Canford Drama – Q & A with Daniel Ings

Canford Drama Department were delighted to welcome actor Daniel Ings to The Layard Theatre to talk about his career both on stage and in Television and film. Alongside sharing anecdotes about series such as “The Crown”, “Lovesick” and “I hate Suzie”, Dan spoke openly about the challenges of the job, the various routes one can take to be an actor, as well as the highs of working alongside actors such as Benedict Cumberbatch, Johnny Lee Miller and Kenneth Branagh.

Drama Pupil Leaders Chloe and Johannes led the Q and A with Chloe commenting “It was a great experience to work with Dan and a really fantastic opportunity to be able do something which I wouldn’t normally do, which is interviewing someone. It was a lot of fun and an interesting and organic way to hear about his experience in the industry and his life as an actor.” Johannes felt “It was amazing to meet Dan and get his perspective on the industry as a successful actor. He seemed to be a lovely person and I found his outlook on life to be refreshing especially his ethos in terms of auditions which he was saying to him were just a way of showing what he would do with the part rather than necessarily him trying to impress them into giving him a role”.

Earlier in the day Dan worked with pupils cast in the upcoming production of “One Man Two Guvnors,” a play he’d spent a year in on The West End. It gave the cast a unique insight into how to approach the difficulties of performing comedy and how to best conjure up the reactions from the audience that the play needs to succeed. They all found it hugely helpful, and our thanks go to Dan for the time he spent with us.