Sixteen-year-old pupil at Felsted School in Essex is chosen from thousands for the National Youth Theatre

Out of thousands of young people who auditioned in the UK, Felsted School student Maddy Stapleton, 16, has a place at the National Youth Theatre.

Established in 1956, the youth theatre (NYT) is is a world leading arts organisation which commissions new writing and reinterpretations of classics for young people in the company to work on and perform in venues at home and abroad.

The NYT has launched the careers of actors including Helen Mirren, Daniel Craig, Daniel Day-Lewis, Orlando Bloom, Catherine Tate, Matt Lucas, Hugh Bonneville and Matt Smith. Some 5,000 young people are seen in auditions at cities across the country.

Once Maddy has completed her induction, she will join the company and audition further for film and television projects that happen around the country in the school holidays. Maddy hopes to have her induction this summer if COVID-19 restrictions allow.

With aspirations to work in either theatre or film, Maddy has starred in a number of productions at Felsted, including taking on the role of Lefou in last year’s production of Beauty and the Beast.

She said: “It feels really amazing and unreal to have been selected for the National Youth Theatre and I am very excited to get involved with everything that they have to offer.”