in early May, working with a small class of five children and teenagers aged 11-14. When I came into the class they were working on ‘gothic fairytales’ which

By working with these children in a drama environment, rather than a school environment, I believe that I’ve developed a different sense of understanding as to what life is like for these children and teenagers and how it is different to my own experiences at that age. I also learned that after school drama classes are a safe space for young people, and they are are place for the students to come and freely talk about their daily life, any problems as well as things their personal achievements. I found that this was quite healthy for the students, as they seemed to be a lot more relaxed and expressive and therefore more confident. I believe through this kind of environment I was able to discover a perfect balance between teacher and friend. At the start of the experience I was quite shy and low on energy from university and also my personal life, but I found that quite quickly I was able to overcome that and work confidently with the group as a facilitator. I had already established my strength of working with young people, however this experience has improved that. I do wish to further my career in this field, and I believe I still need to work on becoming more confident and knowing my role, as well as leaving my personal life and energy out of rehearsals. To continue with drama education, I plan to continue working with the Backbone class until the end of the year, and further my education studies in the year to come. I hope this will give me the knowledge and experience I need to become a successful in working with children in a theatre