About Time to Perform

Learning should feel alive

Time to Perform exists because learning, confidence and growth should not feel flat. They should feel energetic, human, memorable and full of possibility.

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Founder

Founded by Joe Riley

Time to Perform brings together Joe Riley’s unusual mix of performance, engineering, education, science communication, corporate experience and live audience work.

Joe holds an MEng in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Warwick, specialising in Fluid Dynamics, and a Bachelor’s degree in Acting from Guildford School of Acting. That combination gives the work a distinctive balance: structured enough to support clear outcomes, theatrical enough to make the room come alive, and practical enough to adapt to real pupils, staff teams and organisations.

Career experience

Built from performance, education, science and real-world delivery

Time to Perform is shaped by a rare blend of formal training, professional performance, science communication, school leadership and corporate experience — all brought together through lively, practical communication.

Performance & storytelling

Actor, live performer and communicator

Experience across a variety of productions, events and live settings, including:

School productions since the age of 11
Part-time training at Birmingham School of Acting
Degree-level training at Guildford School of Acting
Shakespeare, including A Midsummer Night's Dream, Hamlet, King Lear, Titus Andronicus, Henry V and Julius Caesar

Contemporary work including The Importance of Being Earnest, Present Laughter, Entertaining Mr Sloane and Ladies in Lavender
Screen acting, radio and podcasts
Improvisation and live audience work
Immersive experiences and events, including cruise ships and scare attractions

Education & young people

Workshops, confidence and creative growth

Management and operation of an extra-curricular weekend performing arts school for ages 4 to 18
Experience delivering energetic learning sessions for children and adapting pace, language and participation
Clear awareness of SEN, varied confidence, sensory needs, communication differences and mixed literacy levels
Workshop design that supports participation first, then age-appropriate output

Science & communication

Complex ideas made alive

MEng Mechanical Engineering from the University of Warwick, specialising in Fluid Dynamics
Science communication across a wide range of topics
Experience turning abstract ideas into demonstrations, stories, questions and memorable moments
A structured, analytical approach that helps workshops stay purposeful as well as playful

Corporate, public-facing & operations

Professional delivery under pressure

Completion of the JLR graduate programme
Corporate experience in engineering, sales, marketing and PR
Management of operations in a historical attraction
Tour experience hosting, visitor engagement, events and live presentation

Unique vision

Fun with purpose. Energy with direction.

Joe’s passion is for the kind of experience people remember: the laughter, the surprise, the challenge, the moment someone steps forward, the story that suddenly makes sense. Time to Perform is built around fun, energy, growth, confidence and memory — not entertainment for its own sake, but learning that feels worth being part of.

The aim is to bring a unique character into the room: warm, bold, curious, playful and professional. Someone who can hold attention, lift the atmosphere and still keep the session rooted in clear learning or development goals.

When learning becomes a moment, it becomes a memory.

Inclusion and SEN

Designed to bring people with us

Time to Perform recognises that no class, nursery group or team is identical. Sessions are designed with flexibility, inclusion and confidence in mind, with adaptations for pupils with SEN, different communication styles, sensory needs, attention profiles, literacy levels and varying confidence.

Participation options that do not force every child to perform in the same way
Clear instructions, repeated structures and visual/physical cues where useful
Space for quiet observers, hesitant speakers and energetic contributors
Age-appropriate expectations around reading, writing, speaking and output

Approach

The Peak Moment Method

Time to Perform uses story, role, movement, evidence, performance and reflection to build memorable “peak moments”. The style is polished and professional, but never cold.

Drama-led

People learn by doing, speaking and responding.

Outcome-focused

Every workshop has a clear learning or development purpose.

Adaptable

Sessions flex around age, group size, space, confidence and needs.

Memorable

Each session aims to create moments that last beyond the day.

Want to see what this could look like in your setting?

Start with a simple enquiry. Time to Perform can suggest the best fit for your pupils, team, topic or event.

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