New theatre company Custard offers young people the chance to get involved with music, theatre and dance... KATHERINE MACALISTER looks at the ethos behind the Oxford-based organisation

Thanks to Oxford local Laura Mathis, new theatre company Custard is coming to Oxfordshire this summer in a bid to get young performers on stage whatever their background.

Custard is a training centre, school and theatre company offering practical, hands-on training in the performing arts for performers aged five to 30-year-olds.

In September, Custard will be running weekly classes, workshops, masterclasses and showcases, as well as full scale productions in both Bicester and Oxford, but first up there’s a week-long masterclass, culminating in a showcase performance, right here in the city.

Head of Performing Arts, Laura Mathis, pictured above, decided to bring Custard to Oxford to give young performers the chance to really get stuck in. She says: “Oxford is full of such exciting, diverse people, and having trained here myself, I know there are some really great performers on my doorstep. Theatre, music and dance plays a huge part in Oxford and I’d really love to see as many performers taking part in Custard as possible.”

Hailing from Blackbird Leys, Laura, 25, is delighted to be bringing Custard back to her roots. Having opened similar theatre schools in both Buckinghamshire and Wiltshire with musical director Antony Eduardo, she felt the time was right to branch out in her home city.

And, having trained at the Oxford School of Drama after attending Cheney and Cherwell schools, Laura is keen to give back to the communities she grew up in. “I grew up in Blackbird Leys so really want to encourage people from disadvantaged backgrounds to come along and join in, if they have a passion for theatre.”

This may include singing, dancing or drama, but Laura wants to enroll any interested parties in her end of summer masterclass being held every evening from August 26, from 5-10pm, so that people who work can join in too.

“We want to encourage people from all backgrounds to get involved, with a view to being flexible for those working or studying. We can even offer a scholarship scheme to help those coming from disadvantaged backgrounds or from a low income. Our main priority is giving performers a chance to do something they love”, Laura says. “Plus it will be a lot of fun – so we need people from all backgrounds, abilities and ages to come forward. We’ve got a great showcase planned so I’m really looking forward to seeing what Oxford can offer!”

l If you want to find out more about the masterclass week, Custard will be holding a ‘get-together’ on Friday, August 23 for anyone looking to get involved – where performers can meet and find out more. Applications are now open from performers, so get in touch via email contact@custardtheatre.com, call 07500 924763 or check out the Facebook page or website custardtheatre.com The Custard masterclass, which is aimed at performers aged between 13 to 25, runs from Monday, August 26 to Friday, August 30, with the Showcase Performance taking place at the end of the week; rehearsals run from 6-10pm. The week costs £50 per student, with discount rates available for siblings and students, and a reduced fee for those who are only able to attend for part of the week.