Chloe's Leavers Blog - finally :)

Foreword: This will be possibly the cringiest, soppiest and probably longest blog in the existence of blogs, so if you aren’t into that sort of thing then i’m very sorry. Something i’m sure no one knows about my Yew Tree journey is that it almost didn’t happen, if it wasn’t for the relentless pestering from Katie Ludvigson I most likely wouldn’t have been a yt’er, so thank you Katie. The first play I did was The History of Theatre performed at the Wakefield Theatre Royal with a cast that is now scattered all over the country doing amazing things and some still in Wakefield preparing to leave or continuing on with their YT journey. Devising the play was possibly one of the weirdest and simultaneously funniest experiences in my life as for my first ever YT session I stood in a box with Jack, Emma and Lucy (a very small box i might add) pretending we were travelling through the.....History of Theatre! Now the average person would leave a session like that thinking maybe i’ll be sick next saturday or all of them, but anyone yt’er past, present or future will tell you that this was a defining moment, allowing a newbie like my old self to realise that there are plenty of other aspiring actors that are extremely imaginative and a little bit weird too. From then on my love for all things YT only grew, i volunteered for as many extra projects as I could, including my favourite to date: Dickens day at Nostell. On this day I got to dress up as Miss Havisham, wearing my Step-Mum’s old wedding dress in a grand dining room, down the hall from the ghost of christmas past, as well as Fagin and his band of pick-pockets. The extra projects were always so refreshing to do in addition to normal sessions and other extra plays as they were so different and an entirely new experience with a group of yt’ers that

you didn’t necessarily see at your usual session. I think my favourite play that i’ve ever done with yt was Mugged, a play that had been done years before and was others to edit at the same time. performed last year as part of the 20 year anniversary of yt. I played Soph, a character different from any i’ve played to date. I strangely thoroughly enjoyed being put out of my comfort zone as far as acting goes, if you ask

tosbourne he’ll let you know much of a struggle and how many practices it took to be able to hold his hand on stage, i blame the man hands from yours truly. The small cast was also so different to the usual 20+ cast size i was used to, it was nice to work closely with the other 5 main characters, we became very close throughout the process, and as much as me and Leah had to battle against the boisterous nature of Sam, Tom, Dec and John together as a group I think the result of the show definitely showed that the cast did amazingly, even though I’m biased, everyone who came to see it had nothing but praise to share, and I always hoped that we made the actors who did it before us were proud of the show we put on. Now for the hideously cheesy part (i did warn you). The friends i’ve made at yt are the kind that i will always be friends with, even though we are all going off to uni at various places in the country or staying behind to continue on with yt and school/college, we will never lose touch, i mean it will be impossible with all the group chats and pages and messages ect that we all have. I’m going to make a few shout outs to those who have made my time at yt very special, if you aren’t named it’s not because you didn’t make an impact it’s most likely because i have run out of time writing this, or i’m acutely aware of the fact i’m approaching my third page of this blog (sorry Sarah). Firstly there’s Alice who has literally become somewhat of a little sister to me, i am so proud of all the amazing roles she has played, and how she had blossomed as an actress from her first day at yt to the present, my little short stack is going to be extremely annoyed that i’m leaving her for cobbled streets and historical artifacts that Lincoln has to offer unbeknownst that you can never get rid of me i’m like a bad smell, but not smelly, and i come baring costa and snacks. Up next is SQUAD!!! From connections week of the Hacktivist performance in 2015 the five of us, myself, Dec, Amy, Libby and Hollie have become very close all because one lunch time we were left alone and decided to take more selfies than necessary and plan some legendary gatherings where we sang big spender and embarrassed each other plenty. Then there is the gals who have helped me develop my make up knowledge and always been there to listen to my problems, Grace (my bubba), Ysanne, Helena are not only the MVPs of makeup but they are also absolute goddesses at cheering me up when i’m not feeling 100%. Sam, my OMN partner in crime who doesn’t mind my lack of tone or range, Tom who i’ve literally acted with so many times it’s crazy couldn’t ask for a better oppo though, he has put up with my inability to hold someone’s hand, my lack of consistency and on the whole just me. Thank you Oz for lighting and providing the sound for pretty much every play. Thank you to each and every yt’er, you are all great and very snazzy individuals.

My farewell blog wouldn’t be complete without a shout out to the person who is the reason all of these experiences and friendships are possible, Sarah. I can not thank you enough for everything you have done for me over the past 3-4 years and all the times that you’ve made me believe in myself and made me realise there are things i’m actually good at. Thank you for every role you cast me in, for always knowing what’s best for me and helping me to achieve everything I can, I will well and truly miss yt and everyone there who have made my time there as amazing as it has been.

I want to say one last thank you to everyone for all the opportunities and laughs and the general experience of being apart of something so fantastic, but most of all i want to say thank you to that little box, because without you I wouldn’t have all of these amazing memories to reflect on now. Without that little box i’d just be some girl, with a restricted perception of the world around me, instead i am Georgia, actress, soon-to-be historian, blogger, sound technician (pushing it) and a part of a group who do exactly what they say on the leaflet. We act, we play, we direct, we create, we debate, we inspire (cheeky bit of dramatic license).
So here i am signing out for the last time in a yt blog, Love each and everyone of you,
Georgia xx