From Wolverhampton to Waterloo Road

A former member of Wolverhampton’s Central Youth Theatre has secured a starring role in the BBC’s reboot of Waterloo Road. Priya Sasha Kumari from Parkfields will be playing the recurring role of Samia Choudhry in the new series, which returns after seven years off the air. Priya will star alongside Kym Marsh and Rachel Leskovac who join as school staff, while Angela Griffin (Kim Campbell) and Kate Griffiths (Chlo) will be reprising their roles.

Priya is a former member of Central Youth Theatre, having joined at the age of 15. During her time at the youth theatre she performed in a variety of performances including Great Expectations, The Glass Menagerie as part of the Wolverhampton Literature Festival and participating in ‘Everybody Dance Now’ an international youth theatre festival, hosted in Wolverhampton in 2012 as part of the Cultural Olympiad. Priya went on to study Contemporary Theatre at university and returned to CYT as a member of staff, directing performances that travelled to Italy and the Czech Republic. Since then, she has pursued a career as a professional actor and in 2021 Priya secured the role of Cicily Silsby in Bill Kenwright’s and The Classic Thriller Theatre Company’s tour of The Cat and the Canary.

Holly Parry, Artistic Director of Central Youth Theatre commented

‘We’re absolutely thrilled for Priya. She thoroughly deserves this breakthrough and we couldn’t be prouder of her. We’ve had many former members carve out successful careers in the industry behind the scenes, including award winning lighting designer Tim Routledge whose career highlights include lighting 2019’s Glastonbury headliner Stormzy. But we often get asked ‘Which of your former members would I know from the telly?’ and we’re pleased that this year we can say ‘Priya!’

Central Youth Theatre is Wolverhampton’s longest running youth theatre with 2023 marking their 40th anniversary. Many of their alumni have forged professional careers in the creative sector such as lighting designers, stage managers and film set decorators. CYT regularly run training workshops for young people from Wolverhampton who are interested in pursuing a career in the arts. This Easter they are running a backstage training programme called ‘Passion for Production’ for young people aged 12-25. The 6 days of workshops will enable young people to work alongside industry professionals in lighting and sound design, prop and scenery creation and costume design. Prices start from £20 a day with discounts available. To find out more contact admin@centralyouththeatre.org