On Thursday this week, members of the cast for our forthcoming production of Oliver! were treated to a visit from West End star Rob Madge and Sponne alumnus Joseph Patterson. The afternoon began with a question and answer session for the whole cast about working in the Musical Theatre industry before Rob and Joseph reviewed some of the scenes the cast have been working on this term, giving advice and feedback to cast members.
Rob Madge is an award winning theatre-maker, writer and actor. Theatre appearances include: Emcee in Cabaret (Playhouse Theatre), Derek in Victoria Wood’s Acorn Antiques The Musical (Shaftesbury Theatre & Manchester Opera House), Diva of Dreams in Sleeping Beauty, Spirit of Sherwood in Robin Hood, Tink in Peter Pan and Pat the Cow in Jack and the Beanstalk (The London Palladium), Alex in Buyer and Cellar (King’s Head and Theatre Royal, Plymouth), Millennials (The Other Palace), world premiere of Bedknobs and Broomsticks (UK tour), Les Misérables (UK tour), Matilda the Musical (RSC), Gavroche in Les Misérables (25th Anniversary tour and Concert), Artful Dodger in Oliver! (Theatre Royal Drury Lane), Macbeth (Gielgud) and Michael Banks in Mary Poppins (Prince Edward).
Joseph is now an actor, musician and creative based in North London. After leaving Sponne he trained at East 15 and then went on to co-founded Awkward Productions with his husband Linus Karp in 2017, and has since toured globally with their multi-award winning and critically acclaimed shows. Joseph has also worked for a Producer for BBC Radio, and with the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain.
This was a fantastic opportunity for the cast to work with professional actors and we are very grateful to Rob and Joe for giving up their time in-between their busy schedules. We hope they might be able to visit again before the show opens in July. It is also fantastic to hear how well our former students are doing in their chosen career!
