| Hi, Rob. How's the course going? |
| Oh, hi, Mia. Yeah, great. |
| I can't believe the first term's nearly over. |
| I saw your group's performance last night at the student theatre. |
| It was good. |
| Really? |
| Yeah... but now we have to write a report on the whole thing, an in-depth analysis. |
| I don't know where to start. |
| Like, I have to write about the role I played, the doctor, how I developed the character. |
| Well, what was your starting point? |
| My grandfather was a doctor before he retired, and I just based it on him. |
| OK, but how? |
| Did you talk to him about it? |
| He must have all sorts of stories, but he never says much about his work, even now. |
| He has a sort of authority though. |
| So how did you manage to capture that? |
| I'd visualise what he must have been like in the past, |
| when he was sitting in his consulting room listening to his patients. |
| OK, so that's what you explain in your report. |
| Right. |
| Then there's the issue of atmosphere - |
| so in the first scene we needed to know how boring life was in the doctor's village in the 1950s, |
| so when the curtain went up on the first scene in the waiting room, |
| there was that long silence before anyone spoke. |
| And then people kept saying the same thing over and over, like 'Cold, isn't it?' |
| Yes, and everyone wore grey and brown, and just sat in a row. |
| Yes, all those details of the production. |
| And I have to analyse how I functioned in the group - |
| what I found out about myself. |
| I know I was so frustrated at times, when we couldn't agree. |
| Yes. So did one person emerge as the leader? |
| Sophia did. |
| That was OK - she helped us work out exactly what to do, for the production. |
| And that made me feel better, I suppose. |
| When you understood what needed doing? |
| Yes. |
| And Sophia did some research, too. |
| That was useful in developing our approach. |
| Like what? |
| Well, she found these articles from the 1950s about how relationships between children and their parents, |
| or between the public and people like bank managers or the police were shifting. |
| Interesting. |
| And did you have any practical problems to overcome? |
| Well, in the final rehearsal everything was going fine until the last scene - |
| that's where the doctor's first patient appears on stage on his own. |
| The one in the wheelchair? |
| Yes, and he had this really long speech, with the stage all dark except for one spotlight - |
| and then that stuck somehow so it was shining on the wrong side of the stage... |
| but anyway we got that fixed, thank goodness. |
| Yes, it was fine on the night. |
| But while you're here, Mia. |
| I wanted to ask you about the year abroad option. |
| Would you recommend doing that? |
| Yes, definitely. |
| It's a fantastic chance to study in another country for a year. |
| I think I'd like to do it, |
| but it looks very competitive - |
| there's only a limited number of places. |
| Yes, so next year when you are in the second year of the course, |
| you need to work really hard in all your theatre studies modules. |
| Only students with good marks get places - |
| you have to prove that you know your subject really well. |
| Right. |
| So how did you choose where to go? |
| Well, I decided I wanted a programme that would fit in with what I wanted to do after I graduate, |
| so I looked for a university with emphasis on acting rather than directing for example. |
| It depends on you. |
| Then about six months before you go, |
| you have to email the scheme coordinator with your top three choices. |
| I had a friend who missed the deadline and didn't get her first choice, |
| so you do need to get a move on at that stage. |
| You'll find that certain places are very popular with everyone. |
| And don't you have to write a personal statement at that stage? |
| Yes. |
| Right. |
| I'll get some of the final year students to give me some tips... |
| maybe see if I can read what they wrote. |
| I think that's a very good idea. |
| I don't mind showing you what I did. |
| And while you're abroad don't make the mistake I made. |
| I got so involved I forgot all about making arrangements for when I came back here for the final year. |
| Make sure you stay in touch so they know your choices for the optional modules. |
| You don't want to miss out doing your preferred specialisms. |
| Right. |