Action Planning Session: Where and when do you want the future generations to start thinking about drama and…

Convenor:

Neelam and Mykela

Attendees:

-

Description:

Aims:
To establish free youth theatre group/s in Harborne which would bring the cluster of schools together.
Explore the time when children and young people are introduced to theatre and drama at school.

Drama offers young people many life skills and not just performance skills and the group felt that young people and children should have access to theatre and drama work earlier in their school life.

Youth Theatre provision within Birmingham can be very expensive and many groups are full so gaining access can be very difficult. The group thought The Rep, The Crescent and Big Brum had youth theatres. There were also Fame Academies but these could be expensive. The central library holds a list of less well known and free youth theatres like FestivalArts.

If it was possible to get a youth theatre group going within the Harborne Cluster this could provide a model for other clusters across Birmingham. (Meeting of the cluster co-ordinators set for 9th Dec 2009)

Funding could be forthcoming from the ‘Youth Opportunities Fund?’ The group believed that these funds were specifically designed to meet needs identified by young people themselves.

Could create opportunities for peer mentoring and students who go on to drama schools etc could return to pass on skills and work with students in the youth theatre.

Group were keen to explore models of how it could work, it wouldn’t necessarily need to only meet to create productions. Worth investigating the Arts Council – Get into Theatre- which offered models of youth theatres.

Could explore ways of engaging young people in all aspects of the work and not just performing e.g. set and costume design. Could turn out to local professional theatres for support.

Group discussed importance of using drama as a learning method to open up other subjects,
e.g. when learning Shakespeare it becomes much more accessible if drama is used rather than just reading it. Also could pull other areas of the curriculum into any performances e.g. music technology.

Some work had already been undertaken between Lordswood Girls and Lordswood Boys.

One good youth theatre to look at was Junction 25 that is run by Glassworks, a Glasgow based company. One group member thought they were very accessible for young people being either free or very low cost. They had performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this year.

ACTIONS

Set up a meeting with Jane Lewis, cluster co-ordinator to discuss ideas

Feedback ideas to head-teacher and drama teacher at Lordswood Girls from today

Contact and discuss ideas with Pepita Hanna from Birmingham City Council

Discuss ideas with Janet Bushell in relation to Birmingham’s City of Culture bid

Discuss with Deborah Kermode from Bright Space, Creative Partnerships
(brightspace.co.uk)

Draw up a menu of possible activities e.g. lunchtime drama clubs

Create a document listing arguments in favour of establishing the youth theatre

Discuss ideas with other drama students.

(Notes typed by Gill Adamson, Midland Actors Theatre.)