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Interviews
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Jonathan Penton - From Derby to Bombay Steve Orme meets Jonathan Penton, a Derby actor who is appearing in Bombay Dreams Changing career in mid-life is a risky enough business. Joining the acting profession seems particularly perilous. It would appear even more of a gamble when you've hardly had any experience on the amateur stage. Despite that Jonathan Penton turned pro in his late 30s. His life-changing decision paid off because he is now into his second year in the cast of the surprise West End smash-hit musical Bombay Dreams and is understudying a couple of the principal roles. It's a huge number of air miles away from his first career choice - a member of the cabin crew with British Airways. But he felt he wasn't reaching the true height of his potential and now he's in the ascendancy doing something he really enjoys. I met him in his dressing room at the Apollo, Victoria, a theatre which has changed almost beyond recognition since Starlight Express finished its 18-year run. However, little has been done to make the backstage areas inviting for those who have to spend a large part of their lives there. Jonathan wanted to be a dancer from the age of eight but he wasn't allowed to showcase his talents: "My parents took the decision not to send me to dance school and wanted me to get a proper career, which was probably the best decision for me at the time." It wasn't until he was in his thirties that Jonathan first trod the boards, joining Derby Opera Company and Central Operatic Society, also based in Derby. "Amateur theatre in Derby is very good. There's a very broad spectrum and quite a lot of professionals have started there," said Jonathan who joins an impressive list of actors whose roots are in Derbyshire including Sir Alan Bates, Sir John Hurt, Timothy Dalton, Robert Lindsay and William Roache. Derby is one of only two places in the country which has its own awards for amateur theatre, the Eagles. They were introduced in 1996 and Jonathan's versatile baritone voice impressed the judges - he won the accolade for best actor for Anatoly in Chess. "The Eagle awards really made me think that possibly it wasn't too late to take up acting as a profession," said Jonathan. "A lot of people said along the way 'think very carefully about it' but most actors know whether they start young or whether they start mid-life like myself that there are going to be periods when you're out of work. That comes with the job." Jonathan went to drama school when he was about 35. British Airways gave him a year's break to go to the Royal Academy of Music and study a post-graduate course. "Luckily I got severance from British Airways and I've really not stopped work since." His first professional job was at the Bridewell Theatre in a play about the Derbyshire plague village, Eyam. After that he went into Martin Guerre and then Bombay Dreams came along - eventually. His perseverance paid off as he got the job after no fewer than nine auditions. Although he is British, Jonathan was born into a family of mixed cultures and his father has Goan, French and Portugese descendants. "I auditioned for the original cast of Bombay Dreams and for some reason, like all jobs, sometimes you don't get them. But I got called two months after they opened to say they'd like me in the cast. It really was a concept to start with, so I was in at the very first few rounds of auditions. They were doing an Asian talent search throughout Britain and they had a very small pool of people who were actors and singers from the Asian community, so I was in right at the beginning. It was a two-year process before the actual show opened." He is into his second 12-month contract with Bombay Dreams which is now in the black, justifying Andrew Lloyd Webber's investment in it. "I haven't been surprised at the success of Bombay Dreams because it's a collaboration of a lot of professional people with something new and unique to musical theatre, a Eurasian musical about the Bollywood process of making a movie and some of the emotional relationships that are tied up within that process." Jonathan also made his television debut earlier this year, on Casualty, and hopes for more work on the small screen in future. But making a career-changing move at the age he did means his head is definitely not in the clouds. "My ultimate ambition is to be in work, keep enjoying the job and maintain a healthy, happy lifestyle," said Jonathan, now 42. "For me, being in Bombay Dreams is very exciting. Coming from Derby as an amateur performer to becoming a professional in mid-life is also exciting. I'm very happy and it's an answer to my dreams, really."
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