“Hi diddle de dee an actor’s life for me”. We all know the song from the Disney film archive but how hard is it to change careers mid-life and go against the flow? . . . writes John Player.
This Cranleigh resident made the decision to try and carve out a career in Voice-over after 12.5 years as a stockbroker.
My passion for acting and the stage was fuelled from when I first became involved with the Ewhurst Players back in 2010. Since then I have had leading roles in five pantomimes and five plays, as well as having an active involvement within the group from a back stage point of view. I love the opportunity to perform whilst being a part of a fantastically friendly and totally professional group in the local community.
The transition from stockbroker to voice-over artist may appear, on the surface, to be a pretty random career change, I know! But sometimes in life, you have to make choices based on what your heart is telling you.
(Pictured Above: Fudge as the Jester in Goldilocks)
Many of us have stressful jobs, and when you combine that with general stresses and strains of raising a family in this increasingly complex world that we live in, it is really important to find a counterbalance in your personal life to help you cope with this day to day stress and pressure.
(Pictured Above: Fudge as Dr John Cristow in Agatha Christie’s’The Hollow’)
The amateur stage and everything connected with it has provided me with exactly the tonic that I needed in that sense. Of course, it is a big commitment in itself to spend 2 or 3 evenings a week rehearsing for large chunks of the year, but when you are on stage, you have to set everything else that might be occupying your mind to one side if you want to give a believable performance. This distraction has doubtlessly helped me cope over recent years.
(Pictured Above: Fudge doing Voice Over work)
So, having sparked the flame so to speak, I have spent an increasing amount of time thinking about and looking at what I’m doing work-wise and wondering if I could possibly try and make a living doing something that I have a genuine passion for.
(Pictured Above: Fudge as Buttons in Cinderella)
In truth, being a stockbroker just wasn’t really me. I really enjoyed the client contact and working relationships that I developed over the years, but deep down, there has always been a performer in me fighting to break free.
I love performing. Whether it’s at home with the kids during an elaborate made up bedtime story, when treading the boards, or on the telephone to a client. We are all performers to some degree or another in our own way, in many aspects of our lives.
So why voice-over? Well, at 45 years old and with a mortgage and bills to pay, I wanted to take control of my own destiny and try doing something in the arts that I’m genuinely passionate about
