'Theatre people are all liars, charlatans, scavengers and fly-by-nights'What first drew you to theatre?I don't really remember being drawn. As a child, acting just seemed like a natural exte…
Performing beside HMS Victory, the Royal Navy Theatre Association is just one of hundreds of am-dram groups tackling Shakespeare this year. Laura Barnett takes in a showIt's a chilly ev…
Equity believes theatre group that sees hundreds of performers acting for one audience member at a time should pay wagesTo the uninitiated, it sounds like the sort of special-interest nightc…
'A critic once said I drew my references from Dad's Army and Noel's House Party'What got you started?I trained as an actor, and became really bossy. I started directing rehearsals of shows d…
A song-and-dance show about obesity and mental illness? Epidemic could pull in big audiences " and improve their healthIn a chilly, high-windowed room, a young man is being pursued by four b…
Shakespeare's Globe, LondonHenry IV: Part I; Compañia Nacional de Teatro, Mexico 4/5Henry IV: Part II; Elkafka Espacio Teatral, Argentina 3/5A burst of Latin percussion from the musicians…
'Which other artists do I admire? The ones that quit at the top of their game'What got you started?I couldn't do anything else for attention. I couldn't sing, I wasn't athletic or physically…
At my first audition, they asked me things like: How are you? It didn't seem hard enough' What got you started?An uncle I loved got me into Fred Astaire when I was young. We had a scratchy o…
'My biggest career regret? Not turning up for that interview for a part in Alien'What got you started?I had no desire to be an actor. But I started going along to the Citizens theatre in Gla…
A number of writers' schemes help young talent get a foothold in theatre. But why do they so often shun those over 25 or 30?Let's begin with a disclaimer: this July, I turn 30. The less gene…
'One reviewer said I looked like a giant gnome. I guess I do have prominent ears'What got you started?My parents always told me that if I found something I really loved doing, that was …
At 14, he was acting alongside Gwyneth. At 18, he was in a Woody. And now, after eight years as the star of Scrubs, Zach Braff has written a play. He talks to Laura Barnett about learning to…
'Artists I admire? Astaire for his choreography, Hitchcock for his storytelling " and Pinter for his question marks'What got you started?I didn't start training as a dancer until I was …
'The Mirror called me a money-grabbing reptile. I could cope with the reptile part, but money-grabbing hurt'When did you first realise you could make people laugh?I was in an art lesson when…
The Clod Ensemble's fascinating work should blast away any memories of dull anatomy lecturesMy anatomy classes are like performances. I see my students as my audience, and I deliver my lectu…
What has tempted Patricia Routledge back on to the stage? A wartime pianist and the King James Bible. She tells Laura Barnett what she thinks of theatre today'History!" says Patricia Routled…
'The worst thing anyone ever wrote? "Julie Walters obviously thinks she's got good legs." That was painful'What got you started?I just had a desire to entertain from a very early age. When I…
Dress in pink day, singing lessons while jogging, a 'love box' messaging network … when it comes to teaching the arts, are youth groups leaving schools behind?Where do artists first discov…
The women actors of the 17th century may not have been respectable " but at least they had steady jobsWalking around this very interesting exhibition, I found myself thinking a lot about res…
'Did Beyoncé plagiarise my work? She is not the worst copycat: she's a good dancer, and she has good taste'What got you started?Like so many little girls, I started dancing with ballet, and…
Edgar Degas clearly loved ballet; there's no voyeurism here, just pleasure in the transport of movement, finds dancer Sarah LambI thought I knew Degas pretty well, but this exhibition taught…
'The worst thing anyone's ever said? I remember one review began: "Jane Asher, whose charm has always escaped me"'What got you started?Being spotted in the street by a film producer when I w…
'I once worked as an understudy for Freddie Prinze Jr. The sound of booing still rings in my ears'How did you get into directing?Entertainment was always a part of growing up. I lived above …
'Doing EastEnders wasn't exactly suffering for my art, but my soul's not in TV. We all have to live, don't we?'What got you started?A lady called Anna Scher. She used to go around the Londo…
I didn't know all of the historical figures in Caryl Churchill's play Top Girls, but their predicaments were strangely familiarCaryl Churchill's play was written in 1982, before I was born "…