Meet our Team of Teachers.
All our teachers are highly professional, CRB/DBS checked and hold a First Aid Certificate.
They have also completed an on-line COVID awareness course.
Our Teachers are assisted by Students who are studying at WATA or nearby Theatre colleges.
They also have DBS & Covid Awareness Certificates
Penelope Lambert
AISTD Dip.
Principal & Founder of WATA
Penelope Lambert (Miss Penny) started dancing at the age of 3 years old. She trained at the Sylvia Bebb Academy of Ballet and Theatre Arts and later Laine and Kilburn College where she gained her teaching qualifications. Penny appeared professionally as Clara in with The Southern Ballet Company, Thumberlina with the Hans Christian Anderson Touring company, Was one of The Freddy Anthony Dancers in Germany and in pantomime. Theatre has always been a big part of Penny’s life and from a young age she enjoyed performing in shows and taking part in competitions. She won the All England Competition with her duet partner and her trio. Penny opened her first dancing school at the age of 14 in her mothers lounge. By the age of 20 she had two school and over 300 pupils. She now has over 25 years of teaching experience. Penny has managed the Justine Garner School of Dance and taught at The Bristol School Of Dance where she taught ballet and Musical Theatre. Penny has been teaching at the Saturday Theatre School since she opened it in 2000. She teaches at Many schools in the area as a guest teacher. She has recently written and directed musicals for Priddy Primary School. Penny also teaches at Wells Cathedral Junior School where she teaches drama, dance, musical theatre lessons, and leads the Sing and Swim Toddler Group-She writes, directs and produces the Pre-prep Christmas and Spring Musicals and teaches dance in the Junior School. She is a fully qualified Zumba teacher for Adults and Children and is an assessor for the Trinity Arts Award. She has lived in Wells for the past 22 years with her husband Malcom and has an eleven year old son Henry. Her passion is to inspire children and help them to discover the joy of performing and the confidence it can bring. Penny was thrilled to be one of three finalists in the Pride of Somerset Awards 2014 for Outstanding Contribution to the Arts Award.
Katie Peters
Vocal Coach, Musical Theatre, Dance & Drama, Private Trinity & Singing Tuition
Katie Trained as a child at WATA and The Penelope Lambert School of Dance as well as other Performing Arts School in the area. She then went on to train at Arts Educational, Mount View and The London Musical Theatre College. She then became lead vocalist on the TUI cruise ship. She has come back to teach at WATA and also Bath Dance College. We are very excited that she now offering private tuition along with the musical theatre classes that she teaches here at WATA. Katie has recently appeared with Cameron Macintosh during lockdown in a special concert ‘ One Enchanted Evening’ for the NHS.
Beth Hancock
Drama, Trinity Drama Coaching and Musical Theatre
BA Hons Performing Arts, MA Popular performances, PGCE Primary Education.
Beth was educated in Wells and took part in many local theatre productions, pantomimes and sang in choirs. She studied for her BA(hons) Preforming Arts and MA in Popular Performances at the University of Winchester. Beth studied for her PGCE at The University of Worcester, graduating in 2017. Beth is a class teacher in a local Infant School and looks after the school choir. Prior to taking up her teaching post Beth taught in the local area and primary schools where her pupils took part in annual shows and charity performances. Beth has been teaching at WATA since 2010 where she has prepared and trained students for their Trinity College examinations both individually and in groups, they have all achieved excellent results. She is also an adjudicator for The Somerset Fellowship of Drama - David Beach Awards.
Carrieann Schuster
Dance, Musical Theatre, Drama and Administration
Carrieann was a pupil with Penny from the age of 7 years old. She has studied Dance at Bridgewater College and we are happy that she has returned to the school as a member of staff. She has been assisting with classes since she was 10 years old so although young has a wealth of experience within the school. Carrie Ann has been preparing students for ISTD Modern and Tap Examinations for 3 years with excellent results. She has been teaching the pre-school & pre-primary Ballet classes at Wells Performing Arts where parents and pupils alike have been delighted with her classes. Carrieann also helps with the administration and general running of the Theatre School and in her spare time enjoys running challenges - she recently completed the monster race!
Judith Burns
Drama & Speech
Judith trained at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, London, qualifying as a specialist Speech and Drama teacher.Her contemporaries were Zoe Wanamaker and Robin Nedwell.
She has devoted her career to teaching Speech and Drama to all ages and has worked predominantly at Wells Cathedral School where she was the first to introduce the subject at a specialist level.
Judith’s work at Wells Cathedral School allowed her to teach children between the ages of three and eighteen. She has also worked with educationally disadvantaged young adults,dyslexic students and many youth theatre groups around Somerset. In addition she has taken groups to perform at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and Youth Competitions in London. For many years Judith ran cultural exchanges with schools in the Czech Republic and Germany.
Jill Edmonds
Vocal Coaching, Ensemble Singing,Solo singing and Musical Direction
Jill Edmonds has worked in Music Education for over 30 years, where she was Head of Music in a specialist music school. She has conducted choirs which have appeared on radio and tv, but her greatest love is enabling children and adults to face their fears, follow their hidden dreams and be the best version of themselves. Jill’s musicianship is augmented by her amazing inspirational teaching style and ability to get the very best out of everyone she works with.
In addition to her teaching qualifications Jill is also a trained Counsellor.
George Oliver
Guest Teacher - Actor and Drama Workshop leader
He trained at East 15 Acting School and as well as working with theatre companies in the UK and abroad, he has Film and TV credits for BBC,CBBC and ITV. George has a strong background in creating and performing quality work for young people. His first professional job was touring with the education department at Theatre Royal Bath and since then he has facilitated workshops on a range of subjects including Shakespeare, Outdoor Storytelling and World Book Day. He is also co-creator of PlayGreen - a hybrid of outdoor storytelling and interactive adventure for young people, that explores tales from literature and history through plants and themes of nature. This Summer George will be joining the team of guest teachers at WATA and bringing some exciting and engaging workshops to the Drama Barn.