Greater London Enterprise Awards 2021

36 | Greater London Enterprise Awards 2021 meditation exercises, breathing, stretching and creative games. It is essential to always listen to yourself and keep your energy positive. “Despite these issues, Act’In has never been as supported by its students as it is now,” Candice continues. “This is a time of great resilience, and as an actor, when faced with a problematic situation we must create creative solutions. This is what I do through my company with the unfailing support of my students whom I cannot thank enough. We come out of this crisis with an even greater desire to perform together and to share!” Additionally, Act’In has plans to open new slots for Bilingual children and cinema master classes for adults, available from September 2021. Currently, Act’In is in hopes to open a second school in Lille, France, as Candice states, “Culture and Art have no borders.” Act’In is has been transformed by passionate teachers who impart knowledge on drama and improvisation in French and English. Candice states, “We work with hundreds of people with different personalities, so the Act’In team must be benevolent: that’s our motto. We are a kind of family, we all trust each other, and this is due to good communication between us, listening, acceptance, willingness, and professionalism of each other. In short, we apply the Act’In values to our students and our team as well.” Company Name: Act’in Theatre Contact Name: Candice Desmet Address: Studio 5, Old Paradise Yard, 20 Carlisle lane SE1 7LG London Web Address: www.actintheatre.com Contact Email: office@actintheatre.com Act’In Theatre is a drama, improvisation, and cinema school. The foundation of the company started with Director Candice Desmet who had begun her acting career in France and took a leap of faith and moved to London. Today, Act’In has 9 workshops per week with more than 70 regular students, a dozen private classes and a team of collaborators behind the company. Act’In Theatre is based in the heart of London and is a bilingual English and French theatre school, created for people who do not want to make acting their profession but want to practice an artistic activity in a friendly and inclusive environment. Candice Desmet, Founder of Acti’In, explains, “Our classes are based on quarterly cycles with a big show in June that brings together all the groups of the company, it’s our highlight of the year. Additionally, in a friendly atmosphere in the heart of London, we set up small intimate shows which take place every month and a half with our theatre groups (Les Gueules De Bois) and improvisation groups (Improzac). The establishment aims to offer a place and a space of total freedom; a place without judgment, where expression and creativity are the keywords. Candice states, “Our workshop groups are small to personalize our courses as much as possible. In theatre, our “tool” is us, therefore it is important to understand, control and accept ourselves completely.” “We like to organize evenings out across London to see different theatrical performances or films and London’s dynamism and open-mindedness have allowed Act’In Theatre to flourish over the years to the delight of its students.” Act’In welcomes adults from various backgrounds (finance, teaching, marketing etc.) who are not “actors” but who find that through theatre they can access a real valve of freedom to express themselves, to discover themselves and to use the techniques of actors to manage their stress or to feel more comfortable speaking in public. The business efforts at Act’In are all about the people. The aim for the company is not for people to learning to act but rather to dare to act, to be themselves through different parts of the personality. Candice explains, “We reconnect with ourselves and dare to discover ourselves A Drama & Cinema Workshop Experience & Drama & Cinema Workshop Provider of the Year 2021 through different characters. Our teachers guide you and give you the techniques to enhance your creativity and acting. The techniques you learn will be useful in your everyday life. Our client’s goals are our goals. Moreover, we respect the evolutionary rhythm of each person. A real space of freedom and harmony.” The artistic sector is one of the sectors hardest hit by the Covid-19 crisis. At Act’In, many of the students are expatriates and as Candice explains, “It was very complicated for them and therefore for me. Living abroad is not easy, even less so in this context.” On the impact of Covid-19, Candice states, “For these reasons, I wanted to keep the links at all costs. We had started classes on Zoom to ensure an end-of-year show however it was cancelled a week before its performance. Eventually, we didn’t continue with Zoom classes because we were losing out on a lot of qualities: space, energy, contact and more. As soon as we could, we invested in gazebos and heaters to continue our workshops outside even in winter and as soon as we were in lockdown we stayed “connected” by organizing virtual aperitifs.” However, the struggle continued at Act’In as Candice describes the impact of Brexit on the business as well. “With Brexit, some students went back to France and this accumulation of “bad news” was beginning to have a considerable impact on the morale of our students. So, we opened 30-minute online ‘ACT’IF’ classes, to refocus and reconnect with ourselves through Jul21449 Act’in Theatre