Meet The Team

Hi! I’m Shelley Coates, Principal of Studio34 Music Academy and I’ve made a career out of performing and coaching for the past 25 years. 
Training at the prestigious Mountview Theatre Academy in London gave me all the right tools to pursue a career in Musical Theatre, performing initially in fringe productions to gain my first steps into the professional world.

From here, I went on to fulfill my dream of performing both in the West End and on National UK tours with varying musical Theatre productions.

I will never forget that first debut moment and I am now passionate to share that feeling with my own students and their families.

Having then been hired to work all over the world to help singers deliver their best performances on land and at sea, I knew teaching was my next natural step. So since starting a family of my own, this next dream became a reality.

We are very lucky to have a state-of-the-art studio space where our lessons are held so each student feels like a superstar when they first walk through our door! I love teaching and can draw upon a vast wealth of teaching techniques and personal experience, to help any age, ability, or style.
I also believe all the best teachers are the most avid learners and therefore dedicate time to researching the latest techniques and attending related seminars.

I have found the “Estill” vocal method extremely effective in my students, and am thrilled to see this technique being used in various drama colleges in London and around the world.   

I look forward to our journey together!

Rick has been a professional musician, pianist, composer, and arranger for some of the biggest names in show business!

Zoe Harrison trained in Musical Theatre at Guildford School of Acting and, after graduating, performed in National and West End productions. 

A personal highlight includes working with Andrew Lloyd Webber, when she understudied and played the role of Maria von Trapp in the London Palladium production of The Sound of Music. 

She also had the pleasure of working with Tim Rice in his revival of Blondel and again during his development of From Here to Eternity.

She has been lucky enough to teach musical theatre workshops globally in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Sri Lanka and Mauritius.

In teaching, Zoe’s focus is on creating a safe space so people can apply feedback and techniques with confidence and whilst also having fun! 

Zoe continues to work as an actor and is passionate about telling stories through song and helping others to do the same.

Lillie and Ruth are our assistant coaches.

Having trained under Shelley since 2017, they use the same methods and practices as Shelley to support many of our young students.

Our coaches love supporting students as they take their first step towards performing on stage, in our shows, and even in competitions.

As an integral part of the Studio 34 family, our assistant coaches work alongside Shelley and Rick in group sessions and provide behind-the-scenes support with repertoire choices and professional studio recording sessions.