Performer and director Queenie van de Zandt will take students from the Ballarat Centre of Music and the Arts through workshops to prepare them for the competitive world of musical theatre auditions.

Recent high-profile musicals including Matilda, which starred BCMA student Cooper Guinea as Tommy, and the region’s performing arts reputation have driven strong demand for musical theatre classes.

“Having someone very close to home has made it so much more tangible for our students. They know it’s not just elite people who get those roles,” said BCMA director Paula Heenan.

Ms Heenan said she had been working for several years to bring Ms van de Zandt’s workshop to Ballarat. 

“We can’t wait to show off Ballarat’s awesome skills and talents to this lady who holds so much influence and experience in the Australian musical theatre world,” she said.

With hundreds of young performers auditioning for available roles, standing out from the crowd can be tough. 

The workshops will cover how to present for an audition, how to choose a song, warm up, how to overcome nerves, how to walk in to a room and what happens once you get in to an audition, which can be an overwhelming process with so many other performers treading the same boards.

Ms van de Zandt is well known for her musical theatre audition bootcamps and her roles in Australian musical theatre as performer and director. Almost every major musical in recent years has starred at least one graduate of Ms van de Zandt’s workshops.

The workshops come at a pivotal time for many of the young performers, with child roles available in several upcoming musicals including Bugsy Malone, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Oliver.

The workshops, a one-hour masterclass on May 17 and a full-day audition bootcamp on May 21, are also open to other interested students aged seven to 16. Book at trybooking.com or 5331 3086.