Ellie Woodman has had quite a past 12 months after getting married and now preparing for her third show with AMTC, as she takes  on the role of Rusty.

"I auditioned as I love both versions of the film! Rusty has some great songs and 'Let's Hear It For The Boy' is without doubt my favourite."

Of course, the show is packed with classic 80's hits such as 'Holding Out for a Hero', 'Somebody's Eyes' and of course, the title and most famous song of them all 'Footloose'.  

Ellie most recently featured in AMTC's The Wedding Singer and she mentions a big contrast between the two shows.  "The last show was impacted by COVID - so we had a two year period between auditions and when we were finally able to perform. We started rehearsing this show in September, so to only have a few months in rehearsals makes it seem like this is going really quickly! There is a real buzz in rehearsals, I love show week and the vibes as we get closer to the show and I know that this will be great!"

Having such a broad range of ages has created a unique challenge for this show, with the adult company AMTC linking up with the younger Starlights to bring this musical to the stage.  "Some of the youngest members are only 12 - it has been brilliant to see them grow and develop over the last few months" explains Ellie.    "We've made some changes to the script and added in some extra characters to make sure as many people as possible get their chance to shine!"

Whatever happens Ellie is confident that this will be one of AMTC's best shows ever.  "I love the style of this show and with the songs, the costume and the mix of cast I really think that this will be one of our best shows ever.  There are so many fantastic songs that people will recognise and it is sure to have you clapping along and dancing in the aisles...and getting Footloose!"

​Tickets are now on sale for Footloose at The Lights, on between Wednesday 30th November - Saturday 3rd December (7:30pm) with a matinee on Saturday 3rd December (2:30pm).  To book your tickets now, go to The Lights Box Office at www.thelights.org.uk or call 01264 368368. 

Let's hear it for the new boy John Clay!  John joined AMTC after coming to see the recent production of The Wedding Singer and enjoyed it so much, he just wanted to get in on the action himself and decided to audition.  

"This is my first show!" says John.  "I've done a lot of singing and some dancing - but I've never done musical theatre, so this is my first ever performance where I will hopefully be putting both together!"  

John auditioned for Willard Hewitt, a simple country bumpkin with a warm heart, a big smile and a high voice! Not traditionally a tenor, John explains "I actually have quite a low singing voice and Mamma Says is quite nerve racking as a result".  

John has been loving every minute of the rehearsal process and has been fully welcomed by the company.  "Rehearsals have been really good, everyone has been lovely.  I've throughly enjoyed working with Ellie who is playing Rusty, we're having a lot of fun with that.  The characters are so awkward with each other, which is a lot of fun to portray with plenty of silly moments where Willard spends lots of time falling over!"

It's not all been straight forward however as John explains, "I've had to adapt to the challenging rehearsals and getting into the acting, and being way more emotive than I would usually be. Willard has a really strong country accent, so that has been a big challenge too!"

With five weeks to go until the curtain goes up, the cast have been cracking down and are now in the final stages of rehearsals, although John states "We've been having so much fun, I've not quite twigged that there is a show at the end of it until recently!  It's such a challenging musical, but I know that the cast will smash it!"

AMTC are always looking for new members and will soon be starting their next show.  Click here to find out more if you would like to get involved...maybe you will be on stage in the next show, like John! 

Tickets are now on sale for Footloose at The Lights, on between Wednesday 30th November - Saturday 3rd December (7:30pm) with a matinee on Saturday 3rd December (2:30pm).  To book your tickets now, go to The Lights Box Office at www.thelights.org.uk or call 01264 368368.