RURAL THEATRE

RURAL THEATRE

Sarah Ellen Macdonald, 29 September 2012

Sarah1, Clare, Chris, Michael, Hugh, Sarah2,

Combined Group Subjects
Attracting & Sustaining Audiences in rural Communities North Cambs Fenland Theatre

We discussed issues facing theatre makers in bringing performances to small rural communities in respect of projects at proposal stage in both groups.

Sarah1 & Clare have a particular project ongoing and Hugh is preparing proposals for taking theatre into North Cambs Communities. Both projects face common challenges in terms of Issues of accessibility, cultural attitudes.
Sarah1 and Clare faced additional challenges in tracking down original source material as well.

Funding is a pretty general issue for all of us these days but Sarah and Clare have found that community backing has been generous in supporting previous projects and are hopeful of continuing to source funding this way, along with pricing strategies to make admissions family friendly. Hugh is still exploring this and he and Michael both suggested various arts organisations to look at as well.
Chris suggested a potential contact with access to original source material for Sarah1 and Clare. Sarah2 suggested taking work into the community. Chris suggested bussing the audience in and gave helpful ideas of approximate costs.

Hugh suggested looking at community minibus availability.
Sarah2 Brought in the idea of outreach and inclusion workshops at an earlier stage incorporating the communities own issues within the framework. Michael suggested accessing the network of Village Colleges (STARTARTS) and through church groups and older people's centres.
A satisfactory ending was achieved with no final resolutions but plenty of good leads to find a way of achieving them.

Tags:

rural theatre, Accessability, research material, Rural Performance, outreach, inclusion, transport, Funding, rural, rural touring, funding