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James Aconley

@jamesaconley

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Building confidence & community through performing arts
Principal | Educator | Founder
Sharing lessons in creativity & leadership
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New headshots = time for a little reintroduction… 👋🏼📸 I’ve recently had a refresh of my headshots, and it got me thinking… I spend A LOT of time on here talking about PQA, our students, shows, choirs, projects and the amazing people I get to work with…but probably not enough about the person behind it all! So, if you’re new here… hi, I’m James! 👋🏼 I’m a performing arts business owner, producer and educator. I’ve worked in the performing arts for more than 15 years, and started my PQA journey back in 2013 with one academy in York. Fast forward to today and I’m incredibly proud to be running PQA academies across York, Scarborough, Beverley and Hull, working with more than 500 young people every week. I also run Be Amazing Arts, producing theatre and creating opportunities for young performers, and Sing Space choirs in Malton & York, our musical theatre choirs for adults. But underneath all the job titles, the thing I love most is creating opportunities for people. Helping young people discover confidence. Giving performers a stage. Building brilliant teams. Making ideas happen. And creating spaces where people can discover (or rediscover!) their love of the arts. I’m also a husband, a dad, a business owner, a producer, a teacher, a business strategist, a problem solver… and someone who is perpetually trying to keep all the plates spinning! 😂 So, as I give my socials a bit of a refresh, I thought it was probably time you knew a little more about the person behind the profile. Hi. I’m James. 👋🏼 Thanks for being here! 🤩 by @jamesaconley
Been a while since I properly said hi 👋 I’m James – I run performing arts academies, lead choirs, make theatre and care a lot about confidence, community and doing creative work without losing its soul. This is me re-introducing myself… and sharing a bit more of the human behind the logos. Stick around 💛 #PerformingArtsEducation #CreativeConfidence #ArtsWithPurpose #BuildingConfidence #CreativeLeadership by @jamesaconley
About two months ago I decided to try posting here every day. Mainly as a bit of a personal challenge and partly to get more comfortable sharing thoughts, projects and bits of the week. It’s been interesting seeing what resonates and what doesn’t. But the biggest takeaway so far: consistency beats perfection every time. #PersonalBrandJourney #CreativeEntrepreneur #BuildingInPublic #ConsistencyMatters #FounderLife by @jamesaconley
🎬 RED CARPETS, BIG SCREENS & BIG PQA MOMENTS! 🍿✨ There’s something pretty special about seeing our students’ hard work up on the BIG SCREEN at Cineworld! 🤩 Over the past few weeks, our @pqayork and @pqascarborough students have been celebrating their short films with family and friends, walking the red carpet and enjoying their very own cinema experience. ❤️ But the magic goes far beyond seeing themselves on screen… From acting for the camera to working behind the scenes, our Film & TV students get hands-on experience of what it takes to bring a story to life. Along the way, they’re developing teamwork, communication, resilience and the confidence to try something new. These are skills that will stay with them long after they leave PQA, whatever their future holds. 🌟 A HUGE shout-out to our brilliant Film & TV teacher, @soy_george_96 , for helping our students bring their ideas to life and creating experiences they’ll remember for years to come! 👏 At PQA, it’s about so much more than performing. It’s about finding your voice, discovering what you’re capable of and being part of something special. 🎭🎥 #PQA #PerformingArts #FilmAndTV #YoungFilmmakers #LifeSkills CreativeConfidence PQAFamily by @jamesaconley
90 child-free minutes each week with the guarantee that your little one is learning new skills and making friends - yes please 🙏 PQA Poppets is designed to prepare children ages 4-6 for moving up into our main academy. Our Poppets work through 6 stepping stones: 💚 Imagination and creativity 💙 Communication and expression 🩷 Forming relationships 🩵 Listening and understanding 🧡 Working together 💜 Independence and taking responsibility All through songs, games and big adventures, so they’re learning without even noticing! Book your free taster session through the link in our bio 🎉 by @jamesaconley
The best production meetings also include brunch! 🍳 Last week, Kirsty, Christina, Nat and I came together to put the final touches on plans for @pqayork Dare To Dream Jr! 💛 One more rehearsal this Saturday before SHOWTIME! 🎭 by @jamesaconley
What a lovely evening at the Class Business Awards! ✨ I was incredibly proud to be a finalist in the Scaling Business of the Year category with our PQA business. It’s always special to take a moment to reflect on how far we’ve come, the amazing teams we’ve built, and the opportunities we’re creating for young people across our academies. I’m also reminded of just how proud I am to be part of the children’s activity sector. Being surrounded by so many passionate, dedicated people who are making a difference to children’s lives every single week is genuinely inspiring. There’s so much more to what we do than running a business - we’re building confidence, creating belonging, developing life skills and making memories that last. It was also lovely to spend time with some friends from across the sector: Sam @pqa_plymouth, Andrea @pqabury and Charlotte @babybandmusic. These events are always a great reminder of the people and connections that make this industry so special. ❤️ A huge congratulations to @iamkristinemonaghan on putting together such a brilliant event and bringing so many fantastic businesses together to celebrate the work we do. Proud of our PQA family, proud of our journey, and proud to be part of this wonderful sector. Here’s to continuing to make a difference! 🌟 #ClassBusinessAwards #ChildrensActivities #PQA #ClassBusiness #ChildrensActivityBusiness by @jamesaconley
Back for Week 2 of term at my wonderful @maltonmusicaltheatrechoir - the best way to spend 90 minutes! 🎶 by @jamesaconley
It’s today! 🎉 it’s the Red Carpet Cinema Screening for PQA Scarborough. We can’t wait to see our students and their families walk the red carpet and celebrate all things Film & TV! 🎥 by @jamesaconley
When your choir hits THAT harmony for the first time… 😭👏 I genuinely wasn’t prepared for this 😂 That moment when you’re leading the warm-up, everything suddenly locks in, the harmonies are beautiful… and your brain just goes: “WOW.” …and apparently your hands go: “We have no idea what chord comes next.” 😂🎹 I first saw @eleanor_wilson_music doing this warm-up and knew I had to try it with the choir — and hearing everyone’s voices come together like this for the first time was 😍 This is exactly why I love leading choirs. Yes, we work on the notes, the harmonies and the musicality… but there’s nothing quite like that moment when a group of people suddenly sounds bigger than the sum of its parts. ❤️ #Choir #MusicalTheatreChoir #ChoirLife #Singing #Harmony by @jamesaconley
Today was York Friday’s red carpet cinema screening at @cineworldyork 🍿📽️ Thank you to all our students, friends and families who came along to walk the red carpet and enjoy watching 6 brilliant films on the big screen! Back to work next week 🫡 by @jamesaconley
Oh no! What do you think of James’ recovery on this one? 🤣 Sometimes things get lost in translation when you’re teaching little ones so it’s always good to be clear 🙃 by @jamesaconley

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