AMTA’s elite Musical Theatre Intensive Weekly Masterclasses course, runs in person, in both Sydney and Melbourne, (with a select number of places held for talented performers outside these cities to join online), from July to December 2024. The course will be led by two of Australia’s most highly esteemed veterans of musical theatre, Queenie van de Zandt (in Melb) and Margi de Ferranti (in Syd).
The Masterclasses have been created as a finishing course and an accelerated pathway into the competitive musical theatre industry for talented and motivated performing artists, by connecting them with Australia's leading musical theatre creatives and performers, all of whom are actively involved in creating, casting, and performing in, the commercial musical theatre industry.
The course will be led by two of Australia’s most highly esteemed veterans of musical theatre, Queenie van de Zandt (in Melb) and Margi de Ferranti (in Syd).
Queenie van de Zandt is the co-founder of The Australian Musical Theatre Academy and the creator of The Musical Theatre Intensive Weekly Masterclasses course. Combining 20+ years of studying audition technique with her 35+ years as a multi-award winning performer of musical theatre, Queenie developed a unique audition and performance preparation method, that has helped her students gain leading roles in shows such as Chicago, Beauty & the Beast, & Juliet, Wicked, TINA – The Tina Turner Musical, RENT, ELVIS: The Musical Revolution, Miss Saigon, Mamma Mia, Rogers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella, Mary Poppins and Grease, to name just a few. Over the past 24 years, Queenie has taught her audition & performance preparation method, to hundreds of performers across Australia and internationally. The remarkable number of her former students who have gone on to become renowned performers in commercial musicals, has seen her hailed in the press as a ‘musical theatre star-maker’.
Margi de Ferranti is one of Australia’s leading ladies of musical theatre, having performed leading roles in iconic shows such as Mamma Mia, Grease, Les Misérables, Aspects of Love, Fame and In the Heights. For the past 20 years she has been focusing her time on working with the next generation of stars, as well as being the go-to vocal coach for industry professionals in Sydney, teaching at major performing arts schools such as NIDA, AIM, and Brent St as well as running her own studio, Margi de Ferranti’s Vocal Expertise.
Each week, our 10 talented performers in each stream will have the unique opportunity to work intimately with, and showcase their talent to, a different key industry creative. Our faculty includes leading industry producers, theatre directors, performers, choreographers, casting directors, theatre agents, vocal coaches, musical directors, accent coaches and theatre makers.
Read About Our FacultyWe are offering 10 talented performers the opportunity to work intimately with these acclaimed theatrical creatives in each of the following streams:
PROFESSIONAL WEEKLY MASTERCLASSES
Adults
PRE-PROFESSIONAL WEEKLY MASTERCLASSES
13 - 17 years
YOUTH WEEKLY MASTERCLASSES
8 - 12 years
The course begins with our performers learning Queenie’s renowned audition and performance preparation method. Over the course of 20 masterclasses, the talents of each of our performers are nurtured and refined as they develop high-end, industry-level skills in musical theatre performance, career development and professional mindset. Each masterclass is tailored to the skills and challenges of each performer in the class and can be altered to respond quickly to changes in the theatrical marketplace and/or auditions and opportunities that present themselves during the course.
The 20-week structure allows for the gradual maturity of our performers’ skills, while also providing them with continual opportunities to practice Queenie’s audition and performance preparation method while working with our faculty of leading theatrical creatives. This ensures they present themselves as highly employable musical theatre professionals. The elite environment we create, with only 10 performers in each class, fosters unparalleled showcase opportunities for each of our performers and genuine connections with our esteemed faculty.
For over 24 years our courses, workshops and masterclasses have been favoured by the industry, due to the extraordinary success of our graduates. Currently, our former students are playing leading roles in every, commercial musical in Australia: Chicago, Beauty & the Beast, & Juliet, Wicked, TINA - The Tina Turner Musical, ELVIS: The Musical Revolution, Sunset Boulevard, RENT and Grease!
As there are only 10 spots available in each masterclass, performers will be chosen through an online audition process. The masterclasses will run, in person in Sydney and in Melbourne, (with a select number of places for talented performers outside these cities to join online), from July to December 2024. We encourage and welcome auditions from performers around Australia, continuing AMTA’s commitment to bringing world-class theatrical training to regional areas.
Additionally, we encourage applications from performers who cannot attend all of the 20 masterclass or from performers who wish to apply, if there are remaining places in a class, after the course begins. Each masterclass is structured to allow participants to film their work beforehand for the tutor to review during the session and every class is recorded, enabling students to catch up on missed sessions and receive feedback on their work.
It’s time to walk out of the wings and into the spotlight and
audition for the Musical Theatre Intensive Weekly Masterclasses.