Meet the CAST 2026 Tour Managers: Louisa Hailey and Natalie Sen-Yen Ng’s Excellent Adventure Begins!
Louisa Hailey (Pembroke 2024) and Natalie Sen-Yen Ng (Newnham 2024) share a love of the Cambridge theatre scene, deep connections to the United States, and complimentary management styles. With all of this considered, they applied to be the Cambridge American Stage Tour (CAST) 2026 tour managers and landed the roles. Founded in 1999, each year CAST selects a small group of the University’s most talented student actors and technicians to tour a Shakespeare production across the eastern US. It is the tour managers’ job to recruit the entire troupe, select a director and the play, identify venues, and organize the entirety of the travel, lodging, and all related details of the tour.
“We're also doubling up our roles,” said Hailey. “In addition to managing the tour, Natalie is the Education Officer, organizing all the workshops on tour, and I'm one of the assistant directors. So, we are part of the actual show as well as the tour, which is fun.”
Fun and, admittedly, hectic and challenging. To pull off this mighty mission while studying at Cambridge – Hailey is reading English and Ng is majoring in history -- a solid working relationship between the two managers is crucial.
“Louisa and I are very good friends,” said Ng.” We're both natural leaders and we bring different aspects of the theatrical creative process to the table.”
“I tend to be more of a people pleaser. I need to be friendly to everyone while Natalie tends to be very pragmatic,” agreed Hailey.
Both also have extensive experience leading student productions at Cambridge. Hailey has directed five plays. Ng had a brief musical theatre career when much younger. She had no intention of taking up theatre at Cambridge but the theatre, if not the stage itself, called her back.
“Getting involved in theatre at Cambridge is like rekindling a childhood thing,” said Ng. “But I didn’t want to get back on stage.” Instead, she did publicity for a program design for various shows and then began producing.
The two met and first worked together in a production of Pride and Prejudice. Ng producing for the first time.
“It was a massive show, which commanded a company of 30-40 people, and I really enjoyed it. I love watching the creative process. I love seeing it all come together,” said Ng.
“I was assistant directing,” said Hailey. The two consider their shared connection to and experience of the US to also complement their partnership. Ng is from Australia and has extensive family throughout America. Hailey spent part of her childhood in Maryland and Washington, DC.
“I’m trying to arrange for us to perform at my old school in DC,” said Hailey who moved to Kenya when she was ten years old and then to London.
The production that is CAST 2026 is taking form. Hailey and Ng have decided on a feminist-leaning take on King Lear. Both say the secret to handling tour management and their busy undergraduate lives is focus and balance. Observing the two colleagues together, it’s clear that camaraderie, humor, and friendship will be pivotal in the months ahead.
“I just love doing so much,” said Hailey. “It makes me more productive.”
Read more about CAST 2026 by visiting https://www.philanthropy.cam.ac.uk/give-to-cambridge/cambridge-american-stage-tour-cast