Karen Forte Stage, screen and everything in between

Karen Forte

Stage, screen and everything in between

Latest Articles

Short-Form, Long Game: The Serious Craft of UK Commercial Casting
Industry

Short-Form, Long Game: The Serious Craft of UK Commercial Casting

UK commercial casting moves fast, but the performance still has to be precise, truthful and repeatable. This is why thirty-second spots deserve the same rigour as stage or screen roles, and how actors can approach them without treating them as a compromise.

The Other Person in the Frame: How UK Audition Readers Shape the Room
Theatre

The Other Person in the Frame: How UK Audition Readers Shape the Room

The audition reader is the invisible co-star of UK casting: the person sitting just outside the frame who sets the temperature of the room. This is what makes a great reader, why they matter more than actors sometimes admit, and how to collaborate with them properly.

Velcro, Vaseline and Fourteen Seconds: Inside the West End's Quick-Change Tunnels
Industry

Velcro, Vaseline and Fourteen Seconds: Inside the West End's Quick-Change Tunnels

Behind every onstage transformation is a plot, a rehearsal, and at least two wardrobe staff with their hands in places you would not expect. An insider guide to the most high-wire craft in British theatre.

Two Lines From Centre Stage: The Hidden Working Life of the British Understudy
Theatre

Two Lines From Centre Stage: The Hidden Working Life of the British Understudy

Every night, hundreds of UK performers put on a costume, learn every line and hope the phone never rings. Three covers talk about the strange discipline of being permanently ready — and the guilt of quietly wanting a chance.

Boo Is a Skill: Meet the UK Performers Who Spend Eleven Months Preparing to Be Hated
Theatre

Boo Is a Skill: Meet the UK Performers Who Spend Eleven Months Preparing to Be Hated

Panto season opens across the UK this month, and the villain is the engine of the room. Regional panto veterans talk voice care, audience control and the off-season jobs that keep the boos coming.

Stop Performing at the Lens: The Self-Tape Fixes UK Casting Directors Keep Asking For
Industry

Stop Performing at the Lens: The Self-Tape Fixes UK Casting Directors Keep Asking For

Self-tapes are still treated like paperwork with a face. They are not. Here is how to turn yours into a scene, and why the format is changing who gets seen in the UK.

Tinsel, Trains and Take Three: A Performer’s Guide to the UK Touring Calendar
Theatre

Tinsel, Trains and Take Three: A Performer’s Guide to the UK Touring Calendar

Panto isn’t a detour from serious acting — it’s a bootcamp. As the 2026 festive season approaches, a practical, slightly chaotic guide to touring, vocal care and jumping between crowd-pleasing stage work and intimate screen roles.

Small Parts, Big Signal: The Quiet Craft of the UK Day Player
Industry

Small Parts, Big Signal: The Quiet Craft of the UK Day Player

Day players don’t get the poster, but they often carry the scene. A look at the preparation, set etiquette and quiet stamina behind Britain’s small supporting roles — and what emerging actors can learn from them.

Greasepaint and Reflexes: Inside Britain’s Unlikeliest Performance Bootcamp
Theatre

Greasepaint and Reflexes: Inside Britain’s Unlikeliest Performance Bootcamp

Panto gets dismissed as tinsel and tumbleweed, but the people inside it know better. As the 2026 season cranks up, here’s what Britain’s loudest, silliest, most exposing stage tradition teaches actors about timing, stamina and the art of the save.

No Single Lane: The UK Performers Turning Versatility Into a Career Plan
Industry

No Single Lane: The UK Performers Turning Versatility Into a Career Plan

The old advice was simple: pick a lane. In 2026, a growing number of UK creatives are ignoring it, moving between theatre, TV, voiceover and live events with intent rather than desperation. Here’s how multi-hyphenate careers actually work — and why casting is starting to catch up.