Like the title of a song by one of my favourite bands, Joker Out, I have found myself trying to seize the day or seize as many opportunities as I can – before my time in Durham draws to a close. This has particularly manifested itself within the performing arts scene. Coming to uni can feel very overwhelming, especially when there is some underlying pressure to make the most of your time here. These are my words of wisdom (of sorts) for how to get involved, and what I wish I could have told myself four years ago.

Don’t Be Disheartened by Rejection. 

This can be an incredibly annoying thing to be told, but I say this coming from someone who has been rejected from well over half of the auditions I’ve been to. I remember I went through a period in my second year of getting call-backs but never a role and it was incredibly frustrating. It was like ‘What am I doing wrong? Why am I not good enough?’

Truth is, sometimes it’s just not meant to be. Sometimes your vocal range isn’t suited to the song or the chemistry isn’t clicking with other actors and these things are all out of your control. Just because you don’t get something doesn’t mean you aren’t good at what you do. As part of my aforementioned ‘carpe dieming’, I spontaneously signed up for several auditions. But this year, I went in with the attitude of ‘maybe I’ll get it, maybe I won’t, either way it’s ok’. While I was successful in some cases and now have some exciting upcoming productions, the first few I heard back from were nos and going into the process with this attitude made auditioning feel less stressful, and reading the outcome email a lot easier. 

Particularly when you have ten people auditioning for one part it’s not always an easy decision, so don’t assume you were instantly rejected. Believe me, I’ve been on the other side of the desk making the decisions and have been tearing my hair out trying to decide who gets a call-back. It can be heart-breaking trying to decide who is cast and who isn’t, so don’t take rejection to heart. Don’t give up! Only in my last term at uni have I had a good run of getting call-backs and offered roles, so don’t worry if you don’t book every audition you go to, especially in your first year.

Apply for Assistant & Shadow Roles: 

If you are interested in getting involved in theatre but don’t really know where to start, I would strongly recommend applying for assistant or shadow roles. These give you an insight into how student theatre runs as well as the opportunity to learn and network. A shadow role focuses on ‘shadowing’ the person in the full role while assistants (you guessed it) ‘assist’. 

Another thing to note is typically these roles are lower commitment. I was the Assistant Producer of ‘Jekyll & Hyde’ this year which involved booking rooms for rehearsals and printing posters – exciting stuff. While I have produced on other productions before, it was great to still be involved in a production but with less pressure and responsibility.

Make the Most of Non-Auditioned Socs & Productions. 

If you want to get involved but auditioning is not for you, there are plenty of opportunities where you can just sign up to take part. There are lots of Trevs Societies such as Dance, A Capella and TCOS (Orchestra) that are non-auditioned and a great way to meet people in college. 

‘Unplugged’ events take place in Trevs bar several times a term and are a chance to perform in a more relaxed, low-pressure setting. One of my new year’s resolutions this year was to learn how to play guitar because a lot of the songs I like to sing don’t have YouTube backing tracks (hence the obvious solution was to learn to play the songs myself). I performed with my guitar at an ‘Unplugged’ earlier this year and it definitely gave me motivation to practice and something to work towards so I could keep to my resolution. These events operate on a sign up basis and you can perform as a soloist or in a group/band.

Other performances that are a bit more informal are the Sixth Side Christmas Panto and the TCMS 48 hour musical. If you watched the panto post-Christmas Formal, I’m sure you could tell it’s not the most serious of productions, and a lot of fun to be involved in. My reprising role of Queen Klute will definitely be the peak of my student theatre career. The 48 hour musical hasn’t been run in the last few years but I can guarantee it will be chaotic and again just really light hearted and fun. 

Sixth Side Pantomime. Image: Sixth Side Theatre Company

You Never Know What Might Happen.   

When I first came to Durham, I’d done some musical theatre and dance classes as hobbies so was keen to continue this. Alongside acting in musicals and plays, I’ve gained a lot of experience behind the scenes ranging from choreography to producing to directing and even a bit of tech, which I wasn’t expecting to do. 

If you told fresher me that in my fourth year I wrote a play, Sixth Side facilitated staging it and it’s now going to the Edinburgh Fringe I would think you were mad. But, here we are. It’s definitely taken a lot of work and dedication to make it happen but I am so grateful that it is going ahead. I never really saw myself as a script writer and while I have always been interested in going to the Fringe, I thought it would be as an actor rather than a writer and director. I am absolutely terrified no one is going to come to the show and my social awkwardness is dreading the flyering, I am very excited about it. Goes to show anything can happen.

‘It’s Ok. We’ll Be Ok.’ Image: Dan Wattis

Just Go For It! 

I think one of the biggest bits of advice I would give to my past self is to stop worrying about what people think. As much as I hate to admit it, when I first started at uni I think I held onto some self consciousness from school and didn’t want to put myself out there in case I was laughed at. In reality, the majority of people are mature enough now to be past that level of pettiness so no one really fixates on the things that you do in school. In a way, being on the audition panel helps you realise that creative team members are only really interested in how well you portray the character, not trivial things like what you’re wearing or how you’ve done your hair. There’s a saying ‘if you don’t try, you’ll never know’ and I think it’s very apt for opportunities at uni. What is the worst that could happen? I have messed up songs, tripped over myself and all sorts of embarrassing things. No one really cares. We’re all too busy with our own lives to focus on other people’s mishaps. So, give it a go and see what comes of it. 

Remember You Don’t Have To Do Everything At Once.  

You have three to four years of uni – take your time. Don’t worry if you don’t get around to doing everything you want to as there IS life after uni. Plenty of local choirs, orchestras and theatre groups exist so you can still pursue your passions post-uni. It is a bit ironic me writing this, and I fully acknowledge I should take my own advice, but know your limits. In the past year I’ve done all sorts, from singing at Live On The Hill, to choreographing a musical, to writing and directing a play. I know I am one to take on a lot and try to keep busy but the stress and tears are not worth it. Make sure you’re doing things for the right reasons and when something stops being fun remember you don’t have a duty to plough on with it.  

Live On The Hill. Image: Dan Wattis

As cheesy as it sounds, do what you love. Give things a go if you feel passionate about them because what’s the worst that can happen? What will be, will be. You have time so just enjoy yourself. Carpe diem in a way that feels right for you.

Image: Jesus Christ Superstar. TCMS