Newly launched theatre creatives’ group #scenechange is joining forces with theatres across the UK and Ireland in a new campaign to focus attention on the industry’s continuing Covid-closedown as other parts of the entertainment and hospitality industries start to reopen.
The #MissingLiveTheatre initiative will wrap theatre buildings with pink barrier tape reading ‘Missing Live Theatre’ in a bid to spread a positive message of hope and visibility.
Working with theatre staff, the #scenechange team began by taking their campaign from the National Theatre to the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester, the Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh, the Theatre Royal Plymouth, the Lyric Belfast and Sherman Theatre.
Last Saturday, theatres across the West End were bedecked in pink tape and during this week theatres nationwide will join the #MissingLiveTheatre campaign, with over 50 venues already committed including the RSC, Sadler’s Wells, Theatr Clwyd, Theatre Royal Stratford East, Sheffield Theatres and Ambassador Theatre Group.
Announcing the initiative, #scenechange said: “As businesses begin to reopen, the doors of theatres remain firmly shut, whilst we navigate a way back to live performance. Today as we launch #MissingLiveTheatre, we want to bring joy and colour to theatres across the UK and Ireland, whilst highlighting the ongoing impact of Covid-19, and what we as an industry and local communities are missing.”
Theatres who wish to join in the #missinglivetheatre campaign should contact: action@scene-change.com. Working with production manager Anna Fox, #scenechange will provide risk assessment and technical support, as well as linking theatres up with local designers for on-site installation. The tape will remain in place for up to one week before being removed and reused by #scenechange to envelop another theatre.
Aimed at providing a platform for all theatre set and costume designers, #scenechange was created by a group of leading theatre designers to offer support to fellow theatre creatives and ensure their voices are heard as the industry looks to ways to re-shape and re-build for life on the other side of the Covid-closedown
The initiative began with an email exchange under the title ‘Dialogue in Strange Times’ between a number of the industry’s most high-profile set and costume designers – Bunny Christie, Lizzie Clachan, Anna Fleischle, Soutra Gilmore, Madeleine Girling, Max Jones, Katrina Lindsay, Vicki Mortimer, Tom Piper, Jemima Robinson, Rajha Shakiry, Rae Smith, Ben Stones, Lily Arnold, Jon Bausor, Ruth Hall, Natasha Jenkins, Simon Kenny and Lucy Osborne.
Noting that the current crisis has highlighted the precarious nature of the theatre industry, the group aims to positively engage with venues, directors and producers nationwide to support and inform the process back to production. While noting that the freelance workforce has been among the worst affected by the crisis, the group hopes it will also offer an opportunity to examine the issues that often impede freelance creatives and change the way the industry works for the better.
Launching #scenechange, the group which now numbers over 1,000 members said: “This is a moment of reset in our industry and we believe the design community can be an essential part of the transformation that will see theatre buildings being reopened and the ways in which theatre can be reimagined.
“As shapers of theatrical space through the use of people and place, our work is pivotal in connecting an entire ecosystem within the theatre industry. We are ideally positioned to be at the heart of any discussions about how theatre operates in the future.”
The #scenechange website also offers resources including a blog from designers across the industry, an open forum, information on support and emergency funding, and provides a community and network for freelancers and artists during these challenging times.
Angela Thomas
SHARE THIS POST:
Comments are closed.