Chris Allison

Education

About me

I am a creative person and have spent many years in teaching, so have performed in front of thousands of children in the classroom ! It has given me a lot of experience in methods of engaging with an audience.
I have a degree in English/Drama and also have an Advanced Diploma in Drama in Education. Part of these studies involved TIE work.
I also do a lot of ESL teaching to groups from all over the World and I use my creative abilities to make their learning experiences fun,exciting and memorable.
I love storytelling of all sorts and performing in any capacity. I lecture and this has developed my voice and presentation skills and given me the ability to think on my feet.
I have recently returned to acting having spent 20 years concentrating on my daughter and her education.
I've realised how much I missed it and would like the chance to extend my opportunities and do some thing more.
I am looking for anything exciting from voice overs to sight reading to teaching but something that is a challenge to me and fun!.
Additional skills:
I am musical...I sing and play several instruments to a basic level. I have been running music groups and teaching music for about 20 years.
I have won several competitions for verse speaking, sight reading, bible reading and Shakespearian reading. It is something that I am able to do rapidly and well.
My voice is loud and clear and very accessible even for those with hearing difficulties [I think this is to do with the pitch]. I am able to modify it quite easily and can do several accents. I have taught French for around twenty years and have often been taken for a French native.
I can also speak German and to some degree Spanish. I am able to do a number of local accents.
I really like storytelling and am able to tell stories 'off the cuff' which can be useful in improvisation situations and is especially enjoyed by children.
I am also very good at large extrovert characters, especially those that are a bit unsavoury or 'chavvy', though I can play upper class required.
THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ MY PROFILE!
Chris
Additional information:
I have most recently performed as a Pearly Queen,singing Old Time Music hall songs and engaging with the audience in the Victorian Festival of Christmas at the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. This outdoor event attracted approximately 40,000 people over three days. [DEC 2016]. Prior to this I performed as 'The Wardrobe Mistress'- presenting a short monologue/ playlet as part of the Tapas evenings at Groundlings Theatre in Portsmouth. [NOV 2016]. This role involved my playing a Welsh Tart, an upper class actress, a gay stage manager and a drunken trumpet player. The writer watched one of my performances and told me it was exactly as she had imagined the character when writing the piece.

License & Passport

Skills

Languages Spoken	French, German
Accents/Dialects	English - Cockney, English - England East (East Anglia, Cambridge, Hertfordshire), English - England South East (Oxford, Sussex), English - Essex, English - General, English - London, English - Southwest England, English - West Midlands (Shropshire, Birmingham, Brummie), French (Standard International), German
Vocal Types	Alto
Musical Skills	Drums/Percussion, Guitar, Recorder