Katie has been part of Zest’s journey since our national tour of Youthquake, 2019, bringing care, curiosity, and a deep belief in the power of collaboration. Through Zest, Katie has grown in confidence, expanded her creative practice, and developed a strong sense of her own value, showing that feeling the fear and doing it anyway can open up unexpected opportunities.
Katie has contributed to the following projects:
Youthquake (2019)
*untitled (2020)
Never Was A Normal (2021)
Monolith (2022)
Refresh Medway (2024)
ACE Parliamentary Reception (2025)
Future Proof (2023-present)
How did you get involved with Zest?
‘I first met Zest in 2019 when I was studying at Canterbury College. They led research and development sessions for the show, Youthquake, sharing the premise of the show and explaining how we would be involved. Zest interviewed us about our experiences of what it is to be a young person in Kent, and what we would tell older generations if we had the chance. Zest then returned at the end of 2019, and we rehearsed and performed three shows at The Gulbenkian, Canterbury.
‘When Youthquake finished, we honestly thought, ‘Great, bye Zest, that was a nice little adventure. Let’s get on with our assessments’. But then the Youthquake cast were asked to work with Zest on their online creative projects during the pandemic lockdown, and for a lot of us, it was the perfect creative outlet whilst we’re not able to leave the house. From these meetings, this was kind of how Future Proof started, becoming the Youth Advisory Group for Zest.’
What motivated you to join the Future Proof team with Zest?
‘What motivated me to join and stay with Future Proof is due to Zest’s work being so selfless, working for young people like us, and understanding how we inspire the work from our conversations. I love having these chats that feel so calm without pressure, and how these conversations are turned into massive installations or genuine pieces of work.
’With Zest and Future Proof, I can focus on something bigger than just my own acting journey. I’ve realised that quality work relies on other people, and the ensemble we have motivates me to stay. Even if I’m in a bad mood and I don’t feel like talking, I can join Future Proof and listen for hours because of the motivation that’s behind their words and actions. I just love working in an environment where everyone can flourish and we know that our voices really matter.’
Katie performing during Youthquake, at Gulbenkian, Canterbury, 2019
In what ways has your involvement with Zest influenced your career path?
‘My involvement with Zest has opened opportunities I never expected. Without Zest, I wouldn’t have worked on online projects, which eventually led to voice acting work, something I never thought I’d do. I originally only wanted to pursue acting, as I hadn’t tried anything else, but since then, I’ve ventured into other creative skills, such as puppetry and directing.
‘Through Zest, I work with the youth advisory board and have also shadowed the board, so I now understand much more about the inner workings of a theatre company and what it needs to function effectively. Working with projects such as Refresh Medway and attending the ACE Parliamentary Visit have helped me feel comfortable enough to speak as myself. I realised I wasn’t limited by a lack of opportunities; I was limiting myself. At university, I was able to share those experiences and step up as a leader.
‘Zest has also helped massively with connections. I now have a LinkedIn account, and I’m casually connected with Darren, CEO of Arts Council England - that’s definitely not something I predicted! Zest helped break the barrier in my mind between “authority figures” and the rest of us. It made me realise they’re just people you can have a normal chat with, and that I don’t have to see myself as separate from “the big leagues”. Zest transformed not just my opportunities but also my belief in my own potential.’
Kez and Katie working as young facilitators for Reresh Medway, 2024
How have your experiences with Zest benefited you personally?
‘We work in an industry where rejection is inevitable and, for every one good idea, I feel like I have ten bad ideas. But I’ve realised with Zest that it doesn’t mean that these ideas are not valuable, as they can spark and develop ideas when we work with other people. With Camp Phoenix, we were reviewing an early draft of the script, editing words so they sounded like how young people speak and seeing my ideas end up in the final show made me realise that my ideas are valuable.
’On a daily basis, I can feel scared of everything - I'm very anxious. But when it comes to working on creative projects that I’m passionate about, like the acting and producing, I can put the anxiety aside because I can see there's a greater cause for working through it.
’An example is when I worked as a young facilitator with the Refresh Medway project with Zest and I totally froze in front of the class of students. Toby calmly talked me through it, and I realised that even though I could feel the fear, I could speak to the young people anyway. What helped me to ground myself was to follow the plan and keep repeating back what the kids said to me, clarifying what they were saying.
’I know I’m always going to have these repetitive thoughts, so the trick isn’t to shut it off, it’s to change that inner dialogue and remember - It wasn’t a disaster last time, so it doesn’t have to be this time either. It’s so important to have people around you who take you out of that headspace, and that’s why I’m apprehensive about leaving Zest, because they have been a constant for all these years in terms of my personal growth.’
Katie, Lachlan and Aija representing Future Proof at the Houses of Parliament, 2025
Could you share any standout moments, stories or achievements with Zest?
‘Going to Parliament with Zest was absolutely terrifying, and I spent the first hour just thinking I wanted to go home. I didn’t know what to say to people, but then slowly realised I could handle it. At first, I worried about everything, what I was wearing, what I was going to say, trying to listen and speak at the same time, but meeting people like Anita Harris and talking about theatre and Zest felt really special. By the end of the visit, I’d gone from wanting to leave to actually starting conversations, and it showed me I can feel the fear, do it anyway, and come out the other side feeling proud of myself.
’Another moment that stands out is during rehearsals for Youthquake, when we were all so tired from so much college work and Toby, who’s always so supportive, just completely broke character one day and shouted, ‘just move!’ It was such a shock for all of us because he’s usually all rainbows and motivation, and it showed us how much passion everyone brought to the table, even during the tough moments.
‘What’s meant the most throughout my time with Zest has been the support and connections through tough times. Toby would send us these little voice notes after meetings, just a few seconds or a few minutes long, reminding us that Zest is with us and cheering us on. I made a collage of the inspirational things Toby said and shared it with the group so anyone could look at it whenever they needed a boost. There’s nothing quite like the support and belief you get from Zest and from Toby, it’s made all the difference for me.’
