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THEY were Kate's Mates, the young hopefuls who set off on the road to stardom at the same time as Bafta winner Kate Winslet. But while she has found fame and fortune, fate has dealt her contemporaries at the Redroofs Theatre School a very different hand. Their stories, as diverse as the breaks that can come from nowhere to turn an aspiring actor into an international star, are a warning to anyone who thinks that talent and luck will always be enough to make the difference. Most of those who trained with her at the school in Maidenhead, Berkshire, in the early Nineties still cling to the hope that they will soon break into the big time. But it has not happened yet. Last week, as they talked to the Sunday Express, they contemplated why their careers have not taken off like Kate's. June Rose, the school's principal and artistic director, said: "I think luck comes to the prepared mind and we can have all the luck in the world, but if you don't know what to do with it you won't be able to make use of it." The school's resident film producer, Samantha Keston, said: "When Kate had opportunities she knew what to do with them and didn't waste them. We've had amazingly talented students and do sometimes wonder why they blow it. You find that life got in the way, or they didn't know how to deal with success and when luck came knocking they got all over-excited and let it slip through their fingers." Joel Embury, 24, a former classmate of Kate's, has been working as a mobile phone salesman for the past two and a half years and now drives a gleaming BMW, which makes him the envy of his hard-up acting friends. He said: "The sales job has been quite fulfilling in lots of ways because it has given me the opportunity to earn some quite good money. If everything does go pear-shaped when I try acting again, I know I can do a nine-to-five job." He became disillusioned with life as a struggling thespian after leaving Redroofs and enrolling on an acting course in London. He said: "I lasted about two days. They have method acting classes at Conway Hall in Holborn, but it was different to what I was used to. It put me off slightly. Some actors aren't particularly easy people to get on with. I found it quite overbearing because everyone's into taking the whole subject of acting very seriously rather than looking at it as an occupation." Fiona Stein, 24, was chasing a childhood dream of becoming a professional dancer when she went to Redroofs and, like most students there, she landed minor roles in TV dramas and adverts and did voice-overs. But it didn't take long for her illusions of finding fame in the West End to be shattered. She said: "I don't think we were ever told at school that you don't make any money out of dancing. When I left Redroofs to try to get work, I found it all terribly dispiriting. Auditions were just like a cattle market." Fiona, from Ascot, worked as a dance teacher to make ends meet but soon discovered she was good at it and decided to make it her career. She now runs her own dance school, Footsteps, which has 150 students. She said: "I think I'm happy. It's just a different way of life." Carlton Taylor, 23, from Reading, also changed his dream after leaving Kate's school. But he took an even more uncertain road - trying to make it as a rock star. Five years later he is still looking for his big break while touring with his band, Metro. He said: "The hurdles we face are just trying to get people to listen to our music and getting a good deal. But the moment you get disillusioned, it's over." |