After spending his whole life performing in theatre, local resident Anthony Brown has decided to share his wealth of knowledge with local aspiring actors.
After the realisation that there were no acting courses for adults in western Sydney, Mr Brown decided to start his own classes through his theatre company, Ruby Productions.
“I thought I’ve got this space so I’ll start up a drama school and give it a shot to see how it goes,” he said.
Despite being a shy child growing up, Mr Brown knew from a young age that acting was what he wanted to do.
“When I was a little boy, you wouldn’t know it now, but I was so shy I couldn’t look anyone in the eye,” he said.
“We had an old black and white television set and we would watch the old black and white movies, and I just loved getting lost in a story and the characters and that’s when my love of theatre started.”
Since then, Mr Brown has been in countless productions, both acting and directing, and now he wants to help others realise their potential.
“That’s what I love about theatre, it’s personal growth, you learn so much about yourself,” Mr Brown said.
Penrith has produced plenty of talented actors who are performing on stages not only in Australia but around the world, however most of them learned their craft outside of the local area.
While local high schools are now more dedicated to the performing arts, lessons outside of the school environment are often hard to come by and talented actors miss out on opportunities.
The beginners course, which starts in early 2018, will run once a week for three hours and will explore an actor’s life, working on projection, as well as how to develop a character.
And while Mr Brown said that the classes aren’t just for aspiring actors, but are for anyone wanting to gain more confidence, he warned that those lucky enough to secure a spot would be tested.
“They will need to get out of their comfort zone because in order to grow, you have to face your demons and I’m very good at giving people those,” he laughed.
“It’s going to be challenging for those interested in coming along to give it a try. They need to know that they will be pushed and they will be challenged.”
Many locals would already know Ruby Productions from the many performances the theatre company puts on for local audiences each year.
For more information on the course, call 4735 5422 or visit www.rubyproductions.com.au.
Lauren Suttie is the Weekender’s General & Community News journalist.
