The project work I have engaged in draws on an affection for all of the ways in which people express who they are. I have an increasing interest in the crafts – there is something of the ‘handmade’ in all of the work that I produce – and in finding ways to encourage new makers and audiences to the arts. I have yet to find a way of describing this work. The American term Animating Democracy doesn’t quiet translate and Darren O’Donnell’s Social Acupuncture feels too particular. So these are projects that I care about which have the ambition of encouraging new makers and new audiences:
projects
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house
house is an attempt to help artists make a living from the things they make. Essentially it is a programming initiative that now works with well over 190 venues across the east and south east of England to ensure a greater range of theatre gets to more people.
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caravan
is a biennial 3 day showcase of new English performance at the Brighton Festival supported by British Council, ACE, Brighton and Hove CC, UKTI, Visiting Arts and others. The event features up to 25 companies and over 60 international festival programmers and producers. this has now evolved into a whole strand of work including programmes of exchange with South Korea and Canada as well as showcases in Shanghai and Vancouver
www.caravanshowcase.org.uk -
things to do before we die
one of the things that exasperate me the most is the empty rhetoric spoken by many in power about changing the ways things are without recognising that the very thing that needs to change is often themselves. ‘things to do before we die’ is one small attempt to encourage and share practical steps that might shift the status quo in terms of the audience and makers of art
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new popular
this is the realisation of a long held ambition to invest in making theatre that is both popular and contemporary. It is not a new idea but follows in the steps of John McGrath and his call to create ‘good nights out’. heaven knows we need to connect to a broader audience if we are to rediscover our usefulness to a greater number of people
