Biography

Helen Armes has wanted to be an actor from an early age. Her family moved to Scotland from Lancashire when she was 11 and since then she has appeared regularly with the Lyceum Youth Theatre. This involvement led to a professional performance at the Royal Lyceum, Edinburgh and leading roles in two children’s TV serials for BBC Scotland.

From the moment Helen walked into the audition for the first TV show, the director knew that she was an exceptional talent for a 15-year-old. When it came to the second show, the development of her talent was clear. He is certain that, with the right training, she has all the attributes to become an actor of stature on the British stage.

Helen has won a place at the Guildford School of Acting to study for three years. Despite a Dance and Drama Award, she would not have been able to accept the place without additional financial support.

How the Award Helped

The Dewar Arts Award has provided that additional support to enable Helen to pursue her dreams of becoming an actor.

Since the Award

Biography

Jennifer McVey, whose Glasgow roots go back generations, has been involved in the arts and theatre from a very young age. As a child she studied dance, singing and the violin, and was a member of both the Inverclyde Youth Theatre and the Scottish Youth Theatre.

Jennifer gained a degree in English and Theatre Studies at Glasgow University followed by a year working at the renowned Citizen’s Theatre, Glasgow. From there she was accepted on an internship with Signature Theatre, New York and then, after successful audition, she was one of 20 students accepted onto the Master of Fine Arts (Acting) course at the New School for Drama (formerly Actors’ Studio Drama School), New York. Former alumni of the School include Dustin Hoffman, Jack Nicholson, Robert de Niro and Meryl Streep.

According to the Director of the School, Jennifer’s audition was ‘a real stand-out’. “I’ve seen it all” he writes, but Jennifer stood out as possessing “an originality of talent and the brightest of futures for any incoming candidate.”

How the Award Helped

The Dewar Arts Awards is contributing towards the first year of Jennifer’s studies.

After a successful first two years at the New School for Drama, where her tutor writes  that ‘her ability to absorb and make her own concepts and approaches to subtle psychological nuances in characterisation, relationship and emotional depth separate her from scores of other [drama students]’, Jennifer’s award has been extended for a third and final year.

Since the Award

Jennifer graduated from New School of Drama, New York in May 2009. She immediately launched into auditions, was signed up by two agents and cast in a workshop production of a new musical based on the Nicholas Sparks novel ‘The Notebook’. She is also a founding member of a new theatre company of young actors, ABroad Stage Company (see www.abroadstageco.com). Jennifer writes, “I feel that my three years at the New School were absolutely invaluable for me and the training has really shaped me as an actor and given me a solid basis from which to grow and develop into the artist I am going to be.”

Biography

Originally from Perth, Sally has been hailed as one of the brightest young actors currently on the Scottish theatre scene.

As a very young actor, she appeared in several productions at Glasgow’s Citizens’ Theatre, including the award-winning show Top Girls and impressed the artistic director as being someone with huge potential to become a major talent. It was while Sally was working at the Citz that she was nominated for an award. She was encouraged by Giles Havergal to use it to fund herself through an intensive acting course for young professional actors in Chicago.

Sally was accepted onto the course at the internationally-acclaimed ensemble company Steppenwolf Theatre. Famous alumni of the company include John Malkovich, Terry Johnson and Gary Sinise.

How the Award Helped

The Dewar Arts Award funded Sally to study at the Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago.

Since the Award

Sally writes: “The three months that I spent with the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago proved to be even more rewarding than I had hoped for. I attended so many challenging classes with such a wide range of skilled practitioners that I really felt I was growing as an actor on a daily basis.”

On her return to Glasgow, Sally was cast in the musical “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane” which she found a daunting prospect. She says, “had I not been working with the Steppenwolf Company, I may have been quite intimidated by this experience, but I revelled in the chance to put some of my new skills into action.”

Sally has since performed regularly in National Theatre of Scotland productions.