Yew Tree Tutors

Christina Yates - Principal

The school has its own Principal, Christina Yates, who is on-hand to lead the staff, manage the youngsters and assist the parents. Christina believes in a non-franchise school, knowing her students and keeping a firm link with her supportive team of teachers.

She studied at the London Guildhall School of Music and Drama and continues the ethos of the teaching of the college in promoting the Trinity Theatre exams that are offered to YT students.

Having taught at both secondary and private schools Christina maintains through her tutors the right balance of discipline and freedom required to ensure her students enjoy classes whilst achieving the very highest levels of performance.

Tunbridge Wells Base

Fern Martin - Head of Dance

Fern has been working for Yew Tree Theatre School for nearly 10 years. Fern is head of dance at Yew Tree which involves all main show choreography and organisation of examinations and dance syllabuses.

She has also worked in a number of outreach projects in schools and for a musical theatre company called Act Your Age.
She completed her training at performing arts school gaining qualifications in ISTD, Modern, Tap, Ballet and Jazz including teaching associates.

Since leaving college amongst her time as a professional dancer she has taken further qualifications in IDTA where she has gained her Ballet
associate and Freestyle Licentiate Degree.

She is currently working with the artistic team putting together Leeds Castle Concerts. Fern hopes to continue to share her passion for dance experience in the profession.

Carrie Lee Grey - Head of Drama

There is more about Carrie coming soon

Sevenoaks Base

Cranbrook Base

Laura Louise - Dance Tutor

Laura trained at Bodywork Dance Studios in Cambridge gaining a 3 year diploma in musical theatre and dance.

She has been dancing since the age of 2.

Laura knows YT93 very well, after training at Yew Tree Theatre myself from the age of 7 to 15 and is very pleaed to be involved again with the school, however as a teacher this time.

Robert Kirby - Drama Coach

Robert is currently training as an actor at London's Rose Bruford College.

He has worked extensively with the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain (NYT) both as a facilitator and an actor, and is part of their emerging assosciate artist programme. Recent credits include 'Punk Rock,' 'Three Sisters' & 'Fear and Misery of the Third Reich' (Rose Bruford College) 'Frank & Ferdinand' (National Theatre Studio), 'Consequences' (The Lowry, Manchester), 'Bent' &'Taming of the Shrew' (Questors Theatre, Ealing).

As well as having worked as an Assistant Director for NYT, Robert has also taught for several Buckinghamshrie based youth theatre companies.

Abigail-Jodie Spiller

Abi has been involved in music and Musical Theatre from a very young age. With both of her parents working in the West End when she was growing up, Abi took up the Piano and got her Grade 8 at the age of 15. Abi was involved with the Oxford Playhouse pantomimes and also attended the Jackie Palmer Agency for a few years then moved onto a local theatre school in Oxford. Abi graduated from Canterbury Christchurch University in 2011 in Music, with a major in Performance for Piano and Voice.

During her time here, Abi was involved in all of the musical productions starting as a member of the Chorus, then Assistant MD and last year was the Musical Director and Arranger for Charles Miller's production, "When Midnight Strikes". Abi is now Directing this years musical for Canterbury Christchurch whilst also arranging the music. Abi also arranged the show "Oh Mr Pooter" for the performance for the Canterbury festival in Oct 2011 which was a great success.

Abi has a great love of performing and had has the oppurtunities to perform in Canterbury Cathedral (on several occasions), York Minster, NEC Birmingham, Montserrat, Spain, Barcelona Cathedral and also the concert hall in Girona with the CCCU Big Band.

Consultative tutors

Mark Lacey

Mark has been an actor, director, writer and teacher for over 20 years. He has done his stint on good old stalwarts like the Bill, soldier soldier, London's burning, casualty and doctors, as well as appeared in many one off tv dramas and movies. He has toured the world with the internationally renowned 'cheek by jowl' theatre company and performed for the RSC and the National theatre in the west end.

He is a specialist in physical theatre and was street entertainer of the year 1991. He has taught over 500 workshops all over the world and has directed over 40 plays. Secretly he is an advance level rhythm tap dancer and loves anything to do with Agatha Christie.

He can't wait to be old so he can sit around all day eating chocolates, drinking teas and watching the world go by. He still harbours a secret hope to marry a millionaire.

Peter Basham

Peter Basham graduated from the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School in 2007. 

Recent Theatre includes: ‘A View From The Bridge’ Duke of York’s Theatre & Tour, ‘The Burial at Thebes’  Nottingham Playhouse/USA Tour, ‘Next Door’s Baby’ Orange Tree Theatre, ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ Bristol Old Vic Main Stage & ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ RSC/BOVTS Swan Theatre, Stratford Upon-Avon.  Film & Television Includes: ‘Homeland’ for Channel Four, ‘Inception’  Warner Bros,  ‘Cosi’  SC Films international, ‘The Heart of Thomas Hardy’  BBC,  ‘Lion’s Den’  BBC, & ‘Broadside’ for PBS. 

Find out more information at www.peterbasham.com

Marissa Dunlop

Marissa has just finished creating the role of Chilli in the original pantomime “Santa Claus and the return of Jack Frost” at The Mayflower Theatre, Southampton. Marissa made her first TV commercial aged 3 and her west-end debut at the age of 8 as Young Cosette in Les Miserables (Palace Theatre). She was also chosen from all the casts around the world of the production to perform this role on “The Complete Symphonic Recording of Les Miserables” and the DVD “Stage by Stage- the making of Les Miserables”.

As an adult, Marissa’s west-end credits include Ruby in “Shout” (Arts Theatre), Sandy in “Grease” (Cambridge Theatre), Pearl in “Starlight Express” (Apollo Victoria Theatre), Serena in “Fame” (Cambridge and Aldwych Theatres), Martha Berelli in “The Rat Pack” (Strand Theatre) and Young Jenny in “Aspects of Love” (Prince of Wales Theatre). Marissa can also be seen as Martha Berelli in the DVD “The Rat Pack- live from Las Vegas”. Marissa originated the role of Alma in “Summer Holiday” at The Winter Gardens, Blackpool and played Truly Scrumptious to great acclaim in the first UK tour of “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” and also at The Esplanade Theatre, Singapore.

Marissa’s film credits include Mary Ingram in Zefferelli’s “Jane Eyre” (Rochester Films), the lead girl in “Wiper” (Independent) and Charlotte in “Duck” (Channel 4 Films). Television credits include Margaret in “Jeeves and Wooster” and Heather Harper in “The Upper Hand”. Marissa has appeared in numerous commercials including campaigns for Nescafe, Clarks and Macdonalds.

Marissa has taught singing, dance and drama for Stagecoach (Tunbridge Wells, Oxted and Maidstone), Associates Theatre School (Tonbridge and Southborough)) and Yew Tree Theatre School. She has created and taught numerous children and adult musical theatre workshops including Hairspray, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Les Miserables, Grease and High School Musical. Marissa is also a private vocal coach and holds audition technique classes.

Marissa lives in Tunbridge Wells with her husband Leo and their two young sons.

John Rigby

John Rigby trained at the University of Huddersfield and the Royal Northern College of Music.

He began his career in Musical Theatre and has been Musical Director for a long list of prestigious productions. In Germany, he was Musical Director for Miss Saigon at the Musical Hall, Stuttgart, and Starlight Express at the Starlight Halle Bochum, whilst West End credits include Beautiful and Damned at the Lyric Theatre, The Drowsy Chaperone at the Novello, The King and I and Sinatra at the London Palladium, The Last Empress at the Apollo, Hammersmith, Marguerite at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket, Les Misérables at the Palace Theatre, The Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty’s Theatre, Peter Pan and The Pirates of Penzance at the Savoy Theatre and The Producers at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. Currently, he is Lecturer in Musical Theatre at the University of London’s Central School of Speech and Drama.

He was Musical Director for Judith Weir’s The Black Spider at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival and conducted the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Philharmonia Orchestra for Carmen Jones at London’s Royal Festival Hall. Other orchestras with which he has worked in concert include the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Hallé Orchestra, the London Concert Orchestra, the Manchester Concert Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, the Scottish Concert Orchestra and the Orchestra of Welsh National Opera in a wide and varied repertoire at major venues throughout the UK.

His recordings include the Original London Cast DVD of Beautiful and Damned, the Original London Cast Albums of The Last Empress and Marguerite, and The Best of Classical Spectacular Volume 2 with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Highlights of 2010 / 2011 included open-air concerts at Leeds Castle and Kenwood House, a sell out season of Classical Spectaculars for Raymond Gubbay Ltd in arenas throughout the UK, supervising the musical The Poor Soldier for the Theatre Royal, Bury St Edmunds, and concerts with both the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in repertoire ranging from Elgar’s Enigma Variations to The Pink Panther. He was also the musical director behind our most recent productions.

Future engagements include return engagements with the CBSO, the Hallé and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Raymond Gubbay Ltd White Christmas Season tour in the UK and Irish Republic, and Classical Spectacular at the 02 Arena, Berlin.