Drama and Theatre BA
I was never planning to do stand-up until I performed comedy at a student show. Instantly, it felt natural.
What I wanted was something practical: I didn’t want to be stuck in a classroom learning about Greek theatre. I went to visit other universities but they didn’t excite me as much. Kent wasn’t stuffy or pretentious; there was something quite free about the curriculum and the options it offered.
You do learn a lot of theory, especially in the first year, but then you use that theory to make decisions in the practical work. In the third year I did the comedy module with Olly?Double. I think it has changed now, but at that time the module was more theoretical than practical. I loved watching and analysing stand-up and Olly’s a great teacher, but I was never planning to do stand-up;?I was leaning towards theatre.
I studied Applied Theatre and became very interested in helping children with special needs, specifically autism. Drama teaches you a lot of ways to interact with children and that’s what I was planning to specialise in, until someone invited me to perform comedy at a student show. Instantly it felt natural. For me it was a no-brainer and I made the decision to specialise in stand-up. I still use the other aspects of my degree though. A lot of comedians have to survive by doing awful jobs, waiting for their big break, but I have a very rewarding job. In the evenings I perform, but during the day I’m working with a five-year-old autistic boy. When I started, he could only speak or read a few words; now he’s in school every morning. That’s a very satisfying thing, watching children progress and find their place in the world.
Olly was very positive, and when you get words of encouragement from someone you respect, that really helps. But until someone pushes you on to the stage, you’re not sure how you’re going to handle it. I first performed in Monkeyshine – Kent’s student comedy club. The same people came to watch Monkeyshine every week, so you couldn’t even think about doing the same material.
Student audiences are kind. In some ways Monkeyshine makes you slightly cocky because you become a bit of a campus celebrity! But out in the ‘real world’ you’re performing to London pubs and that means you have to graft. Then I did a competition called Amused Moose, and met a representative from Avalon Entertainment. He asked me to audition for Live at the Electric on BBC Three and I appeared in a show which was hosted by Russell Kane. I also supported Russell Kane in a live show which was a brilliant experience – I guess that’s what inspired me in the first place, watching other comedians.
In 2015, I made my debut at the Edinburgh Festival with my show, The Art of Grooming, and was part of the 2015 Best of Edinburgh Fringe tour.
Use the course as an opportunity to figure out what you want to do. You might find that you love something that you’d never even considered before.
