We recently had the pleasure of catching up with 2018 leaver, Zoë Armer, who left Westholme with her sights set on a career in acting. With a passion for Performing Arts that was developed through her school years, her talents have seen her perform in some of the nations well-loved TV shows. We have no doubt that Zoë has a bright future ahead of her. 

We asked Zoë some more questions about her career and time at Westholme:

You were involved in numerous shows here at Westholme, which was your favourite and why? 

The Westholme productions are so special - young talent coming together to create something for the pure joy of it! My favourite memories are from the younger years - being part of the ensemble with my best friends. In ‘Beauty and The Beast’ we played such an array of characters from villagers to pieces of cutlery! It was so much fun and the excitement of putting on a huge live show for friends and family was so new and magical. 

How did your experiences working in Theatre compare with TV? Do you have a favourite? 

I love stage and screen for different reasons. The joy of theatre is that you have time to create something special during rehearsals and share it every night with a live audience. With TV you have to be ready to turn up, shake hands with everyone and get it right in 3 takes - personally I find it much more restrictive when it comes to creativity and still find it strange having a camera a metre from your face and a microphone a foot above your head whilst trying to keep casual! However, I’ve been lucky to work on a few well-loved TV shows recently and have learnt a lot from some great TV legends. 

How would you describe your Westholme experience? Did you have any favourite subjects/hobbies/clubs? 

I absolutely loved my time at Westholme! I especially loved Drama and English (surprise, surprise) but also really loved EPR and Chemistry! I was rubbish at sports but loved being part of the school Choir and going on all the choir tours! We went to Austria when I was in Year 7 and I played Gretel during some of the ‘Sound of Music’ songs. We also got to sing in the gardens from the film - it was amazing! 

What are your aspirations for the future? Is there a dream role/show you would like to be a part of? 

My dream is to live off an acting career! At the moment, I work part time in a spin studio (a hobby which I love alongside acting - I bet my PE teachers didn’t see that one coming!) and live in London constantly auditioning for various acting roles (they say it’s a numbers game!) I would love to have a long and varied career as an Actor and would love to be a part of some new critically acclaimed projects.

Any advice for current students here at Westholme? 

Just enjoy it! Be kind and patient and if something brings you joy - do it as often as possible. For any aspiring actors - know that the road isn’t very glamorous but the magic will always be there. Expect lots of ‘No’s’ before the ‘Yes’ and trust that you are enough! Don’t forget the reason you started this in the first place. 

We look forward to seeing Zoe on our TV screens even more and wish her the very best in persuing her dreams!