Brian and Louise Conroy launched their independent children’s theatre school in March 2012, following a dance master class with Kylie Minogue's choreographer, Tim Noble. The school started with just a Saturday morning session but due to demand it quickly opened a second school on Saturday afternoons. The school's reputation spread, which meant a third school, on Friday evenings, was opened.
The couple are the joint directors of West Oxfordshire Academy of Performing Arts (WOAPA). Brian has been performing on stage, film, and TV and as a professional singer for most of his life; Louise is a qualified English and Drama teacher, conductor, and Musical Director. Their two adult sons are currently working on UK theatre tours, one as a musical theatre actor and the other as a musician.
"It was really hard work getting an independent children's theatre school off the ground, but the end result is worth it. Parents often comment that we far exceed anything local franchised theatre schools offer. People often talk about our 'WOAPA family', which includes our students, tutors, assistants, and adult singers in our Witney Choirs – it really does feel like that. The majority of our students come to us after being recommended to join by current students or having been inspired by an external performance.”
Classes are held for children at weekends during the standard academic terms. These now include classes for older students aged 16-21 on a Saturday afternoon. The ‘ENCORE’ class has been set up to cater to include young people are looking to apply to Drama School.
"We've had some very good guidance and support from our business mentors over the years" says Brian.
“We were advised to concentrate on the extra value we can offer our students, and to guard against a 'cram them in and open as many schools as possible' mentality. We have always worked to provide quality over quantity. That includes finding the absolute best tutors and offering the students some excellent opportunities. Our own children attended various classes themselves so, as parents, we had a clear idea of what we wanted to achieve - and what we wanted to avoid.”
“We provide a variety of classes from one hour combined singing, drama, and dance classes for four- to six-year-olds, to three-hour classes for the older children. We aim not only to teach children how to act, sing and dance but also to help them grow in self-confidence. Not all children are able to fit into ‘normal’ school life,” says Brian. “Many children are creative, sensitive, and unsure of their abilities. However, we have designed our classes in such a way to work on building confidence, encouraging supportive friendships, and supporting mental health issues through strong pastoral support.”
Brian explains the school’s ethos: “All of our tutors have been carefully selected to ensure they help our young students develop at their own pace whilst encouraging them to reach their true potential. We promote a positive environment where students can have lots of fun whilst celebrating their individuality and achievements. Our pupils all get the personal attention they deserve and are encouraged to be creative whilst valuing the experience of working closely with others in their group to achieve a common goal. Not only do we encourage our students to develop and refine their skills, but we enable them to become multi-disciplined, all-round performers.” WOAPA is immensely proud of its 100% pass rate with its (optional) LAMDA exam entries”.
Adult students also attend singing classes held on a Tuesday evening (for beginners) and a Wednesday evening (more experienced singers). “Louise conducts the classes which run from 7.30pm until 9pm and our son Thom writes the musical arrangements”.
Both adult and children’s choirs perform at several venues around West Oxfordshire. These include children appearing in panto at the Chipping Norton, Oxford Playhouse and Didcot Cornerstone theatres and adults singing at Blenheim Palace. Some of our students have also appeared in professional stage shows (both locally and nationally), in film, television and advertisements. Other groups under our guidance have performed at ‘The Royal Albert Hall’ and ‘Festival Hall’ in London.
We are proud to have students, who are continuing their training at prestigious drama schools including The Royal Academy of Music, The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Oxford School of Drama and Guildhall and who participate in both NYMT (National Youth Music Theatre) BYMT (British Youth Music Theatre).
Recently, WOAPA won the 'Best Kids Activity' category in the Red Kite Days awards 2023, voted by the public across Oxfordshire.
For further information about classes and performances please visit woapa.co.uk.
