Equity, formerly officially titled the British Actors' Equity Association, is the trade union for the performing arts and entertainment industries in the United Kingdom.
The Stage is a British weekly newspaper and website covering the entertainment industry and particularly theatre. Founded in 1880, The Stage contains news, reviews, opinion, features, and recruitment advertising, mainly directed at those who work in theatre and the performing arts.
In the performing arts industry such as theatre, film, or television, casting, or a casting call, is a pre-production process for selecting a certain type of actor, dancer, singer, or extra to land the role of a character in a script, screenplay, or teleplay. This process may be used for a motion picture, television program, documentary film, music video, play, or advertisement, intended for an audience.
Brian Paul Conley is an English actor, comedian, singer and television presenter. Conley has been the host of The Brian Conley Show, as well as presenting the Royal Variety Performance on eight occasions. In his 40-year television career, he has starred in multiple award-winning television sitcoms including Time After Time and The Grimleys.
A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds work for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, and other professionals in various entertainment or sports businesses. In addition, an agent defends, supports and promotes the interest of their clients. Talent agencies specialize, either by creating departments within the agency or developing entire agencies that primarily or wholly represent one specialty. For example, there are modeling agencies, commercial talent agencies, literary agencies, voice-over agencies, broadcast journalist agencies, sports agencies, music agencies and many more.
A background actor or extra is a performer in a film, television show, stage, musical, opera, or ballet production who appears in a nonspeaking or nonsinging (silent) capacity, usually in the background. War films and epic films often employ background actors in large numbers: some films have featured hundreds or even thousands of paid background actors as cast members. Likewise, grand opera can involve many background actors appearing in spectacular productions.
Backstage, also previously written as Back Stage, is an American entertainment industry trade publication. Founded by Allen Zwerdling and Ira Eaker in 1960, it covers the film and performing arts industry from the perspective of performers, unions, and casting, with an emphasis on topics such as job opportunities and career advice. The brand encompasses the main Backstage magazine, and related publications such as its website, Call Sheet —a bi-monthly directory of talent agents, casting directors, and casting calls, and other casting resources.
Show Business is a performing arts magazine. Its mission is to help guide aspiring actors toward a successful career in the performing arts. Show Business content includes casting calls and audition notices as well as theater-related news and information. In addition, the print publication and website publishes contact information for talent agents, managers, and casting directors.
Nigel Martin-Smith is a Manchester-based English musical band manager.
Dennis Law Sau-yiu is a Hong Kong film producer, screenwriter, actor, director and presenter. He is the former chairman and executive director of Milkyway Image, and a founder of its subsidiary company Point of View Movie Production Co. Ltd. Films directed by Law include teen comedies such as The Unusual Youth and Love @ First Note, and martial arts action films that include Fatal Contact and Fatal Move.
An audition website aggregates acting, modeling, and dancing auditions online. One of the most significant organizations for professional screen and theater casting in the United States is the Casting Society of America (CSA).
An audition is a sample performance by an actor, singer, musician, dancer or other performer. It typically involves the performer displaying their talent through a previously memorized and rehearsed solo piece or by performing a work or piece given to the performer at the audition or shortly before. In some cases, such as with a model or acrobat, the individual may be asked to demonstrate a range of professional skills. Actors may be asked to present a monologue. Singers will perform a song in a popular music context or an aria in a Classical context. A dancer will present a routine in a specific style, such as ballet, tap dance or hip-hop, or show his or her ability to quickly learn a choreographed dance piece.
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is ὑποκριτής (hupokritḗs), literally "one who answers". The actor's interpretation of a role—the art of acting—pertains to the role played, whether based on a real person or fictional character. This can also be considered an "actor's role", which was called this due to scrolls being used in the theaters. Interpretation occurs even when the actor is "playing themselves", as in some forms of experimental performance art.
Thomas Arthur Darvill is an English actor, composer and musician. He is known for portraying Rory Williams, a companion of the Eleventh Doctor in the television series Doctor Who (2010–2012), as well as Rip Hunter in Legends of Tomorrow and Rev. Paul Coates in Broadchurch (2013–2017). From 2013 to 2014, he appeared in the lead role in the theatre musical Once in the West End and on Broadway. He played Curley in the West End revival of Oklahoma!, for which he won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical.
Adam John Lincoln Henson is an English farmer, author and television presenter.
Jan Russ is an Australian casting director, producer and actress of theatre and television. She is best known as the casting director for various programs for Grundy Television/Fremantle Media, and is notable for launching the careers of many actors that became international stars.
The Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA) is an active arts service and advocacy organization founded in 1975. It is in the United States and is dedicated to Hispanic artists, actors and actresses.
Associated Studios is a drama school in London, offering degree and diploma courses in musical theatre.
Theatre and disability is a subject focusing on the inclusion of disability within a theatrical experience, enabling cultural and aesthetic diversity in the arts. Showing disabled bodies on stage can be to some extent understood as a political aesthetic as it challenges the predominately abled audience's expectations as well as traditional theatre conventions. However, the performance of disabilities on stage has raised polarising debates about whether the performers are exposed and reduced to their disability or whether they have full agency of who they are and what they represent.
The Stage Debut Awards are theatre awards recognising individuals making their professional debuts in the performing arts in the UK. The annual ceremony was launched in 2017 by The Stage and include accolades for Best Performer in a Play, Best Writer, Best Designer and the Best West End Debut Performer. Recipients of these awards have gone on to star in West End shows, television series and films.
