Catherine Budworth

Principal and Teacher at Theatre Cats Stage School
From an early age Catherine was interested in music and performing. Her first taste of drama was at the age of 10 where she played the role of Tommy the Cat in the school pantomime Dick Whittington. She began playing clarinet at the age of 11 and was heavily involved in the South Derbyshire Music Centre in 2 choirs and 3 bands.
At secondary school, Catherine studied both Drama and Music at GCSE and after the completion of her A-Levels she then went on to read Theatre Studies and English at University where she gained a BA Honours degree in 2004. She has continued to perform in many shows singing, dancing and acting and has performed in various venues including Chatsworth House and the Millennium Dome. She also sings with Friday Voices, a chamber choir which has recently competed in Sligo, Ireland in an International Choral Competition and gained second place in the Madrigal class.

After completing her degree, Catherine decided to pursue her teaching career and obtained a post as a teaching assistant at The William Allitt School where she also provided cover for a drama teacher who went on maternity leave. Catherine then secured a place on the Graduate Teaching Programme and gained her Qualified Teacher Status.

As a Qualified Teacher, Catherine secured a teaching post at Burleigh Community College, Loughborough where she taught Drama, English and Expressive Arts to GCSE and A-Level students. It was in Loughborough where Catherine gained experience of teaching children with a wide range of special needs and learning difficulties, including English as an Additional Language and children with Autism.

It was during August 2007 when Catherine decided to pursue her dream of opening a stage school with the aim of improving confidence and self-esteem in children of all ages and abilities. Theatre Cats Stage School had its first taster sessions in December 2007 and officially opened in January 2008 with 2 classes in Burton. The stage school now has 14 classes covering the Burton, Newhall, Mickleover and Uttoxeter areas and teaches over 150 children every week.

Fiona Parker

Teacher at Theatre Cats Mickleover and Teaching Assistant at Burton and Newhall.
Fiona started dancing at the age of 3 and has achieved many grades in a range of dance disciplines including ballet, tap, modern and line dancing. Fiona has also been heavily involved with Musical Theatre and Singing from an early age and has gained many qualifications with Distinction and has recently accomplished her Diploma in Musical Theatre. She has performed in many shows singing, dancing and acting with a number of different theatre companies in the local area including The Mellow Dramatics and Burton Operatic Society.
Fiona’s dream of becoming a teacher arose at an early age, which was sparked by her Grandma’s teaching career and her love for educating children. At secondary school, Fiona studied Drama and Child Development at GCSE and also completed her Duke of Edinburgh award. She then studied Performing Arts at BTEC National Diploma level. It was at school where she also took part in a Theatre in Education course and her passion for drama in education became embedded.

After the completion of her BTEC she decided to pursue her career in teaching and is currently in Year 3 of her Primary Bachelor of Education Degree at University.

Fiona has been employed at The Activity Club in Willington; an after school club for children aged 4-16 where she has worked as a play-worker since 2007.

Fiona has been a Teaching Assistant with Theatre Cats since it began in January 2008 and has now progressed to planning and teaching the Mickleover classes with Teaching Assistant Alex Fung.

Theatre Cats Teaching Assistants: Fiona Parker (Burton and Newhall), Alex Fung (Mickleover and Uttoxeter) , Tom Brassington (Burton) , Kyle Lamley (Burton) and Nicky Miller (Cover Assistant.) Summer School Assistants also include Lauren Taylor and Simon Austin