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Joyce Marshall Academy comes to the Village Hall
Revolutionary Performing Arts Academy Launches with West End Star

The Academy is innovative in placing a strong emphasis on the educational side of the Performing Arts. However, that does not mean that the Academy insists upon auditions or high academic standing for a pupil to be accepted; in fact, an all-inclusive atmosphere is stressed, with the Academy consulting with Education Advisers to ensure that everyone is integrated regardless of ability or disability.

Tuition comprises three hours of instruction in singing, acting and musical theatre per week and children will have the opportunity to learn new skills and techniques and make new friends. The patron, Joyce Marshall, is a retired Soprano from South Wales who shot to fame in the 1950s after replacing Tom Jones at a local gig! Ms Marshall is still very passionate about the Performing Arts, particularly music, and is thrilled that she has a chance to share her great love with children from Newport, her hometown. “I believe that music is one of the greatest gifts you can ever give to a child. Music has an amazing ability of reaching everyone, from every country in the world and from every background.” Ms Marshall will attend the grand opening of the Academy on Saturday, November 8th, at 10.00 am at Langstone Village Hall, where she will cut a ribbon to mark our inauguration.

The Principal and founder of the Academy is Ms Marshall’s granddaughter, Ms Emma Rowland. Emma is an Oxford graduate with years of teaching experience in music education from beginner to degree level. She specialises in voice and musical theatre and is looking forward to bringing her knowledge and enthusiasm to the Academy. Her unusually high academic qualifications - currently Emma is studying for her PhD in music - have led to the particular direction that she has decided the Academy needs to take. “We have found that there seems to be a gap in the market locally for our kind of education. Many Performing Arts Schools offer classes in the three main disciplines of singing, acting and dancing, but having spoken to numerous parents and pupils, we are aware that many Schools place very little emphasis on helping students gain valuable qualifications in the field. As well as offering precious performance opportunities, we believe that parents would like us to produce something more concrete as a reward for their children’s efforts, and a qualification provides that, while giving the child a strong sense of achievement.” The Academy therefore intends to teach LAMDA Theatre and ABRSM Music syllabuses to children to enable them to gain useful first qualifications in the Performing Arts field. These exams are increasingly popular as the higher level qualifications convert into UCAS points that count towards University and College entry requirements.

Another issue that seems to worry parents is the increasing cost of providing after-school and weekend activities for their children. The Joyce Marshall Academy charges £155 per term for 12 weeks of tuition which includes three hours of instruction per week, Academy T-shirts to serve as uniform for each of the children and supplementary one-on-one tuition to assist with exams. The first half term’s tuition will be at the reduced price of £75, which works out at less than £4.20 per hour. As well as this competitive price, the Academy is to offer one scholarship per year to a particularly promising student and three bursaries to assist with tution fees. Producer and Academy Teacher Alex Dawson said: “Our aim is to offer a quality product, consistently and at a competitive price. We place a huge emphasis on professionalism and guarantee that week by week your children will develop personally, socially and academically in a relaxed and fun environment.”

The Joyce Marshall Academy opens its doors for teaching on November 8th 2008 in preparation for the official launch in January with West-End star, Peter Karrie. Mr Karrie is currently performing in a number of concerts in South Wales as part of the ‘A Man and his Music’ tour which brings music to local communities.

For more information, please contact Alex or Emma on 07531 150199