The Stage/All In Actors scholarship winners 2023

The flexible performers training programme All In Actors has announced the winners of The Stage Scholarship 2023 as Gabrielle Gardner and Wambui Hardcastle.

All In Actors operates on a part-time basis, running three full days per week at its permanent home in south London. Hardcastle has been awarded a 50% scholarship, plus a further 50% global-majority scholarship directly from All In Actors, while Gardner has received a 100% scholarship. The total value for this year of tuition is £7,500.

All In Actors was established in 2019 by co-principals Stephen Sobal and Ami Sayers. Both were impressed by the auditions, and Sobal enthuses about both scholarship winners.

“Wambui and Gabrielle both brought such passion and energy to their auditions,” says Sobal. “They showed that they will be committed to the course and that they have the drive to succeed, despite barriers that have stood in their way until now. They are both exciting young actors with a huge amount of potential, and we are so thrilled to be able to offer them these scholarships, without which neither of them would be able to access actor training.”

Gardner, aged 24, from Hackney in London, works part-time front of house in a theatre, but studied drama A level at school before embarking on a series of online drama courses, including Generation Arts and an online diploma at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. “Right now, I’m working with a theatre company called Director’s Cut – it’s once a week every Wednesday, and we perform live. We get given a script, have 10 minutes to rehearse it, and then perform it every week. It’s really good practice.”

‘They are both exciting young actors with a huge amount of potential’ – All In Actors co-principal Stephen Sobal

Hardcastle, aged 22, from Newcastle, will relocate for her training, which will run alongside a degree in Creative Writing at Birkbeck, University of London.

“I found out about All In Actors through [theatre company] Frantic Assembly. I did their Ignition [nationwide talent development] programme in 2022, and they were really supportive in my endeavour to find further training. I’d applied to drama schools and hadn’t got anywhere. At the end of Ignition, they suggested All In Actors and managed to help me connect with Stephen and Ami.”

What impressed both students was the nature of the auditions. Gardner recalls: “I remember messaging my best friend saying it was the nicest audition I’ve ever done. We had to do two monologues but there was a short interview at the end, which made it feel like they generally wanted to get to know me, rather than just testing me.”

For information about All In Actors, click here