Creative Connections: Making plays and sharing practice through Grow Up Exchange
At Company Three, we think the youth theatre sector has so much potential to create radical, transformative change for young people across the country. All we need is to build better links and share our practice more.
We’ve already started to do that – through our play blueprints, Time Capsule Project and When This Is Over exchange.
Now, we’re bringing some of the country’s leading youth theatres together to create four new shows from the same starting point. Four groups of young people, from Northumberland, Swindon, Plymouth and London will work together and learn from each other. We’ll meet regularly as leaders and facilitators to share practice, knowledge and material. We’ll watch each other’s work. We’ll cheerlead and support each other.
Most excitingly, we’re taking all four groups on a unique residential in late October, a chance to get to know each other and share practice and ideas.
Each company will use the same starting point to create a full-length play. They could be wildly different, or have moments of real connection – we don’t know yet. Our source will be the words ‘Grow Up’. Teenagers are told to do this all the time, but are rarely given any space to do so – what do they think of this and how do they feel about growing up in the world today?
Grow Up will be created and co-led by Beyond Face, Company Three, Mortal Fools and Prime Theatre.
Beyond Face
Beyond Face provides opportunities for artists of the Global Majority to live, work and thrive in the South West theatre sector. Founded in 2015 by Alix Harris, alongside creating their own productions, Beyond Face works with local global majority artists and young people to help them to build their own creative work and sense of community. Throughout their Regional Voices programme, Beyond Face connects with local people who currently have little to no engagement or experience with the theatre industry, investigating how people who don't work in the arts sector can engage with arts as a creative outlet.
“We are super excited about meeting and making new connections with the other groups, especially the residential. We are excited to see how each group will interpret Grow Up, and how our different locations will influence this.”
Mortal Fools
Mortal Fools is an award-winning theatre, drama and creative learning company using drama and creative interventions to co-create with 1000s of children and young people annually, supporting their wellbeing, development of life skills and enhancing employability. We cultivate safe spaces for creative bravery whilst empowering each young person to scaffold towards a fruitful future.
We are a company of participatory artists and practitioners who are committed to co-creating compelling, dynamic, socially-relevant and high-quality theatre-based work with children, young people and communities.
“The Grow Up project is an exciting opportunity for our artists and young artists to directly co-create and collaborate with those at Company 3, Prime Theatre and Beyond Face. This project enables us to broaden young people’s experiences like meeting and working with other young people and artists, participating in more arts experiences, and taking them to new places.”
Prime Theatre
Prime Theatre has been creating theatre for young people, by young people, since 1986. Prime has large education and outreach programme which includes Prime Youth Theatre and is resident in 7 schools across Swindon. We develop young actors, writers, and technicians aged 5+ through regular workshops, projects, and performances. Recent productions include, This is Our Town (a Lottery Funded production performed at STEAM museum), Punk Rock (with a live band and fully integrated British Sign Language), 2046 (a commission which featured Sherlock and Dr Who star Mark Gatiss) and The Odyssey in a new adaptation by young writers.