TWO aspiring actors from Tynedale are among the first intake selected for a unique training course at Newcastle’s prestigious Theatre Royal.

Christopher Rushmere-York (22) from Stocksfield and Lucy Walton (18) from Ponteland, are among 16 young people selected for Project A, the first course of its kind in the North of England.

Dedicated to actor training and providing practical and theoretical skills to 18 to 25-year-olds, the course is aimed at young performers who are looking to make a serious career as an actor.

Former Prudhoe Community High School student, Christopher, started acting at a young age and performed almost exclusively in musical theatre productions at school and local youth theatre.

After leaving Prudhoe High with GCSEs and A-levels in drama and performance studies, he undertook some principal roles in productions at the Edinburgh Fringe, and also attended the University of Aberystwyth and gained a drama and theatre studies degree.

Meanwhile, Lucy has performed in several productions with Ponteland Repertory Society, most notably Teechers , Oh, What a Lovely War! and Disco Inferno . She is also involved in the Ponteland Rep. Youth Theatre.

The Project A programme is the brainchild of Kim Hoffmann, head of learning at the Theatre Royal, who said: “We offer lots of opportunities here at the theatre for children, young people and adults to get involved with workshops, drama courses and summers schools.

“But we noticed that there were many talented young people who had a desire to train to a professional level.

“Unfortunately there just isn’t the provision for that quality of training here in the North-East so we decided to fill that gap and bring some of the UK’s leading professionals to our region in the shape of Project A.”

An application and audition process was held this summer, which saw 167 applicants whittled down to 43 auditionees, from which 16 places were awarded.

Kim said: “We were thrilled to receive so many applications from young people and it was a pleasure to see the talent and potential that some of these applicants displayed.”

The judging panel included local actors Chris Connell and Paula Penman and auditionees were asked to take part in a 60 minute group workshop before delivering two monologues as part of the individual interview process.

Lucy said: “I’ve always been passionate about drama and I love being on stage.

“I was offered a place at university but I really wanted to train as an actor so I was thrilled to be accepted on to Project A.”

The course, which will be offered completely free of charge for its inaugural year, thanks to a generous donation from the Barbour Foundation, will be run over three terms in an academic year and will include vocal, physical and performance skills training.

Specialist training including Meisner technique, improvisation, acting for screen and stage combat will also feature. These areas will be developed alongside the students’ continuous training in character development and text analysis.

Kim added: “It’s been very exciting getting the first week of Project A under way and we are really looking forward to working with these talented young people over the next year, which will culminate in a series of public performances.”

For more details about Project A and other learning experiences on offer at the Theatre Royal, visit http://www.theatreroyal.co.uk/taking-part