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Enriching children and young people through theatre
OUR TRUSTEES
Michelle Calame - Chair
Michelle has always had a huge passion for the arts, in particular theatre, having joined Contact Youth Theatre as a child. As a member, she was selected to be part of Contacting the World; an exchange programme with The Palace of Creativity in St. Petersburg, Russia. Michelle believes strongly in cultural education and has worked as a freelance Arts Education Specialist, providing arts education in mainstream schools and various educational settings, supporting children’s education by integrating the arts into their learning journey. Michelle strongly believes that the arts should be accessible to all and considers outreach, community engagement, participation and audience development as areas of pivotal importance.
Kirsty Thomas - Treasurer
Kirsty is an accountant by day and is the treasurer for this group. Kirsty loves a good spreadsheet and pie charts make her happy! It is her job to keep us on the straight and narrow when it comes to financial control and she does this well and is great fun to be around. She is a young mum of two boys and lives in neighbouring Urmston, but grew up in Stretford and her parents are still here so she is a frequent visitor to the town.
Shelly Quinton-Hulme - Secretary
Shelly was instrumental in getting this group back up and running, by advertising for people to help
form and run the group back in 2014/2015. This was when Stretford Public Hall was asset
transferred back to the community – so the group would have a home and the hall would have a
theatre group. Shelly loves the theatre and is a regular at The Lowry and wants to ensure this art
form continues throughout the coming generations. She is one of Stretford’s community leaders and
is extremely organised, capable and passionate about improving Stretford. She works for Network
Rail in project management and controls.
Niall Brennan
Niall Brennan is an Applied Theatre practitioner and graduate of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Based in Stretford, Niall has been facilitating drama and film projects with young people for over 6 years. Working for organisations such as The British Film Institute, Pauline Quirke Academy and NCS.
Niall is also a qualified PGCE Secondary Drama teacher from the Manchester Metropolitan University.
Niall is really interested in exploring community engagement through multiple and diverse art platforms.
Sophie Bowden
Sophie's journey in theatre began with training at the North Cheshire Theatre School from the age of 5, where she cultivated her skills in performance. Her early years in Stockport saw her participating in various productions across the UK, where she gained practical experience in ballet, tap, and modern dance. She then moved to London to study Musical Theatre at the Guildford School of Acting.
In London, Sophie showcased her talent on stages such as the Tabard Theatre and the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford and Cadogan Hall, in concerts and productions like Just So and Kiss Me Kate.
Outside of acting work, Sophie also had an educational role, spending over 8 years teaching and directing at Stagecoach Theatre in South West London. Here, she played a pivotal role guiding students in dance and singing, and orchestrating productions that graced prestigious venues like His Majesty's Theatre.
Now residing in Manchester and a mother of two, Sophie remains connected to the theatre scene, albeit in a different capacity. While she has stepped back from her performance career, Sophie is keen to be actively involved with community initiatives and use her artistic experience where possible for the next generation of talent.
Ian Beard
Ian has been a Stretford resident for 25 years and has a keen interest in theatre, particularly musical theatre. He is now a Training Development Manager for a local charity but prior to starting that role he was a teacher and then a headteacher, working in primary schools for nearly 30 years. During his time in schools, he shared his passion for theatre and music with pupils, directing and leading the school choir, concerts and large-scale productions (e.g. Grease, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat) and organising many opportunities for children of all ages to see live drama and orchestral performances at various Manchester venues, including the Lowry and the Bridgewater Hall. Having recently left the world of schools, he wanted to continue to share his interest in children's performing arts and becoming a trustee (and hopefully helping in other ways) at SCT seemed to be the perfect opportunity to do that within his local community.
Rachel Stevens
Rachel is a Mum to a son who is a member of SCT and also has personal experience of how the arts
can support growth in confidence and self esteem from her own childhood. With a background in
Psychology and currently working as a Speech and Language therapist in complex communication
she brings knowledge of Speech, Language and Communication development and offers expertise in
accessible information and inclusion for individual with additional needs. Rachel has lived in
Stretford for 17 years and is a lover of singing, dancing and performing (although these days its
usually just in front of her family and friends).
Interested in joining our Board...?
We are generally on the look out for new Board members to become Trustees of our small charity.
Our Board currently comprises individuals with skills and experience in theatre (producing, engagement, production/technical, working with young people), event and project management, finance, law and academia.
If you have relevant skills and/or experience and time to offer, we'd love to hear from you. Please get in touch via stretfordchildrenstheatre@gmail.com
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