Anna Jane Casey Joins Annette Badland & Abigail Matthews for Arion Productions' Masterclasses

Arion Productions has announced West End leading lady, Anna Jane Casey, as the latest artist to join the line-up of extraordinary performers and industry professionals providing expert 'one day only' training in much-sought-after specialist fields. These masterclasses take place at Diorama Arts Studios on various Sunday afternoons throughout 2016.

Anna-Jane Casey first came to the London stage aged 16 to appear in Cats and has since performed in over 25 musicals, including the original casts of Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Grease and Children Of Eden. She played Dot in Sunday In The Park With George, Charity in Sweet Charity, Mabel in Mack And Mabel, Mrs Wilkinson in Billy Elliot and Lady Of The Lake in Spamalot. Other productions include Starlight Express, West Side Story, On Your Toes, Piaf, Chicago, Forbidden Broadway, Bells Are Ringing and Flowers For Mrs. Harris. She will soon be playing the role of Annie Oakley in Annie Get Your Gun at Sheffield Crucible this Christmas.

Other upcoming masterclass specialists include puppeteer Abigail Matthews, known for War Horse, Citizen Squid and Goodnight Mr. Tom, and Olivier and Actor's Screen Guild Award nominated actress Annette Badland. Annette is best known for The Rise And Fall of Little Voice, Doctor Who, The Archers, Homelander and is currently appearing in EastEnders as Aunt Babe.

Each of these unique masterclasses can hold up to fifty attendees. They have been created for those considering performing arts or professional performers who might be looking to learn new skills. Classes are accessible to all, regardless of any disability or access needs. All attendees must be 16+.

Previous masterclasses have been hosted by two time Oliver Award winner, Jenny Galloway (Acting Through Song Masterclass) and multi-award winning producer Danielle Tarento (Auditioning for Musical Theatre Masterclass).

All profits raised from the Portfolio Masterclass series will be invested by Arion Productions into future opportunities in their upcoming productions to give practical and paid experience. All places must be booked in advance and it is strongly advised to book as quickly as possible to avoid disappointment.

Artistic Director of Arion Productions Andrew Keates comments, "Arion Productions is passionate about providing opportunities for actors who want to invest in themselves and develop their craft. As a company we are fortunate to have connections with some of the finest professionals working within our industry and it has been a delight seeing actors transform in an afternoon by being given the chance to work with such a high caliber of stand-out artists".

Tickets are available priced £35 per masterclass, plus a TicketWeb booking fee. All tickets must be booked in advanced of the events. Tickets can be collected from the registration desk on the day provided a confirmation email from TicketWeb and a form of ID is presented. Arion cannot guarantee that everyone who attends a masterclass with work one-on-one with the special artist due to time constraints and the creative nature of the day. All masterclasses can be booked at www.arion-productions.com/portfolio-masterclasses

Masterclass Summaries
Abigail Matthews: West End Puppetry Masterclass
Sunday 7th August 2016, 1pm - 5.30pm
Abigail has worked on a variety of productions in the early stages of her career including musical theatre, physical theatre and puppetry, plays, cabarets, pantomime, fringe theatre and street theatre. Her exploration into the world of puppetry began in 2012 when she became an alternate Aslan puppeteer in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe working with Max Humphries, Steve Tiplady and Jane Leany to learn the ethos and craft of team puppetry. Since then, she has continued to work with a myriad of puppets in subsequent performances, most notably in the acclaimed West End National Theatre production of War Horse, where she worked directly with Handspring Puppet Company and associate directors of puppetry, Tommy Luther and Jimmy Grimes. She then went on to join a team of ten puppeteers working with director Ivan Thorley and designer Caroline Bowman at Puppets With Guts to devise and perform their street theatre piece Citizen Squid at the Lyric Hammersmith: Theatre In The Square and Watford Imagine Festival. She is currently working on the West End and National Tour production of Goodnight Mister Tom with puppet director and designer Toby Olie.

Puppetry is a thought provoking, moving and disciplined theatrical language that is finding its way into many areas of the industry from physical theatre and street theatre, to plays and musicals. It is becoming an essential skill for the actor today, especially for devising theatre and children's theatre. The ethos of team and solo puppetry requires great focus, clear communication of thought, stamina and joy. Much the same as the ethos of acting- this is a must do workshop for not only learning new and relevant skills, but enhancing your storytelling abilities as a performer.

Please note, Abigail has requested that all those that attend her masterclass should wear comfortable clothing that they are free to move in.

Anna Jane Casey: Acting Through Song
with Musical Director, Dustin Conrad.
Sunday 4th September 2016, 1pm - 5.30pm

Anna-Jane Casey has been working in all areas of entertainment for the last thirty years. She came to London at the age of 16 to appear In Cats and has since performed in over twenty-five musicals, including the original casts of Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Grease and Children Of Eden. She played Dot In Sunday In The Park With George, Charity in Sweet Charity, Mabel in Mack And Mabel, Mrs. Wilkinson in Billy Elliot and Lady Of The Lake in Spamalot. Other productions include Starlight Express, West Side Story, On Your Toes, Piaf, Chicago, Forbidden Broadway, Bells Are Ringing and Flowers For Mrs. Harris. She will soon be playing the role of Annie Oakley in Annie Get Your Gun at Sheffield Crucible this Christmas. Concert appearances include working with the John Wilson Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic and the BBC Concert Orchestra and she regularly performs cabaret all over the world. TV appearances include, EastEnders, Family Guy and she is working on a new comedy pilot written By Miles Jupp this Summer.

AJ will be exploring how we can act through song both as an individual and when working as part of a Musical Theatre ensemble. Please come prepared in comfortable clothing with two contrasting styles of song from any era and a great sense of humour.

Annette Badland: Acting for Stage and Screen Masterclass?
Sunday 27th November 2016, 1pm - 5.30pm

Annette Badland is an Olivier nominated actress for her role in The Rise and Fall of Little Voice at the National Theatre. Currently to be seen in EastEnders and Outlander. In television she is also known for her roles in Dr Who, Bergerac, Cutting It, Casanova, Last Day of Summer, Man Down, Skins, Holding On and Making Out.
Her theatre work includes Sir Peter Hall's Company in Habeas Corpus, Measure for Measure and The Vortex. The RSC, National Theatre, Royal Court, Cheek by Jowl and The Almeida also Bristol Old Vic and The Royal Exchange, Manchester where she won critical acclaim as Madame Arcarti in Blithe Spirit. Films include: Terence Davies' A Quiet Passion, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Legacy - Black Ops, Syrup (Oscar nominated short), Twenty Four Seven, Jabberwocky and Little Voice (nominated for a Screen Actors Guild award). On Radio 4 she plays Hazel in The Archers!

Annette attended East 15 and has worked with Stephen Daldry, Deborah Warner, Simon McBurney, Sam Mendes, Tim Burton, Declan Donnellan, Shane Meadows among others.......there are many ways! Communication, complicity and confidence. We will explore these aspects of the work and seek to enhance the skills you have. How to find the way into a character, share it and the story with your audience whether on stage or through the lens. This class will include a simple camera and screen set-up so those that participate can see the results of their work immediately after performing it.

Please note, Annette has requested that those that attend the masterclass should wear comfortable clothing that they can move in as well as two contrasting speeches that last approximately 1 - 2 minutes that they would feel comfortable to perform in front of others as well as on camera.

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