update report - Winter 2023
This month we hit a meaningful milestone - 8000 children will now experience the joy of live theatre through our programme. We think of each theatre ticket as a gateway for a child, unlocking doors to imagination, inspiration, and the sheer delight that live theatre brings.
Another big moment was Wicked sprinkling stardust on our little charity in early November. We received donations of over £4,000 from our collaboration on Wicked Day, we garnered over 1000 Instagram engagements, and we had a surge of 500 visits to the theatre works! website in one day.
Wicked Day is a three-day celebration where Wicked UK fundraised for us via ticket and merchandise sales, as well as by encouraging donations through our digital channels.
Coincidentally, one of the schools we sponsored with a grant, Queensbridge School, Birmingham, went to a Wicked matinee shortly after this campaign. There was a Q & A following the performance that clearly touched some of the children who attended, perhaps igniting a longer term interest in theatre.
Here's what the children had to say:
"The question and answer session was amazing, the actors were all so friendly and I loved learning about how the production was created."
"I was amazed at how many lights the theatre had and I enjoyed learning about what the lighting back stage crew do."
"I learned so much from meeting some of the cast afterwards, my favourite part was hearing from the Dance captain and what they have to do."
"It has inspired me. I want to be in productions and perform on stage."
Above: Students from Queensbridge School, Birmingham enjoy a Q & A with Wicked cast members
We encourage schools and theatres to provide related educational experiences around theatre performances, and this response was a terrific example of how a theatre visit can inspire students.
We are now an ongoing partner for Wicked’s philanthropic programme, For Good. We will be working together to ensure that theatre is available to all children regardless of their background.
Nicholas Hytner's ‘Guys and Dolls’
Our Honorary Patron, Nicholas Hytner, has generously donated ten tickets to his current performance of Guys & Dolls at The Bridge Theatre in London. A smashing success, the play opened to widespread critical acclaim. Time Out London said the ‘game changing immersive production of the classic musical is simply astonishing’. Clive Davis of The Times gave it five stars and called it ‘sheer satisfying bliss’. This production will be an enormous treat to the children who are chosen to go in January. We’ll update you further in our next newsletter.
Above: Guthrie Theatre, Minneapolis
Welcome to some new US Friends
We are delighted to be talking to some new theatres in the US about theatre works! We already work with three Miami theatres, Gable Stage, Actors Playhouse, and The Adrienne Arsht Centre, and have provided almost 1500 tickets to disadvantaged students there. At the moment, we are in discussions with the Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis, as well as a theatre in Santa Fe about how our grants can work best for them.
In the US we only work with theatres compared to our UK practice of working both with theatres and schools. Please let us know if you are aware of any US or UK theatres that might be interested in our programme. Theatres are given grants of up to £/$5000 and they then reach out to schools who provide a high proportion of free school meals. Please see our website for further details.
We start our conversations with each potential theatre partner by meeting the Head of Education. We want to ensure the theatre has a strong education programme, as we believe there are many life skills that come from visiting a theatre.
54% of our grants go to ethnic minorities
One of our strategic commitments is to reach out to as diverse a group of children as possible, focusing not only on socioeconomic issues but also children with special education needs and disabilities. In addition we have noticed quite a few children in the UK programme from Central and East European countries.
The holiday season is the time for children…and for giving
Please help us enrich the minds of two disadvantaged children this Christmas by donating £/$25 to theatre works! Why not make this a monthly payment? You can do this easily on our Just Giving Donation page.
100% of your donations support our grant making. The cost of running the charity is covered by the founders.
If you would like to discuss making a larger gift or leaving theatre works! a legacy, please contact us at info@theatreworks.global
Please Think About Volunteering
Delighted as we are with the growth of theatre works!, we need more volunteers to help. Volunteer support for Admin and Fundraising would be welcome. Please contact us at info@theatreworks.global.
Happy Holiday Season
To our theatre works! friends and supporters.
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