BMS Students Selected for National Youth Theatre 19 May 2020

Bedford Modern School (BMS) students Lilly Brittain and Oliver Willis, both in Year 11, have been selected for the highly competitive National Youth Theatre (NYT) summer course this year. Lilly and Oliver, who are both actively involved in Performance Arts at BMS, were picked from the thousands of hopefuls who auditioned across the country between January and March.

Each audition consisted of a three-hour workshop, where the candidates took part in improvisation workshops with NYT Associates in the morning, and presented a monologue of their choice in the afternoon.

Lilly explained: “The experience was great fun and I would do it again in a heartbeat. I really wasn’t expecting to get in as many people said it had taken them three or four auditions so was absolutely over the moon when I got the email informing me that I’d been successful.”

Usually the pair would take part in a two-week residential course during the summer but due to ongoing restrictions a three-day online course is being offered as an alternative. On completion of the course they will become NYT company members until the age of 26 and able to access a range of performance and talent development opportunities.

Paul Stevens, Director of Performance Arts at BMS, commented: “I was delighted to hear about Lilly and Ollie’s success. They continue last year’s achievement of BMS students being offered places in the most prestigious youth theatre in the country. I am sure they’ll learn a lot from the experience and be able to inspire other students to audition next year.”