Our Story
Where it all began ...
Saturday Stage Schools was founded in 1998 by Jeff Waites, whose passion for theatre and performing arts laid the foundations for everything SSS has become today.
Jeff created SSS to give children and young people the opportunity to experience high-quality performing arts training, develop their confidence and, above all, discover the excitement and enjoyment of performing.
From those early days, SSS grew into far more than a Saturday class. Jeff created a community with a genuine love of theatre at its heart, something that remains at the centre of SSS and Purple Performing Arts today.
Growing up with SSS
Over the years, generations of children and young people have trained with SSS in dance, drama and singing, building skills, confidence and friendships along the way.
Performance has always been a huge part of the SSS experience. From showcases and workshops to our full-scale annual musicals, students are given opportunities to put their training into practice and experience the excitement of being part of a production.
Our annual shows have grown into major productions at Playhouse Whitley Bay, with a live band and professional creative and technical teams helping to give our students an authentic theatrical experience.
Some SSS students have gone on to professional training and careers within the performing arts, while others have taken the confidence, friendships, experiences and memories they made here into completely different walks of life.
Both are something we're incredibly proud of.
More than just a Saturday
As SSS grew, so did the opportunities available to our students.
Little Boppers gives our youngest performers their first introduction to performing arts before students progress through SSS Juniors and SSS Seniors.
Alongside our core SSS programme, Drama Club provides dedicated acting training and opportunities to work towards LAMDA qualifications, while MT Jazz Technique allows students to develop their dance technique, strength and performance skills.
Workshops, guest teachers, performances and special events have continued to expand the experiences available to our students.
A new chapter — Purple Performing Arts
In 2025, Purple Performing Arts was launched, bringing SSS and our growing programme of classes and opportunities together under one umbrella.
It wasn't about replacing Saturday Stage Schools or what Jeff had created. Instead, Purple Performing Arts gave us the opportunity to build on that legacy, creating room for SSS to grow while developing new classes, training and opportunities for our students.
Today, Saturday Stage Schools remains at the heart of Purple Performing Arts, and the values that have shaped SSS since Jeff founded it in 1998 continue to guide everything we do.
Almost three decades later, we're incredibly proud of how far SSS has come.
We've watched children arrive nervously for their first class and grow into confident young performers. We've seen friendships begin in rehearsals and last long beyond SSS. We've welcomed siblings, families and generations of students through our doors, and seen former students return as teachers, parents, creatives and supporters.
There have been thousands of classes and rehearsals, countless costumes, show weeks, opening nights and curtain calls, all building on what Jeff Waites started back in 1998.
SSS has changed and grown enormously since then, but the heart of it remains the same: A place to learn. A place to perform. A place to grow in confidence and make friends and memories that last a lifetime.
And now, as Purple Performing Arts, we're proud to carry that legacy forward into the next generation.
30 wonderful years!
