Acting Inspired

I hope you enjoyed these snippets and hopefully there will be a few more to come! So until next time... ENJOY!

THE MAD MAID OF KENT –  One morning in 1519, while cleaning out the fireplace in her master’s house, Lizzie Barton had a vision of the future. She ran out into the streets of Canterbury to make a great prophecy, as told to her by God himself… and it didn’t come true. Neither did the next one. But the one after that. .. Now, in the minutes before her execution, Lizzie Barton, the Mad Maid of Kent, proudly explains to anyone who will listen how a common, illiterate serving girl became an advisor to the most powerful man in England. Written and performed by Olivia Mace Directed by Hal Chambers Thursday February 9th, 16th & Saturday March 4th Show times: 6.45pm – 7.45pm – 8.45pm – 9.45pm BLINKFACE –The face a camera captures a split second before we are ready to be seen. Slack, fuzzy uncontrolled and unrecognisable. It doesn’t even look human.But it’s still you.  What do others see in those moments when the mask slips?  This show invites you to, anonymously, place your most vulnerable moments into a st

JINNI LYONS IS AN ONLY CHILD – February 9th & 18th, IT’S YOUR SPECIAL DAY! – February 23rd, SOCIETY OF NICE – February 24th Jinni Lyons is an actress, improviser and, anachronistically, a translator. She has toured her solo improv show nationally and internationally for the past four years. She also performs with Destination podcast, Countdown to Doom, The Bumper Blyton Show, and in the Liverpool and London Improvathons. She created and directed The Restaurant, a specially commissioned show for The Nursery Theatre, and was a cast member for Secret Cinema Presents: Dirty Dancing.

THE ALLEN KEY – Wednesday February 8th, THE CONSUMER – Wednesday February 15th,Judith Amsenga is an actor who graduated from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA, BA Hons) in 2008, after which she appeared in various off-west end, international and fringe productions. Her latest performances include Mike Leigh’s Mr Turner, Bold Tendencies Festival, Merge Summer Shorts and Theater Utrecht. She also works as a voice-over artist and has a production company, Back’s Broke, with some of her year mates from LAMDA.@nurserytheatre

THE ALLEN KEY – This story plunges us into the tragi-comic reality of what it means to be a human, searching for love and meaning in the assemble-it-yourself age of Ikea. Written by Sammy Kissin Performed by Judith Amsenga Directed by Anthony Lau Wednesday February 8th Show times: 6.15pm – 7.15pm – 8.15pm – 9.15pm DUST TO DUST – A bittersweet and unlikely story of love and loss and identity. Funny and touching with a double helping of silliness. Written by Sammy Kissin Performed by Robin Steegman Directed by David Kirkbridge Saturday February 11th & Thursday February 16th Show times: 6.15pm – 7.15pm – 8.15pm – 9.15pm SOMETHING OLD. SOMETHING NEW.. –  A thread of Victorian lace weaves its’ way through a slew of weddings ending up on the back of an Harley Davidson. How does one thing turn into another? The story of upcycling, recycling and motorcycling. A whirlwind of taffeta, tiaras and terrifying truths. A new piece, written and performed by Sammy Kissin Directed by Kirsty Patrick W

Four weeks of various evocative, humorous, intriguing 15 minute plays. Improvised, revisited and /or verbatim, we bring up to 25 short pieces to a small intimate audience of nine people max at a time. Especially written for VAULT Festival. Individual chats with performers and writers doing the Caravan Shorts at the Vault Festival. ENJOY!!! @robinlinde @VAULTFestival

EPISODE 76 LADIES AND GENTS!  I know this isn't the usual number to celebrate but I wasn't smart enough to think of saving it 'til 100...  Anyhow, to celebrate coming so far with the pod, through ups and downs, joy and sadness and all that other stuff, we have our first ever Acting Inspired guest return to tell us all about the progression of Boom Done Shop, how it is definitely possible to work too hard and how you can NEVER guess the hand that is being dealt to you! Is that a saying? I don't think so but it certainly fits the style of conversation that myself, Liam and Kae have... What a journey this man has been on!  This is a very special episode to me and I cant wait for y'all to hear it... So strap in and prepare to have my monotonous tones and Liam's colourful leggings assault your ears for two hours as Kae chimes in half way through and joins us on the love bus... I have NO idea what any of that means but nevertheless... ENJOY!!! Twitter: @LiamFrankBergin  @boomdoneshop  #dannymitchell #Eastende

As promised, Michael's guided meditation for you to use whenever you want!  Obviously I forgot that I don't have a soundproof, state of the art studio... but I have done my very best to minimise any background sounds that may appear. If you like this, you will love Michaels retreats - Check out www.returntosilence.co.uk The first acting inspired bonus ep! ENJOY!!!

This week is a little different as we have Michael McCaffrey joining us to talk about the benefits of meditation. How it came to his attention and how it can be useful for actors or any creatively minded folk.  I met Michael at The London Buddhist Vihara in Chiswick after Kae attended one of his many meditation retreats in Buckinghamshire.  Michael has a great approach to meditation and Buddhism in that he see's past all of the, quite often, intimidating "window dressing" and mines the most useful aspects that help us find peace of mind and give insight. As you will hear its not an easy thing to discuss the point of and maybe the point is that its pointless... Yeah, get that round your head! I very much enjoyed chatting with Michael and he was also kind enough to record a guided meditation for us, which I will release at the same time as this so as you can use it at any time you like!  Check out the goings on in Michael's world at www.returntosilence.co.uk where you will find info about his retreats and

YO YO YO!  Hannah Britland is an actress, model, writer, is hilarious, a wonderful nutcase, but definitely not a runner... I really enjoyed this chat. Hannah and I met when we were teenagers starting at Guildhall. She is super hard working and has persevered through a hospitalising illness and still continues to smash it to this day! I cant wait to see what Hannah's future brings and I know that this chat will inspire any young actor who listens.  I stumble my way through a vague and frankly rubbish question about being a beautiful woman in this industry, something I really need to work on, I guess I have really been blind to any issues and therefor am not well informed enough to ask such a complex question. I, like Hannah, will persevere though and try to form my argument better for the next opportunity. We're really getting in to the swing of things this year and I cant wait to see what you think! ENJOY!!!

Helen Sorren is an Actor, Comedian, Radio show host and now full time mum as well! we chat about how important it is to not put your life on hold for your career. Have kids, get married, go on holidays, go travelling, do what you want to do and make acting work around you. Helen is the kind of person who has an idea and goes for it, which has lead her to all kinds of interesting things. I cant wait to see what she comes up with next! Claudette also joins us for the duration, adding her own sound effects and jingles... consisting mainly of awesome fart noises! ENJOY!!! @helensorren

This week Im chatting with Robin Steegman. Robin is a performance-maker/programmer focussed on site-specific and site-responsive work that takes place in different spaces, allows audiences an intimate theatrical experience, and reaches audiences that would not typically go to the theatre.  Aside from acting and producing she works with Artesc as a trainer for The Art of Presenting Science course and hosts theatre workshops at Buitenkunst nearly every summer.  @RobinSteeg  robinlindeproductions.com www.artesc.org

We chat with our buddy Ed and compare our New Years Eves! One all pissed up and one meditating... Any differences? Maybe not as many as you think... We also name our 2017's and have a lot of fun while doing it!  ENJOY!!!

A round up, sort of, of 2016. What we've done and not done and what we want to achieve in 2017! Im kicking the POD off again with a bang! I have some great guests lined up for the new year and who knows what other madness will happen. We are meditating for the new year and hope that this will get us in to the right head space for 2017! I'll check in again soon but for now HAPPY NEW YEAR!  ENJOY!!! 

My first movie from start to finish...   It was a wild ride and good fun, not a lot of filming but a whole lot of sun. I found some serious peace in Ibiza, learned a lot about the importance of organisation in this field and even with very little set time, had a good ol' practice at bringing everything down a notch to suit the camera. I chat a bit about self tapes and auditions and probably some other mumbo jumbo!  ENJOY!

Its been ages! Ive been up to all sorts and multi-tasking aint my strong point. Here is what I have been up to. Im also experimenting wth a new mic for my more "on the go" type pods!  I was in Ibiza shooting a moooovie! My first movie! but more on that later... Theres a little beachy intro to get you in the zone and a little live music from one of the many hippy markets I went to in Ibiza to take it out. The song seemed appropriate for one of the subjects in the POD.  ENJOY!!!

So as you remember, a couple of months ago I chatted to Cai about going to China to learn Jiu Jitsu and now heeeees baaaaack! and he tells me all about his experience. How he became a lethal weapon in 6 weeks, how he spent 24 hours puking and the rest after drinking Yak milk tea! and a load more fun and interesting things. Have a listen and see if Cai can inspire you to learn a martial art in the middle of nowhere!  ENJOY! and (Go find adventure)!

Its been a good week! I have plenty to be chuffed about but when it came to doing the pod today I got frustrated and annoyed with my self.  Ive realised a few things about my self that REALLY need to change and today is the first day of doing this!  Im not even sure what todays pod is about but hopefully some of you out there share some of my frustrations and can relate to my feelings... Or maybe I'm just a lazy bastard!  Either way,  ENJOY!!! Oh and check out Cai Brigden Adventure on youtube!

I chat to my buddy Cai about a trip he going on to China, where he will be learning a Martial Art in the Mountains! I love Cai's ideas and adventurous nature and the kind of things he gets up to are quite frankly AWESOME!  He has had a whirlwind of a journey since leaving Drama School, with all kinds of ups and downs like the rest of us. But the way he deals with the downs fascinates and inspires me to take more notice of my inner child.  He has a great attitude and the warmest personality and I hope he inspires you as much as he does me everyday!  Subscribe to "The Life of Jord" on youtube to follow him and his best mate Jordan as they travel up to the Mountains in China to learn Jiu Jitsu for six weeks!  ENJOY!

We are back and got straight into some Airbnb shenanigans, working at Guildhall and a few auditions and mini jobs!  Its weird being back and it now all feels like a crazy dream. We have definitely learned a lot about ourselves, LA and we're both slightly clearer on what it is we want... I guess now its just about finding out how to get it.  You will hear two versions of two very different journeys, the ups and downs and some realisations that were hard to swallow but easily turned into positives. Im sorry its taken so long for me to get this out, we had to get settled after landing straight into crazy London, errands and chores! We're back, we're alive and ready to go! ENJOY!