NYMT/BYMT 2024!

[Biscuitsneeded]

Seeing as NYMT have announced their shows, it feels like a good time to start a thread for anyone with DC planning on auditioning for 2024 for either NYMT or BYMT - as performers or musicians, or as assistant creatives. Please come and say hi and tell us a bit about your DC. There are lots of experienced parents of DC who have been part of both organisations, and these threads are always genuinely supportive and helpful.
I'll invite some previous thread participants below - please come and say hi!

@Mcmumager I emailed Conti and they confirmed it will be eligible for student loans like their other degree courses.

@DalekFan that’s good 🙂

That’s amazing @allhailthebrain, huge congratulations to your DC!

Well done to @allhailthebrain 's DC. Fabulous news!

Thanks everyone!

And welcome @muckymayhem - hope the production goes well and your child decides to go have some fun at NYMT or BYMT auditions!

I’ve been lurking because my DS is too young though already discussing NYMT as a future option. This post made me think I should say hello because it’s those exact alumni who have put the idea in his mind! They certainly sing its praises.

But I do have a question I’m sure you can answer! Is it nigh on impossible to get tickets to their shows if you’re not family of a performer, or would I have a decent chance of getting tickets to take him so he could see what they produce?

Thanks and all the best to those auditioning this year!

It’s usually quite easy to get tickets, the final night of the popular shows sell out (as its convenient to watch that night as you then have to take your child hike) but other performances are usually fine.

@CatatonicLadybug Absolutely you can watch the shows! They haven't announced any venues yet, I believe, but the tickets will be on public sale around next May. How old is your DS? My son watched an NYMT show when he was 10 and auditioned a few months later - seeing a show definitely inspired him and helped him understand what the experience might be like. Thanks for joining us - do stick around and hear all about it!

Also, consider seeing a variety - try the “new” shows commissioned by NYMT as well as those which are known. So for example this year it was “the boy who sailed the ocean in an armchair”. Which was every bit as wonderful as Kiss me, Kate and Merrily we roll along from what I know - enjoy yourselves!

Oh that is brilliant news and the closing night info makes perfect sense. I have never known him to turn down a show, classic or new, so a variety sounds great. I will keep it on my radar for the spring then!

DS is just 9 but working and bless them, the boys sometimes discuss their worries about what they will do when they are too tall or their voices change and how they don’t want to lose this part of their lives. Someone in the company then brought up NYMT and it has made him a lot more settled knowing this part of his life doesn’t have to just switch off, it can change course. He has never seen a student show (that sounds ridiculous but we live in London and I just signed up for every cheap ticket offer once he could sit through a show!) and I think he will be really excited to see how these are well done productions and not like the school show where everyone in year 6 is forced to do a part whether they want to or not. Ha ha! He was also very keen knowing at least one of the alumni went to a ‘normal’ uni rather than doing a stage course and has still ended up in a great part. Bless him, he’s still young enough that he had about ten answers to what he wants to do when he grows up, so apparently this stuff is what goes through his mind.

Thank you all for the answers and the welcome. :)

NYMT has had a lot of young people come to through it who performed professionally as younger kids. It's lovely for them to have somewhere to perform in quality productions with like-minded young people once they have got too old/tall/deep-voiced for kid roles. I used to wonder why they wanted to do it, and if they felt it was a bit of a come-down once you've been a Matilda or an Oliver, but apparently not! I think in the big West End shows, you have a track and you follow it. Growing a brand new show with NYMT, or even starting work on a fresh production of an old classic, possibly feels fun and creative in a way that following the established Bogtrotter track doesn't! My DS has been in shows with 3 ex-Matildas now - all playing roles from leads, to supporting roles, to ensemble. Clearly they get a lot out of it and love the fact that instead of being a child in an adult world they are a young person in a world of talented young people. There are adults there to lead the creative process and keep everyone safe, but the young people possibly feel more ownership of the show than they do when they are a small part of a professional production. And they love the residentials and make friends for life.

There were ex School of Rock kids in my kid’s first show, and a Jane Banks who was still involved with the show - even kids of celebs in a more recent one (talented ones who had earned their place). It has a prestige which attracts people from all over, including those in big shows.

@CatatonicLadybug both NYMT and BYMT have helped a huge number of people find their direction in performing. Ed Sheeran was in the BYMT 2007 production of Frankenstein, my husband met him at an event, Ed said it was the best experience of his teenage years spending time with like minded people who loved performing it made him realise MT was not for him, but performing was. Ed is now a patron of BYMT as he feels it gives passionate young people a chance to explore performing.
My DD found the opportunity to be in a production with people who were all as good and passionate as she was a really empowering experience. It helped her see her strengths and know which direction she needed to head in.

Nice news today. Quite a few nominations for Armchair cast and company in the Broadway World awards! https://twitter.com/NYMTuk/status/1725829286421041191?t=y-0VRlqqF2rz-DYS-PicdA&s=19

I recently saw a video of Yungblud performing in NYMTs The Hired Man & it’s incredible.

Checking in for 2024! Musician application sent in this morning 🙏🏻🤞🏻

Oh you're organised! Still booked nothing here, waiting on dates for some other commitments then hoping it will still leave me something vaguely north to opt for as an audition!

It's nice they've added some more - but am I the only one that still thinks Leeds --> Glasgow is a bloody big gap! The north has talent too - England doesn't end at Leeds...

Yes, Leeds is our only option too @allhailthebrain although not as far to travel as you! We’re booked already. It’s actually in Wakefield this year rather than central Leeds. Even further south with not so much to do while we wait! Oh well, I'm sure we’ll find something to entertain us 😂

The Leeds venue is where my ds goes to college. It’s practically on westgate station and there is a big car park too. If you did want to pop into Leeds it’s only 11 mins on the train.

If the date works it'll be Leeds, failing that Manchester (I do hope one of those works!). It's just annoying. There's a huge pool of talent up here - while the midlands is covered multiple times, for example. Hopefully it's something they'll look at in the future - they do seem to be working on making new partnerships 🙂

I think the venues are all about where they have a relationship that allows them to hire facilities affordably. If they have to pay high hire rates, they will have to put up the price of auditions. If you have a school or performing arts venue closer to home where you can get a good rate, and you can be confident of decent numbers attending, you could suggest it for next year. It looks as if a couple of new venues added this year have come through relationships with staff or participants' local performing arts schools.

I think you might be right @Biscuitsneeded there were 4 from my sons college in KMK and one in armchair. Only 5 of them auditioned and all got in so a great success rate including a couple of leads. They’ve never used it as a venue before but it’s a fab facility.

Well done @doesanybodyhaveamap 's DC. Very punctual as ever! I have asked DS about a billion times whether he has booked an audition but now he's left home I can't pin him down in the way I used to! He's very mañana. Even though he's lucky being an hour from London on the train, he's limited to certain dates so I hope he's organised something. I know he really wants to to do it.

Definitely - I did comment on their social media about the north east before venues were announced and they said "watch this space". It didn't happen but maybe in the future. I definitely have ideas where they could go, was planning on mentioning it to the stage school before suggesting it to NYMT in case it's a no go.

DC hasn’t had any information about the Christmas concert, she signed up pretty much as soon as they opened up the sign up form. DC sent an email on Saturday and having heard nothing I emailed yesterday morning and FB message yesterday evening, response said they would be in touch today and nothing as yet, sent another message and a further email. We don’t know anything about the arrangements and need to make plans, we understand from other musicians her name isn’t even on the list. Communication certainly not what it was when Jeremy was at the other end of the email. Anyone have a phone number they can PM me related to the Christmas concert arrangements as this us getting very frustrating. Thank you.