What actually happens at a BYMT Summer Camp?

Pete Gallagher, actor, director and writer, whose film, TV and theatre credits include Jesus Christ Superstar, Waking the Dead, Casualty, The Two of Us, Moon and Son, The Pirates of Penzance, Jesus Christ Superstar (Lyceum and Arena Tour), The Rocky Horror Show, Guys and Dolls, Only Fools and Horses, Betrayal, and many, many others, will be directing a musical theatre summer camp for young people aged 11–17 for British Youth Music Theatre this summer, taking place in Hertfordshire.

British Youth Music Theatre (BYMT), the UK's leading musical theatre organisation for young people, is running seven fun-filled open-access musical theatre summer camps designed to give young people a taster of musical theatre, boost their confidence, and develop their performing skills. As Gallagher says: ‘I would always recommend young people join camps if they love drama or just being creative. If you are a confident young performer who wants to work on creative skills and rehearse alongside a professional creative team, then it is a fantastic opportunity to improve and learn.

‘On the other hand, if you have creative thoughts but are not so outgoing – perhaps you find it difficult to meet new people – it is also ideal for you because you will be living alongside 30 interesting people for a week; eating with them, creating with them, laughing with them, and some of them are bound to be just like you. The most common response I hear is, “I feel like I have made some friends for life”, and that has got to be worth it, hasn't it? You will go through every emotion in the week, create something amazing, and come out of it with new friends.’

Each BYMT's summer camp is a six-day holiday activity that provides intense creative training with top theatre professionals, exploring and developing young people's abilities. All BYMT summer camps culminate in a performance to friends, family and invited guests on the final day.

So, what actually happens at BYMT's Musical Theatre Summer Camps?

Young people stay in either a boarding school or a university. All the participants live together in shared or single rooms, depending on the venue, and they are allocated to rooms with fellow-participants who are roughly the same age. Female and male bedrooms are on separate floors.

‘I had two of the most amazing experiences at both the summer camps I have been on. The most exciting thing about it was meeting new people. I am still in contact with most of them and formed many good friendships. Another exciting element was learning and trying new skills such as song writing. I would 100 per cent recommend BYMT summer camps to young people; they are so much fun and you will learn loads, meet new people, and make great friends'– Maya, BYMT participant

On the first day, young people meet the creatives: a director, a musical director and a choreographer. The creative team introduces an initial idea about the theme of the performance – usually a story or poem, historical event, myth or fairy tale.

And then, as Gallagher describes it: ‘It is a week of hard but extremely enjoyable work, putting together a new piece of musical theatre based on an idea that is presented and then twisted all over the place by the participants, until it invariably hardly resembles the original idea at all. This is called “ownership” – a piece that is created and performed by you, based on your ideas and your choices. It is a great way to explore your own creativity; trying out a few ideas bubbling around inside your head if you've never explored creativity before, or perhaps running wild with your thoughts in an extremely creative environment.’

He adds: ‘From my perspective as a director, what I am looking for is positivity and engagement – a whole group of people who enthusiastically engage, first with the idea and then with the process of turning it into something new that we can make our own and ultimately perform and amaze people. There are no right or wrong ideas, only ideas, all of which are valuable. Some of them may seem to “fit” what we are doing more easily than others, but that doesn't make them better…it is often the really bizarre thoughts that start the wheels turning, the sparks flying and the creative process flowing.

‘There is an argument that says that nothing truly original has happened for 100 years or more, but even so, that is what I'm looking for! Something that will make even me – after nearly 40 years in this wonderful industry – go, wow, I've never seen or thought of that! That's what I am hoping for, and BYMT participants rarely disappoint me.’

Young performers will be working long hours from 9am to 9pm with breaks for lunch and dinner. The ‘Grand Plan’ is that by lunchtime on Saturday, a brand-new piece of original musical theatre has been created! At 2pm on the last day, family and friends are invited to watch the new musical, which normally lasts around 30 minutes and is the fruit of young people's hard work, dedication and talent.

Working together on a Summer Camp is one of the best ways to make great, often life-long, friends; to share a unique experience and to come out the other end proud of what's been achieved, while becoming more confident as a performer and as a person.

If you know any 11- to 17-year-olds who dream of kick-starting their musical theatre careers, make sure they don't miss out on this amazing opportunity.

BYMT's 2022 Summer Camps are taking place across July and August in multiple locations. Find out more and book: britishyouthmusictheatre.org/courses