Handmaidens

Louise Madison

Training: Bush Davies School, Elmhurst Ballet School and English National Ballet School. Theatre includes: understudy Havana Girl in Guys and Dolls (Piccadilly), dance captain and understudy Brenda in Movin’ Out (original London cast, Apollo Victoria and first national US tour), A Christmas Carol choreographed by Susan Stroman (Madison Square Garden, NY), Some Like it Hot starring Tony Curtis (US tour), swing and understudy Victoria, The White Cat, Rumpleteaser and Sillibub in Cats (Hamburg and Stuttgart, Germany), Disney’s Beauty and the Beast (Dominion), Saturday Night Fever (original cast, London Palladium, and dance captain for the first UK tour and German production), Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (first UK tour and Apache Dancer for US tour).

Emma Harris

Training: Royal Ballet School (White Lodge and Upper School) and Laine Theatre Arts. Theatre includes: Evita (Adelphi), Aladdin (Old Vic), June in Chicago (tour), West Side Story (Bregenz Festival, Austria), On Your Toes (Japan tour), Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (original London cast, London Palladium), Beauty in Beauty and the Beast (Chesham New Elgiva), Victoria and understudied and performed Jellylorum in Cats (New London) and understudied and performed Meg Giry in The Phantom of the Opera (Her Majesty’s). Emma has appeared with the Royal Ballet Company and the Birmingham Royal Ballet; productions include Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, The Dream, Cinderella and The Nutcracker. Other work includes: cabaret in Miyazaki and Nagasaki, Japan, and she has appeared at cabaret and concert venues around the UK.

Jennifer Ashton

Training: Merseyside Dance and Drama Centre, in her home town of Liverpool.

Theatre includes: Levi’s wife and understudying and playing the Apache Dancer in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat (UK tour), Anybody’s in West Side Story (UK tour and Prince Edward/Prince of Wales), Liz and understudying and playing Velma Kelly in Chicago (original UK and Asia tour), returning again a year later to join the European tour as swing, dance captain, understudy ‘Mama’ Morton and assistant resident director. Concerts include: What a Feeling (original UK tour) and Souls in Motion 4 (European tour). Television includes: Grace in Brookside, commercials for Lenor, Regional Railways, The Late Shop, Visit Blackpool and Blue Peter. Other work includes: photographic stills for Toshiba televisions and trade shows for Abbey Life Insurance and Dunlop Sportswear.

Verity Bentham

Training: Doreen Bird College.

Theatre includes: The Havana Girl in Guys and Dolls (Piccadilly), Chicago (Adelphi), My One and Only (Piccadilly), Peggy Sue Got Married (Shaftesbury), Ethel McCormack in Footloose (tour), Chicago (UK and Asia tour), 42nd Street (UK tour) and the Stadium Theatre Company on board P&O Aurora.

Television includes: GMTV, This Morning, The Frank Skinner Show, Dancing in the Streets and The All Star Talent Show.

Lucie Downer

Training: Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts (graduating 2007). Theatre includes: Aladdin (Manchester Lowry), Cassie in A Chorus Line (Avondale), Royal Masonic Gala (Prince Edward), Circle of Life (New Wimbledon), The Nutcracker (English Youth Ballet) and Jack and the Beanstalk (Northampton Royal). Television includes: dancer at The Brit Awards 2007 and the Disney Channel Awards.

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is Lucie’s West End debut.

Emily Mascarenhas

Training: Laine Theatre Arts, London. Theatre includes: first cover featured dancer in Chess (Oslo Spektrum, Norway), featured ensemble and vocalist in a series of Dirty Dancing concerts (also in Norway), assistant dance captain, swing and understudied and played Maria and Shirley in Saturday Night Fever (UK tour), Trish in Boogie Nights 2 (original UK tour), swing in Carousel (UK tour) and swing in Saturday Night Fever (Cologne, Germany). Pantomimes include: Princess Jasmine in Aladdin (Assembly Halls, Tunbridge Wells) and Princess Marigold in Jack and the Beanstalk (Mansfield Palace), Genie of the Lamp in Aladdin (Aberdeen His Majesty’s), Snow White (Newcastle Theatre Royal) and dance captain for The Wizard of Oz (Alban Arena, St Albans). Other work includes: A Night With Robbie Williams (Pinewood Studios), Heartless Crew video, DFS commercial, Dubai World Cup opening night and various trade shows and cabarets.

Sarah Meade

Training: dancing at Grayes Theatre School, Carshalton, and professional training at Laine Theatre Arts, Epsom. Theatre includes: Rumpleteaser in Cats (UK tour), A Tribute to Dirty Dancing (Oslo, Norway), understudy Violet/ensemble in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (London Palladium), 42nd Street (UK tour), Little Women – The Musical workshop (Bloomsbury Theatre), Night of 1,000 Stars (London Palladium), Peter Pan (Cardiff New), West End Comes East (Kenneth More Theatre), Cinderella and Peter Pan (Belfast Grand Opera House), Jack and the Beanstalk (Brighton Theatre Royal) and Seaside Special (Cromer Pavilion). Other work includes: Kylie Minogue’s ‘Spinning Around’ video, Fright Nights (Chessington World of Adventures) and Vodaphone Spring Ball (Earls Court).

Tamlyn Platts - Judah's Wife

Training: Kimberley School of Dance, Scunthorpe , and Laine Theatre Arts, Epsom, on the three-year musical theatre course. Theatre includes: Magic of the Musicals ( UK tour), The Genius of Ray Charles (Theatre Royal, Haymarket), I Can’t Stop Loving You ( Reno , Nevada ), royal gala (Millennium Centre opening, Wales), The Merry Widow (US tour) and Night of 1,000 Stars (London Palladium). Film includes: About a Boy, Second Nature and Don’t Stop Dreaming. Pop videos for Geri Halliwell (‘It’s Raining Men’), Ronan Keating (‘I Love It When You Do’) and S Club 7 (‘Don’t Stop Moving’). Television includes: The Dame Edna Treatment, It’s Now or Never, The Paul O’Grady Show and Generation Fame. Other work includes: dance captain for Crystal Cruises (world cruise), dancer for The Dukes of Hazard London premiere ( Leicester Square ) and dancer/model for Peugeot 206 (Birmingham NEC), Tomorrow’s World ( Earls Court ) and Salon International trade shows for Wella and L’Oreal.

Pippa Raine

Training: Kirkham Henry Performing Arts, North Yorkshire , and Laine Theatre Arts, Epsom (Laine Award for the most potential in the field of dance). Theatre includes: Young Stella in Follies (Northampton Royal Theatre), featured singer in Sinatra (London Palladium), Mary Poppins (original cast, Bristol Hippodrome and Prince Edward), Cooper! Jus’ Like That (Garrick), West Side Story (Leicester Haymarket), Follies (Royal Festival Hall), understudy Frankie in On Your Toes ( Japan tour, Royal Festival Hall and Leicester Haymarket), Fosse (Prince of Wales) and Silly Girl/understudy Babette in Beauty and the Beast (Dominion). She appeared in the Royal Variety Performance 1994, the Royal Gala Performance for VE Day (Coliseum), the Royal Gala Performance for the Prince’s Trust (Royal Albert Hall) and the Olivier Awards 2004 with The Rat Pack. Film includes: The Phantom of the Opera directed by Joel Schumacher. Other work includes: recently, a world cruise on which she was lead production singer.

Fiona Reyes

Training: Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts (first class honours degree in musical theatre) where her performing credits included Tzeitel in Fiddler on the Roof, The Witch in Into the Woods and Anbody’s in West Side Story. Theatre includes: covered and played Eva Peron in Evita (original cast, Adelphi revival). Fiona also took part in the workshop performance of Imagine This. Television includes: BBC Children in Need. Recordings include: the 2006 cast album of Evita.

Danielle Young

Training: Millennium Dance 2000. Theatre includes: ensemble and Flossie’s Girlfriend in On the Town (ENO, Coliseum), The Snowman (Peacock), Flower Girl in My Fair Lady (original UK tour), Diva Fairy Godmother in Jack and The Beanstalk (Cambridge Arts), Spirit and Goddess Juno in The Tempest (Nottingham Playhouse), Angel’s Assistant in Anything Goes (Theatre Royal, Drury Lane), ensemble and understudy Urleen in Footloose (original European tour) and ensemble in On Your Toes (Leicester Haymarket). Television includes: excerpts from Anything Goes for BBC Children in Need, dancer in Showtime at the Stadium (Millennium Stadium) and featured actress in a commercial for Asda. Other work includes: voiceovers for Teen Taboos (Channel 4), Ibiza (BBC), Beyonce B Day for HMV and City of Westminster (Choice FM), Tampax commercial and Football Widows Weekend (UK TV Style).

Charlene Ford

Theatre includes: Funny Girl (Chichester Festival), dance captain/ensemble in The Wizard of Oz (Mayflower Southampton), Usher et te in The Producers (UK tour), Tall Silly Girl/ensemble in Beauty and the Beast (UK tour), dancer and understudy Tiger Lily in P et er Pan (Qdos Entertainment). Television includes: Westlife’s She’s the One, Johnny and Denise – Passport to Paradise, Another Audience with Al Murray and Al Murray’s Happy Hour. Film includes: featured Miller et te in Mrs Henderson Presents. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is Charlene’s West End debut

Zoë Smith

Training: Laine Theatre Arts. Theatre includes: Dem et er, understudied and played Grizabella, dance captain and acting resident director of the most recent UK tour of Cat s, Martha Burelli in The Rat Pack Live from Las Vegas (Birmingham Alexandra), Rizzo in Grease (Scandinavian tour), Mona in A Class Act (Landor), Stephanie Mangano in Saturday Night Fever (UK and Scandinavian tours), Ann et te and understudied and played Stephanie in Saturday Night Fever (Köln, Germany, original German cast), Marty and understudied and played Rizzo in Grease (UK tour), Maggie and understudied Cassie in A Chorus Line (UK tour), Rumpelteaser and understudied and played Grizabella in the West End production of Cat s (New London), Electra and understudied and played roles including Jen nyanydots, Dem et er and Victoria in Cat s (UK tour), The Magical World of the Musicals with Lorna Luft and Dave Will et ts (UK tour), the tenth anniversary production of Chess (Oslo), Babes in the Wood (Bradford Alhambra) and The Unpredictable Michael Barrymore (Scarborough Futurist ). Television includes: The Gaston and Leo Spectacular (Belgium), W et ten Das Live (Germany), The International Stars in Your Eyes (Holland), Blue Peter , ITV’s Telethon and The Royal Variety Performance.

Recordings include: Annette in Saturday Night Fever (original German cast).