I came for work experience at Box of Tricks for 4 days, the week after my classmates did their work experiences. It was well worth the wait! Instead of being placed in a work environment that I wasn’t interested in, I was able to experience the world of work for careers I actually want to do. I was given a wide range of tasks that were actual tasks people do in theatre, thoughtfully planned out to give me the best work experience I could get. 

I didn’t feel as though I was treated as ‘just someone on work experience’ either. Hannah and Adam were very friendly and helpful, I felt at ease and genuinely enjoyed my work experience. I did real jobs and was treated as such; I feel my voice was heard and my opinions valued. My work seemed to have purpose and I am happy that I could help out! 

I found it incredibly helpful to speak with actors and designers; they helped me to form an idea of not only what I would like to do in the future, but what my next steps are going into GCSEs and college. I was also able to see plays being formed and developed, before rehearsals even begin, which has given me insight to real life jobs as I had never really thought about these stages of development before, and I feel I have been introduced to many more jobs that they don’t teach you about in school, like marketing, fundraising, and preparing casting calls and auditions. These have been amazing and rare experiences for someone my age, and I am very grateful to Box of Tricks for providing them for me.

As a result of my time spent at Box of Tricks, I feel better educated about and better equipped to pursue a career in the industry. If one day I do achieve a theatre based career, I have no doubt it will be partially down to the knowledge and skills I have gained from this work experience!

~ Isabella Brawn, Student at Co-op Academy North Manchester