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Participatory Arts – Capturing The Learning, A Response From Kelly Barr, Arts and Creativity Programme Manger, Age Cymru

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In response to the lockdown triggered by COVID-19, many arts organisations have taken their work online, sharing content for audiences to view for free. However, creating participatory engagement online is much more challenging and, as a sector used to being face to face with people in their practice, it’s clear that the current restrictions change the nature of participatory arts based activity substantially.

Following a vital conversation on social media led by Guy O’Donnell, Learning and Participation Producer, National Dance Company Wales which opened a discussion on how we can deliver participatory arts effectively, a range of partners are collaborating to lead Zoom discussions for the sector where we can talk about the impact of the lockdown on our work and work creatively together to think beyond the lockdown.

In partnership with ArtWorks Cymru a series of free Zoom meetings have been set up to discuss and share current working practices in participatory delivery.

Capturing the Learning

These Zoom meetings will explore how we capture the learning from organisations and artists who are currently delivering projects. We’ll explore what methods are working well, what are we learning through this experience, and how we are adapting our working practices.

Kelly Barr, Arts and Creativity Programme Manger
Age Cymru hosted the first Zoom participation meeting. The meetings are free to attend but numbers are limited. Kelly gives an overview of the work Age Cymru has created to meet the challenges and the companies solutions to support the public and her service users in the current climate.

Hi can you tell me a little about yourself and your organisation?

Hi, I’m Kelly Barr, and I am the Arts and Creativity Programme Manager at Age Cymru, who are the national charity for older people in Wales. I have been working on participatory arts projects with all sorts of organisations for 6 years, including NDCWales, Earthfall and the Sherman.

The two main arts projects here at Age Cymru are Gwanwyn Festival, an annual celebration of creative ageing which happens in May each year, and cARTrefu, the largest arts in care homes project in Europe.

We also run other projects throughout the year that might try to tackle isolation and loneliness (like our Gwanwyn Clubs), stereotypes of ageing or representation of older people.

Your organisation is hosting one of the free Participatory Arts – Capturing the Learning / Beyond the Lockdown meetings. Why do you agree to support these events?

I am in a very fortunate position to still be working at this time, and I felt like I had a responsibility to support conversations within the participatory sector. I saw many people reacting wonderfully quickly and adapting their practice, but I also recognised that that isn’t always an option, particularly with the groups of people that I work with. I have always believed that we have much to learn from each other so it was an ideal opportunity to do my bit to support some good practice sharing.

What challenges has lockdown present to the delivery of your service?

Gwanwyn Festival has often been about bringing people together, many of whom are in the high-risk category at the moment, so we made the decision fairly swiftly to postpone the festival.

We had a duty of care to protect the people that might attend the festival events, and those that are running them.The creative ageing sector is very supportive so I have been lucky enough to have regular chats with colleagues across the UK and Ireland (Gwanwyn Festival was inspired by Bealtaine Festival), so that we can support each other to think about how festivals like ours might work moving forwards.

We also knew early on that it was going to be difficult to continue to deliver the cARTrefu project, as care homes were starting to close their doors in early March. We’re lucky to have supportive funders who we will be able to work closely with as things progress. We have multiple scenario plans but are very much being led by what care homes want and need right now.

What issues have your service users/participants faced?

I’m really proud to be part of Age Cymru, as they have been able to adapt really quickly during the pandemic to ensure that older people in Wales are supported. We run an Information and Advice line, which received a 200% increase in calls at the start of the pandemic; people needed advice on whether they should be self-isolating or shielding, where they could get support with food shopping and collecting prescriptions. People have also struggled to access their money, and needed support to find new ways to stay in touch with family members. I’m pleased to say that we have been able to help, in partnership with our local Age Cymru partners, Age Connects and other voluntary services across Wales.

What systems did you put in place to ensure delivery?

Many of us are well-used to working from home, but it’s been really important to find moments to connect with colleagues. Many of us are spending most of our day making calls to older people through our Check In and Chat service, so it’s not always easy to have online ‘meetings’ as often as we used to have physical meetings. So we’ve set up Whatsapp groups, we send voice-notes, have catch-up phone calls, send pet pictures (in my case, plants!) as well as whole team Zoom and Microsoft Teams meetings. It’s ever changing and adapting!

With my specific work, it’s about being available to our partners and being flexible and open about the realities. We’ve been taking time as a team to think further ahead, and problem solve, and take any opportunities we can. We’re also keen to use Gwanwyn and cARTrefu Facebook, Gwanwyn Twitter and cARTrefu Instagram to promote creative opportunities for older people as far as we can.

Did you have any particular challenges or success that you would like to share?

Back in April, I, like many people who are in a position to, wanted to offer out informal chats to anyone interested in running creative ageing projects, or having to adapt current projects. I had no expectations of what would come from this, only that it felt like the right thing to do, but it’s introduced me to new practitioners and individuals, which has helped to build up my understanding of what’s happening in Wales. Many people I might have struggled to physically meet pre-lockdown, due to being based in Cardiff, I have been able to connect with over the phone. I hope to continue to offer this out and to meet more people – digitally!

What are your plans for future delivery?

We’re exploring a range of options at the moment, but we’ll be working closely with our Gwanwyn Festival event organisers to look at how this might be possible. There may be ways to replicate events online, or using social distance rules. I have no doubt that our event organisers are already coming up with innovative and interesting ways to continue to connect to people and I’m looking forward to working together to adapt and learn!

With cARTrefu, we are ensuring that we are listening to care homes, and being led by their needs right now. We have developed a fortnightly e-newsletter that gives care homes low-resource activities to try, and links to lots of online performances and activities from Age Cymru (like Tai Chi classes, now on our website) and other organisations.

I’m aware that we’re now regularly speaking to people that are more isolated, some of whom who aren’t connected to the internet, so a lot of my thinking has been about how to stay connected to them and to provide interactive creative opportunities that are offline.

I’d like to highlight Age Cymru’s Friend in Need service that has launched this week, and direct anyone to it if they’ve been supporting someone who is self-isolating or shielding through lockdown. There’s lots of useful guides and resources, as well as details of our new Befriending scheme – Friend in Need

A range of organisations have worked to continue delivery of their art form during lockdown are there any that you would like to mention that you found either professionally or personally useful?

I’d love to highlight the wonderful speakers from our first Participatory Arts Capturing the Learning Event:

Artis Community, Re-Live and Welsh National Opera.

And I’d love to shout out to all of the cARTrefu artists whose work has suddenly come to a grinding halt with us, but have been helping us to provide creative activities for care homes remotely.

Thanks for your time  Kelly

The meeting notes from Participatory Arts, Capturing the Learning – Older Peoples Zoom Meeting that Kelly hosted hosted on Thursday 28 May, can be found at the link

Art, Dance, Festivals, Literature, Music, Musical, Theatre

Creativity Rocks the Arts Factory, MaDCaff 2020 By Ann Davies

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Take me back to the days when we were never alone – well, let’s see, it was the month of March when creativity rocked the Arts Factory in Ferndale and we were altogether. The scene had been set in 2019 when the forward looking company Avant Cymru introduced a MaDCaff evening event to The Factory in Porth as part of the FestYPorth celebrations. It sparked an idea for such an event to be held in the Rhondda Fach. Proposals for a venue were put forward and the nucleus began to evolve as the Arts Factory (the Trerhondda Chapel Arts Centre in Ferndale) took up the baton for it to be staged as a Community activity to raise funds for Mental Health.

A MaDCaff event is an experience which is encompassed in its very title

Music Dance and a Café

It is an open mic where people can perform or be entertained, pressure free with a quiet place to talk if required. With DAC (Disability Arts Cymru) and the Arts Factory volunteers, the evening became a cornucopia of colour as musicians assembled their electrical equipment and sound tested their instruments, dancers waited in anticipation of opening the event, whilst people bought Raffle Tickets on their arrival, sourced the Refreshment stand and marvelled at the artwork that had been kindly donated by local artist Carole Kratzke for the Art Auction.

The young dancers of Avant Cymru, coming from their recent performance at the Millenium Centre in Cardiff, blew caution to the wind with their energetic and exhilarating movements, incredibly intricate and jaw dropping showing the skills that they had been taught by Jamie Berry, a company Director of Avant Cymru, who, in January 2020 won the deserved accolade of Wales Creative Tutor of the Year bringing his distinctive talent to develop the health and wellbeing, through dance, to the Valleys.

Gaudy Orde announced their arrival with their usual toe tapping eclectic music with Jeff Japers (aka Andrew Powell) on the ukulele, keyboard and main vocals; Tall Joy (aka Joy Garfitt), Helen Spoons (aka Helen Probyn-Williams); James Parr – Superstar; Barry Sidings (aka Alex Coxhead) and Romany Bob (aka Andy Roberts) providing a surreal and distinctive experience of music, song and humour into an intoxicating mix as the evening progressed.

In turn Jeff Japers, as the evening’s Master of Ceremony, introduced the Nutz ‘n’ Bolts duo which normally consists of husband and wife team Dawn and Dave Hoban, but on this night we were invited to meet Jowan who sang with Dawn. It was an experience of emotions entwined harmonies and excellent guitar playing.

Les Allen, Linda Michele, Ann Davies and Anne Lord, who are members of the RCT Creative Writers Group, read selections from their 10th Anniversary publication “Handle with Care” ably supported by Members Jess Morgan, Gerhard Kress, Helen Probyn-Williams and Rachel Williams.  Jakey (12), our favourite therapy dog was present to ensure that everyone was feeling safe and well.

The interlude that followed included the results of the Raffle, closely followed by the Art Auction which had bids bouncing from every direction in the audience. The Open mic participation was offered to the audience as one of the young Avant Cymru dancers stepped forward to sing, closely followed by singer guitarist Lee Harvey from Aberdare. Talent can be found in quiet places as Josh and his “companion” dummy took up the Ventriloquist mantle for the night in a comedic conversation. The Bella Vista Coffee Club brought the house down with their jazz performance provided by Ann and Paul Hughes, Jim Barrett, Helen Probyn-Williams and Sally Churchill.

TimeLine a trio of local singers and musicians namely Nigel, Gary and Keith, opened the second half of the evening’s entertainment. Their songs were rich and melodious and the audience were soon joining in with the verses of the songs that brought back so many treasured memories.

Tricycle, comprising of Gerhard Kress, Paul Rosser and Michael Morton brought the event to a close with the atmospheric musical sounds of a fiddle combined with guitars alongside their passionate lyrics.

Louise Gaw, Project Coordinator for Changing People Changing Lives at the Arts Factory Ferndale introduced Sara Beer, South Wales Regional Officer of DAC (Disability Arts Cymru) to bring the evening to a close. Thanking all within the Arts Factory and DAC for their hard work in organising the event.  Goody Bags were given to people as they left including items from DAC. Gifts were kindly donated by Francesca Kay the noted WordArt, Poet and Letter Press professional from Hay on Wye, who is a friend of RCT Creative Writers Group

I would like to personally extend my appreciation to all who responded to the request for participants and to RCT Creative Group Members who supported me in arranging this event giving their time and energy freely to provide a true Noson Llawen Merry Night to remember for those who attended. 

We were all left with the memories of songs, music, dance, poetry and stories echoing the creative talent that is within the community.

Times have changed and we are now finding ourselves in an unprecedented situation.

WE are all the waves on the same sea, and at this moment we send each other a virtual hug with the message to stay safe and well.

MaDCaff maintains the talent of RCT.

With thanks and appreciation to
Sara Beer and Volunteers of Disability Arts Cymru
Louise Gaw and Volunteers of Arts Factory Ferndale
RCT Creative Writers Group Members especially Anne Jess Les Gerhard Helen and Rachel not forgetting Jakey
Carole Kratze
Francesca Kay
To photographers for their kind permission

Sara Mayo Gerhard Kress Anne Lord Jess Morgan
Open Mic performers 

Jamie Berry of Avant Cymru and dancers Jeff Japers for his Master of Ceremonies Gaudy OrdeNutz ‘n’ BoltzTimeLine Tricycle
and for all who gave their support for this event to raise funds for Mental Health

Diolch yn fawr iawn

Literature

Review Live a Little, Howard Jacobson By Barbara Michaels

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Published by Jonathan Cape ISBN 978-1-787-33143-3

Price: £ 7.37 paperback, £9.99 Kindle (Amazon)

Perceptive, erudite prose honed to perfection with a dry acerbic humour is what we have come to expect from Howard Jacobson.  His latest novel, Live a Little, more than justifies those expectations. Jacobson reaches – and maintains throughout – a degree of empathy (not to be mistaken for sympathy) with the two central protagonists -both of them reaching their twilight years.

A colourful yet totally believable character, at the age of ninety-something Beryl Dusinbery is forgetting everything – including her own children.  Nevertheless, with plenty of dosh and worldly goods to cushion her final years, plus two devoted carers, she is still one sparky lady.  Shimi Carmelli, on the other hand, is best described as a nebbish, full of doubts about himself and harbouring a guilty secret.  Despite this, he is still presentable enough to be considered by the Widows of North London (as formidable a bunch of predatory blue-rinsed females as you could find anywhere) a Catch.  

When Beryl and Shimi meet up, there is a rapport between them as each reaches back among tangled memories of the past – some real, others cloaked in cloud.  Memories both fond and painful rise to the surface, with some surprising results.  Jacobson both intrigues and at times irritates; dense italics over several pages can, and do, slow down the narrative.  Nevertheless, as the text delves in and out of the past into the present and back again, the reader is driven onwards, compelled by the insight into the foibles of old age dealt out mercilessly by the author in a combination of empathy and wit, both in the sharpest of spot-on prose that holds the reader in thrall through to the end.

Defined by its brilliance of language and complexity of reach, this, the latest novel of an award-winning author, including the Man Booker Prize for Fiction for The Finkler Question, can only be described as a tour de force.  Powerful, unflinching in its approach yet at times hilarious, with an amazingly intelligent yet readable prose, Live A Little was described by John Burnside of The Guardian as being worthy of being seen as “The dystopian British novel of its times.”

 A journey both backwards and forwards in two lives, warts and all.  Pulling all the punches, and bitterly observant of the foibles of advancing years, yet acknowledging that sexual desire can take many forms – and that love can lurk beneath the most unlikely surfaces.

                                                                                                              Barbara Michaels

Celebrations, Festivals, Literature, Music, Theatre

Graduate Showcase Anna Billes

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Many Welsh or Wales based arts graduates are finding this current period especially difficult. Their usual opportunities to meet agents, prepare for final year exhibitions or productions may take place later in the year or sadly not at all. To raise awareness of the diverse talent graduating this year GTC is offering any Welsh or Wales based graduate the opportunity to be showcased on our website. If you are interested, please do get in touch.

Hi Anna great to meet you, can you give our readers some background information on yourself please?

Hello Guy, of course! I have just graduated from my BA Hons Degree Course in Creative and Therapeutic Arts at The University of South Wales.

I have a background in Support Work, Drum Circle Facilitation and Therapeutic Work with the Touch Trust in Cardiff Bay, supporting participants who have a variety of needs to explore the Arts during sensory sessions. I am now going on to develop my business called ‘Young at HeArt’; supporting people of all ages and stages to explore the Arts in intuitive and creative ways. You can find out more about me at my website. Facebook or Instagram.

As part of my graduate, online art exhibition for the final year of my Creative and Therapeutic Arts Degree Course, I will be hosting an ‘Online Parade,’ based on the old folklore tale of Pontypridd’s River Taff. The ‘Online Parade’ will take place on May the 16th (2020) (arriving for 1:45pm) starting at 2pm.


So what got you interested in the arts?

I always enjoyed art in school. In fact, I went to a Steiner School from 14-18 years old. My education at the Steiner School in Edinburgh encouraged me to pursue art as my passion as everything we learned was taught in an arty and holistic way. 

Can you tell us about your creative process?

During my last three years at University, I have discovered that Community is my ‘Art’; my Arts practice revolves around the participants that I work with and their needs. I enjoy exploring the Arts in an intuitive sense, supporting my participants to shape our Arts sessions together in ways which suit them and their creative process. 

As a young Welsh artist graduating during a very difficult period what investment and support do you think is required to enable your career to develop and prosper?

Interestingly, I’m actually from Scotland in Edinburgh, although I studied my course in South Wales. At the moment my biggest question is “Where would I like to live next?” In a sense, the world feels like my oyster. I’m happy to go where the work leads me at this point. If someone was to offer me a Community Arts job, working with participants of all ages and stages in a holistic environment, I would be very happy with that! 

A range of arts organisation and individuals are now working online or finding new ways to reach out to audiences. Have you seen any particularly good examples of this way of working?

At the moment I am working on an online Arts project with Artis Community, exploring the mask making along the theme of ‘Your Inner Warrior.’ At the end of this project, once I have made a series of videos detailing how to make and what you can do with your ‘Warrior Mask,’ I will facilitate a ‘Masquerade Hour’ on Zoom. I’m really looking forward to this! 

I’ve also really enjoyed engaging with some of my drummer friends online. For example my friend Jane Bentley, Doctor of Music, has been working with ‘Luminate’ to show people at home how they can turn their living rooms into an orchestra made out of every day household items. 

If you were able to fund an area of the arts in Wales what would this be and why?

I think I would fund more intergenerational projects; encouraging older adults and children to explore the Arts together and teach each other their own artistic skills. I am very passionate about working with intergenerational groups, as I think mixing the age groups can really encourage participants to try out new artistic mediums and most importantly, build positive friendships with each other. 

What excites you about the arts in Wales?

There seems to be so much going on in the South Wales creative scene! Through my University course I have connected with many amazing Arts professionals who are doing some very exciting and valuable work in hospitals, schools and communities. There seems to be lots of creative opportunities popping up all the time which is wonderful. 


What was the last really great thing that you experienced that you would like to share with our readers?

Over the last year I have been working on a project called ‘The Heartbeat Project’ with Studio Response at the Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport; supporting children in hospital to create musical and artistic responses to their heartbeats which they heard through a stethoscope. While my participants played their responses to their heartbeats on djembe drums, bells, chimes and other percussion instruments, I recorded the them on my phone and then we listened back to the recorded sounds and painted what we heard onto a sheet of paper. I am currently in the process of also making a soundscape out of the sounds which I explored with each group of participants. This soundscape will be played in the Multifaith room in the new Grange Hospital in Cwmbran once it has been fully built.  

 Thanks for your time, Anna.

Film & TV, Literature

Review Normal People, BBC Three By Vic Mills

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out of 5 stars (4 / 5)

Normal People, written by Sally Rooney, Alice Birch and Mark O’Rowe and directed by Lenny Abrahamson and Hettie McDonald is based on the novel by Sally Rooney and stars Daisy Edgar-Jones and Paul Mescal.

I came to this with no knowledge of the book and for that I am grateful; some of the finest qualities of this drama are in the screenplay, direction and, above all, in the acting, and, whatever the qualities of the novel, this is a piece of art in its own right and should be judged as such.

The characters played by Edgar-Jones and Paul Mescal are Connell and Marianne.  The story begins with them in their last year of High School in County Sligo in the Republic of Ireland and follows them in twelve short episodes through the end of Sixth Form and on through their undergraduate years at Trinity, Dublin.

Psychologists and our own experience teaches us that what we go through at this time in our lives identifies us for ourselves – we always see ourselves, in some sense, as what we were then, as our life is at its most intense for us.  The music, the art, the sport and above all the relationships experienced at this time, we come to think of as ‘our time’, ‘our era’.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p08b6f9p

It is this quality which drives not the narrative but the emotional landscape of this superb drama.  There is an unerring touch with the writing, editing and the resulting atmosphere of this piece which makes us feel intensely for Connell and Marianne as they stumble into and through their love.

There are a number of likeable and quite well-drawn characters in this piece; Connell’s mother, played beautifully and with real restraint by the gorgeous Sarah Greene is the most notable of the supporting cast – but support is all they ever really are.  You can draw each figure with a sentence as they never matter for themselves, only for the way in which they impact upon Marianne and Connell.  Marianne’s mother and brother clearly impact her life horribly, but it is the impact on her only which is allowed to interest us.  They cannot be allowed to take our eye off the ball by mattering in and of themselves.  The awful death of Connell’s school friend is a central trope which is explored in depth, but we don’t know the boy or care for him, we know Connell and watch him experience his grief.  Similarly, the ghastly boyfriend of Marianne’s is little more than a cipher to show us more of Marianne herself and of Connell.  There is great discipline in the screen writing which never allows us to shift our focus or interest away from our real subject.

The work is intensely claustrophobic; we are almost suffocated by the script and the camerawork; we feel voyeuristic and deeply uncomfortable at being present for such private moments, which are handled beautifully and with the surest of touches throughout.  There’s an awful lot of sex.  Thankfully, it is almost always between Connell and Marianne – Edgar-Jones and Mescal got to know one another very well, without a doubt.  In a world were sex for young people can become so commoditised and influenced by pornography, the simple, tender, naïve couplings of these two youngsters is quite lovely.

There are funny moments, deeply touching moments and an awful lot of dreadfully sad moments.  It was a fine decision to keep episodes so short – we could let ourselves breath after half an hour and feel some measure of relief that it was over, then long for the next episode to begin.

In watching Connell and Marianne we watch ourselves.  That, I think, is the most wonderful thing about this drama – the way in which it takes us to that time in our own lives.   The quality of the work delivers emotions which are raw in the extreme and our late teenage and early twenties lives come roaring back at us like the Sligo waves.

Film and television acting is, by necessity, a very technical thing; making something so convincing, so visceral, so raw and so real then is a huge achievement.  This is work of the very highest order and for those of us who shared Marianne and Connell’s journey, it will stay with us for some time.

Film & TV, Literature, Theatre

Graduate Showcase Lauren Ellis-Stretch

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Many Welsh or Wales based arts graduates are finding this current period especially difficult. Their usual opportunities to meet agents, prepare for final year exhibitions or productions may take place later in the year or sadly not at all. To raise awareness of the diverse talent graduating this year GTC is offering any Welsh or Wales based graduate the opportunity to be showcased on our website. If you are interested, please do get in touch.

Hi Lauren great to meet you, can you give our readers some background information on yourself please?

Hi! My name is Lauren Ellis-Stretch, am originally from Porthcawl in Bridgend. I am a playwright, theatre maker and some-time critic. I am currently in the midst of, rather abruptly, finishing my studies at the University of Manchester. Approximately, I am only a ‘mere’ 14,000 words away from completing a BA in Drama and English Literature!

 So, what got you interested in the arts?

Well, in highsight I think I’ve always had a penchant for story-telling. I wouldn’t say I lied, but as a child my stories were perhaps always well-embellished… I lied a lot. Then, in secondary school I found Drama and I was seduced by its transformative potential, its collaborative nature, and the magic theatre possesed which I have been chasing ever since. I developed a love for play scripts reading The Tempest, and A View From the Bridge, and other old-exam board favourites. But the seminal moment which transformed my encroaching fascination into true obsession came when we were taken to see A Doll’s House at the Sherman Theatre, in 2015. It was one of the first professional plays I had ever seen, and I just knew that I wanted to make things that made people feel as electrified as that production had me.

A Dolls House, Sherman Theatre, Cardiff. Credit Nick Allsop

Can you tell us about your creative process?

A lot of reading, seeing things, talking to people, quite often it involves ill-timed epiphanies which send me scrambling to find loose paper or the notes app on my phone. I haven’t yet had the pleasure, and perhaps, equally, the horror of working over a long stretch of time on one project. Mostly, the plays that I have written have been churned out in the pressure-cooker of student theatre in which everything is created within a max of ten days, mid-essay deadlines. It has been, on the whole, an exhilarating way to work, and always an intensely visceral process. However, I do look forward to seeing how I can approach writing over an extended period of time in the hope that I will expand, develop, and interrogate the work more thoroughly than ever before.

As a young Welsh artist graduating during a very difficult period what investment and support do you think is required to enable your career to develop and prosper?

I think what is required is guidance. There is going to be a lot of time, which I identified above as something which could be incredibly beneficial in an artists’ process. However, this runs the risk of resulting in a stagnated period of learning about our chosen crafts. If the pace at which you’re working, and trying things out is particularly rapid you will learn what mistakes not to make again, and what is good practice very quickly. To see more mature and experienced artists reaching out to younger artists  (not only in age but in experience) and offering their support and guidance would be particularly beneficial for the individuals; also, on a wider scale, this could assure the emergence of a thriving and innovative, post-lockdown, industry.

A range of arts organisation and individuals are now working online or finding new ways to reach out to audiences. Have you seen any particularly good examples of this way of working?

There is so much incredible content being put online at the moment! I have been thoroughly enjoying watching NT Live productions, and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical screenings. I also, recently, enjoyed a very sweaty Frantic Assembly warm-up with Simon Pittman, which was inspired by their show Beautiful Burnout. And, I loved listening to Ashes to Ashes Funk to Funky by Martha Reed on Chippy Lane’s Podcast.

If you were able to fund an area of the arts in Wales what would this be and why?

I think, biasly (as my passion is for playwriting) that more needs to be done by established theatres to engage with new, fresh and diverse voices in Wales. I think the Welsh industry, in comparison to other theatre ecologies in the UK, is really lacking in a scripted theatre/playwriting culture. I think recent steps towards readdressing this by the Sherman Theatre, Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru, the Other Room, and Chippy Lane Productions has been a step in the right direction but this has to continue. Particularly, there needs to be more effort in engaging with BAME, working-class and womxn writers.

What excites you about the arts in Wales?

Having a theatre scene that is effectively much smaller, and less established than in cities such as London and Manchester means that there is a real sense that anything is possible! Also, there is access to certain resources that in a larger cultural hub would be hard to access. The community, for example, in the Welsh arts scene is particularly inspiring for young artists, I feel. More experienced artists often seem very willing to share their experience and time with you which can be so rewarding when you’re just starting out.

What was the last really great thing that you experienced that you would like to share with our readers?

Sh!t Theatre Drink Rum With Expats at HOME, in Manchester! It’s not the last great thing I saw, however, it is really really great, and I’d like to put a spotlight on a smaller theatre company. (However, Three Sisters at the National Theatre, and the Royal Exchange’s Wuthering Heights have been other cultural highlights for me, in the past couple of months!) But, Sh!t Theatre Drink Rum With Expats was a piece of theatre that I found so incredibly joyous, thought-provoking, and devastating all at the same time.

It was political, and silly, and they gave out a lot of booze. It was an wholly-encompassing and arresting theatrical experience. I don’t want to say too much about it because hopefully, at some point in the future, they will continue with their tour, and you will get to see it! The reason I think it’s so notable as a great piece of theatre, though, is because for younger theatre-makers it is the perfect example of being anarchistic, daring, and completely unique in your rebellion; and I think that is what will be needed of us in an artistic landscape, post-lockdown, creative rebellion. 

Many thanks for your time Lauren.

Art, Literature

Graduate Showcase Gabriella Wilde

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Hi Gabriella great to meet you, can you give our readers some background information on yourself please?

Hi, thanks for having me. I am currently completing my Illustration Degree at Swansea College of Art.

In the last three years, humour and satire, in response to the world around me, have become key components of my work. For me, illustration is all about storytelling, and sharing information and experiences. Although my love of illustration has stemmed from narrative and character-based projects, I am keen to develop my skills further in other areas, such as typography, so that I can work more holistically.

 So, what got you interested in the arts?

Books. I was constantly reading books growing up; Jacqueline Wilson was my favourite, and, looking back, I can see how imitating Nick Sharratt’s work in school has led to my pursuit of an illustration career. I definitely don’t think the impact would have been as profound, if my family and teachers hadn’t supported and encouraged my creativity- I think this was the most important aspect.

Can you tell us about your creative process?

Usually I begin by imagining a visual scenario that I think is funny. For example, Cinderella walking around the Prince’s Ball covered in pumpkin gunk because the carriage hadn’t been scooped out properly. This initial idea could often work well as a single illustration; however, I like to explore how I could apply this narrative voice to the entire story or scenario. If I am reimagining a traditional story, such as Cinderella, I try to create accompanying rhyming text. The use of rhyme helps to create a consistent flow and helps me to keep the text concise. When producing my illustrations, I try to maintain the same livelihood as my sketches; if the lines are too precise I find that the personality of my characters gets lost.

 As a young Welsh artists graduating during a very difficult period what investment and support do you think is required to enable your career to develop and prosper?

I believe having the chance to showcase our work, in the same way as years before have, is very important. It is an unusual situation, and I support that our exhibitions could not go ahead as planned. However, as we have put the same time, energy, and funds into our degrees, it would be a shame to miss out on this crucial aspect of the course, which we have been working towards for at least the last year. I hope that there will be support for all students to be able to host exhibitions and shows as soon as it is safe to do so.

A range of arts organisation and individuals are now working online or finding new ways to reach out to audiences. Have you seen any particularly good examples of this way of working?

I have loved seeing people creating and sharing free colouring pages. My old school art department have also been hosting weekly art challenges for students, staff, and family to take part in. This definitely enforces the sense of community that we need right now, and I am eager to have a go at some myself.

If you were able to fund an area of the arts in Wales what would this be and why?

Following on from the work that I produced for my dissertation, I think it would be great for Wales to explore art as therapy further. Now more than ever, it is clear that producing art can be beneficial for our mental health. There currently aren’t many course options in Wales for those that wish to pursue art therapy as a career pathway, and I think that more options would encourage applications.

There is also a gap in the market for Wales-based illustration agencies. I’m sure that the growing Welsh publishing and film industries would love a place to easily select home-grown talent.

 What excites you about the arts in Wales?

The arts industry in Wales is continuing to grow. Wales has already become well established within the Film and TV industry, and this recognition is beginning to expand into other areas. It’s amazing to see people travel to Wales to pursue their creative careers! With the accessibility of the internet, creatives are no longer required to uproot their lives to larger cities, like Bristol or London. Despite this, developing more opportunities for creatives within Wales will definitely help to maintain the arts in Wales.

 What was the last really great thing that you experienced that you would like to share with our readers?

I recently illustrated a poem as part of an Instagram competition. After the writer liked, commented on, and shared the post (having forced myself to tag her), it has become one of my most successful posts. In this lockdown era, smaller actions have greater results, and this shows just how easy it is to support creatives, even in isolation!

You can find out more about Gabriellas work at her website here

Thanks for your time Gabriella

Thank you for the opportunity!

Literature, Theatre

Review: The Kite Runner, Theatr Clwyd by Beth Armstrong

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⭐⭐⭐

(Please note this review contains detailed discussion of the play’s plot) Based on the hugely popular novel by Khaled Hosseini, The Kite Runner, adapted for the stage by Matthew Spangler, had a lot to prove. Despite enjoying two runs in the West End in 2016 and ’17, I wasn’t as enamoured with the piece as many other audience members. Having studied the novel at A-Level, the boldness of the story and the narrative poetry which I had loved, weren’t quite captured in the theatrical language of this adaptation. Though it still packs an emotional punch and features innovative staging ideas, overall the play felt a little slow and watered down.

An unlikely friendship: Amir (David Ahmad) and Hassan (Andrei Costin). Image: Betty Laura Zapata

The story is narrated by Amir (David Ahmad) as a grown man, recounting his life in almost verbatim style, which, as a confessional story is a sensible choice but this sometimes takes away from the drama of the moment. Told in chronological order, the play begins with Amir’s childhood in Afghanistan where, as a wealthy Sunni Pashtun, he enjoyed a comfortable life and spent his days playing with his father’s servant, Hassan (Andrei Costin), ostracised for being a Hazara Shiite. On the fateful day of the kite tournament, Amir witnesses a horrific assault on his best friend, and his passivity haunts him decades later; when a phone call from an old friend comes out of the blue, Amir travels from his new home in California to Pakistan in an attempt to finally atone for his sins.

The whole production of this adaptation is minimally staged. The music is mostly provided by onstage tabla player, Hanif Khan, as well as Tibetan singing bowls used to create atmosphere. The live music is one of the play’s shining factors and it draws us into the world immediately.

https://youtu.be/qJtaNjoY5hQ

Barney George’s set is equally sparse: just a wooden floor which curves like a skateboard ramp and alternating patterns projected onto a central rug. The backdrop changes colour and is decked with mounted wooden posts to vaguely resemble city skylines, but neither adds much to the production. There are also two giant canvas kites which swing down to conceal scenes and characters, which are effective, and which also show us Amir’s childhood pomegranate tree and later, Hassan’s death, through William Simpson’s projection design.

Baba (Dean Rehman) and Amir (David Ahmad) on the minimal set. Image: Betty Laura Zapata

The sparseness of the stage works for the more distressing scenes where we only need to see characters and their expressions, but it makes the joyous ones like Amir and Soraya’s (Lisa Zahra) wedding feel a bit flat. Kitty Winter’s dancing is not quite lively enough to bring up the energy, nor is Charles Balfour’s lighting and Drew Baumohl’s sound really utilised to inject a party atmosphere either. This theme continues with the kite flying scene; there were only two tissue-paper kites, and they were clutched, not flown, in the hands of ensemble cast members, while Amir and Hassan’s kite was just mimed. The whole cast did do a good job of creating the tournament’s excitable tone and the use of several large, wooden Schwirrbögen, swung to create the sound of the wind, was very effective, but I wanted more kites – whether projected, or suspended in the auditorium. Now I wasn’t expecting a Mary Poppins moment, but I had hoped for much more of a spectacle for the novel’s most iconic scene.

The wedding of Amir (David Ahmad) and Soraya (Lisa Zahra). Image: Betty Laura Zapata.

The performances are strong, with David Ahmad bearing most of the weight as the central character who almost never leaves the stage; he does a great job of capturing Amir’s selfish, self-pitying persona and is given plenty of fodder to do it with routinely interjected monologues. Andrei Costin is well cast as the faithful lamb Hassan, and he brings real pathos with Sorab; having Costin play both characters is a clever yet logical choice on director Giles Croft’s part, fitting in with the idea that father and son share an unmistakable resemblance. The decision to represent the characters as children through adopting somewhat whiny children’s voices, however, is a bit of a misstep, sounding inauthentic and becoming a little grating. Child-like physically (which Costin and Ahmad already perform well), coupled with simply speaking with an Afghan accent would have sufficed, and would still have contrasted with adult, American-accented Amir; Hassan’s voice need not contrast anyway as we never see him grow into a man. Dean Rehman is also great at grounding the piece as Amir’s father, Baba, bringing a nuance to the role with both power and sensitivity.

The most harrowing moments such as Assef’s assault on Hassan and Sorab’s attempted suicide are neatly hidden or dealt with offstage but still manage to evoke a few audible gasps and genuine sniffling from the audience. The subject matter is difficult enough that visual representation is not needed but I did want Sorab’s dancing scene to be more poignant. In the book, it’s an exploitative and sinister moment where Amir realises the suffering of Hassan has multiplied in his son, and is the catalyst for Amir finally fighting for someone other than himself. In the same vein, author Hosseini’s Assef is more sadistic – leering yet captivating – but Bhavin Bhatt plays him with a gravelly voice which makes him almost a caricature. Despite his strong portrayal as the teenage bully, Bhatt doesn’t quite manage to evolve the character convincingly into the wild, paedophilic fanatic. The fighting (directed by Philip D’Orléans), even with a knuckleduster in the mix, is also a bit lacklustre.

Adult Assef (Bhavin Bhatt ) terrorises Sorab (Andrei Costin). Image: Betty Laura Zabata

There is one incredibly emotional scene in the hospital however, where Amir prays for Sorab’s recovery on a prayer mat made by a rectangle of light, and where Ahmad gives a tear-jerking performance of desperation. There’s also a touching point at the end where Amir finally stands up to Soraya‘s racist father (Ian Abeysekera) and shows Sorab how to fly a kite, causing a flicker of a smile on the boy’s face. Amir asks Sorab if he would like him to run to capture the kite they have won together and Sorab nods; Amir tells him, ‘For you, a thousand times over’ – a moving and cyclical moment of atonement which I feel should have been the final line.

The Kite Runner is a faithful adaptation with a hard-working ensemble cast and great use of use music, but it’s a little bland and lacks the vitality of its original medium. It is well-crafted and unspools nicely over its 130 minutes, but never fully takes off and gives us the spectacle we need.

The Kite Runner continues its UK-wide tour until 4th July.

Festivals, Film & TV, Literature, Music, Theatre

Top Tunes with Luke Seidel -Haas

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Hi Luke, great to meet you, can you tells us about yourself and your work?

I’m Luke Seidel-Haas, I’m a Cardiff based theatre maker and one of the founding members of new theatre company CB4. CB4 Theatre was founded a couple of years ago; we’re all Drama graduates of the University of South Wales and having done our separate things for a few years we found ourselves gravitating back to Wales and wanting to create theatre together. Right now, we’re about to perform our debut show “Back to Berlin” at The Other Room at Porter’s Cardiff. It’s a show that I’ve written and am performing in and is inspired by a true story my dad told me, about when he travelled back to Berlin to see the Berlin Wall come down in 1989. The more we spoke about his story, the more we realised how many parallels it had with what’s going on at the moment across Europe and around the world; while the story is set 30 years ago, so many of the themes feel just as relevant now as they did back then.

 This chat is specifically about music and the role it has played in your personal and professional life. Firstly to start off what are you currently listening to? 

Right now I’m listening to Kanye West’s most recent album Jesus Is King. It’s quite different to his previous albums, and is more influenced by gospel than his rap/hip hop roots. Kayne is often unpredictable, and I love that with every new album he releases you never quite know what you’re going to hear next – Jesus is King is no exception.

https://youtu.be/T58tRXzjC7c

When I first heard it, I wasn’t sure about it, but after a couple of listens I think it’s a really interesting album which uses a type of music not often heard in the mainstream. I saw Kanye headline Glastonbury in 2015, and it was one of the most bizarre, intense but unforgettable performances I’ve ever been to.

We are interviewing a range of people about their own musical inspiration, can you list 5 records/albums which have a personal resonance to you and why? 

 I Choose Noise by Hybrid

Hybrid are a Welsh electronic music group who blend electronica and house with cinematic and orchestral stylings. Most of their music doesn’t have words, and so is really useful to use in a rehearsal studio to help devise or work on physical or movement based sections of work. Their music is often used by companies like Frantic Assembly, as well as on movie soundtracks. I could have chosen from a few albums, but “I choose Noise” is just a really varied album which has often helped me out of a rut when devising.

https://youtu.be/mKIpY43e4YM

Volume 3: The Subliminal Verses by Slipknot

This album resonates with me more for personal reasons. As an angsty teenager whose wardrobe had a distinct lack of colour it was probably one of the albums I had on repeat more than any other. To some people Slipknot just sounds like angry noise, but I think this album manages to mix that aggression and anger with amazing hooks, guitar solos and powerful choruses. There are also a few tracks like Circle and Vermillion Pt. 2 which are unexpectedly melodic and emotional.

https://youtu.be/ds1xo-Hfq68

The World of Hans Zimmer by Hans Zimmer

Okay I’ll admit, this one is a bit of a cheat – I couldn’t choose just one album by this legendary composer. Hans Zimmer has written some of the most iconic music in modern cinema including The Dark Knight Trilogy, Inception, Interstellar, Pirates of the Caribbean, True Romance and so many more. His scores are so emotionally evocative, and to me they resonate because of how they help to drive plot, develop tension or reflect the underlying emotion of the scene. With a lot of films, the soundtrack ends up feeling like an accompaniment – something which adds a bit more flavour to the film, but that they could manage without.  Zimmer’s best soundtracks rise far above this and become a vital part of the whole experience.

https://youtu.be/ffJhoNDVMvY

Angles by Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip

This album resonates with me because of its mix of the deeply political with the outright silly. “Angles” manages to go from a reflection on the death of Tommy Cooper, to rapping the periodic table, to A Letter from God to Man, to a film noir style existential rap. Hip hop often unfairly suffers with the stereotype that it’s all about “guns, bitches and bling”, and before listening to this album I was probably wrongly was under that impression too. This album opened my eyes to how different genres can be used to make a political point. Scroobius Pip also has a fantastic beard.

https://youtu.be/LitVVreQkt0

A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships by The 1975

The 1975 are a band that have really developed their sound over the course of each album. As a left-wing millennial, I think A Brief Inquiry… manages to brilliantly tap into a lot of anxieties that people of my age have. Songs like Love It If We Made It and Give Yourself a Try are on the surface catchy pop tunes, but the political and social messages they carry are a testament to the strength of the song writing. They are also a band that seem to (as much as possible) practice what they preach and are leading the way in terms of making live music and touring as eco-friendly as possible.

https://youtu.be/6IAlV63rvaA

Just to put you on the spot could you choose one track from the five listed above and tell us why you have chosen this? 

Love It If We Made It from A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships by The 1975

To me, the lyrics of this song are some of the most powerful of any pop song released in recent years. The song leaps from talking about Donald Trump and Kayne West, to Heroin addiction via the Jonestown massacre and dead migrants washing up on beaches, but despite its rather bleak lyrics and content, its refrain of “I’d love it if we made it” makes the piece feel hopeful and optimistic. It’s a great piece of music if you want to get yourself angry about the state of the world, but in a way that makes you want to take action to make things better.

https://youtu.be/1Wl1B7DPegc

Thanks Luke

Back to Berlin By CB4 Theatre is running at The Other Room @ Porters from 3-6th March 2020. Tickets are available here

Circus, Dance, Festivals, Film & TV, Literature, Music, Musical, Theatre

14 Months On A Response To Arts Council Wales, Corporate Plan, 2018 – 2023 “For the benefit of all”

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In November 2018 we published an article in response to the new Arts Council Wales Corporate Plan “For the benefit of all..” with a range of contributions from Creatives in Wales. We revisit this area in the updated article below with responses from one of the creatives featured in the article as well as an additional contribution.

Our mission statement at Get The Chance is “Creating opportunities for a diverse range of people to experience and respond to sport, arts, culture and live events.”

We were very pleased to see some of the priority areas in the new Arts Council Wales, Corporate Plan, 2018 – 2023 “For the benefit of all”

In particular we were interested in Commitment 2 below

We will enable a greater number and a wider diversity of people to enjoy, take part and work in the publicly funded arts.

ACW then go onto make a series of intentions (below) for where they want to be in 2023 (5 years)

We will be able to demonstrate clearly that all our funding programmes promote and contribute to equality and diversity

There will be a narrowing of the gap between those in the most and least affluent social sectors as audiences and participants

We will develop the creative work of disabled artists by funding “Unlimited” commissions and developing a scheme similar to “Ramps on the Moon” operated by Arts Council England

We want to introduce a “Changemakers” scheme placing BAME and disabled people in senior executive positions in the arts

We want to see a doubling of the number of disabled people in the arts workforce

We want to see a doubling of the number of Black and Minority ethnic backgrounds in the arts workforce

We want to have introduced an Arts Council Apprenticeships scheme designed to provide opportunities for people from diverse backgrounds

We will have achieved a trebling of the number of BAME and disabled and on APW boards of governance

You can read the full article from last year here

Adeola Dewis

Artist, researcher, academic and TV presenter

I struggle to fully engage this as a response. My recent experience has revealed that there is certainly a surge to include diversity in all its forms on boards and in creative spaces and projects. However, this new ‘interest’ feels more like organisations ‘needing’ to diversify rather than ‘wanting’ to diversify, in order to secure their future and funding. I am hopeful though.

Elise Davison

Artistic Director, Taking Flight Theatre Company

What a year of change 2019 has been.  For Taking Flight it has seen the company move away from the annual Shakespeare production to more indoor, venue-based work.  

peeling by Kaite O’Reilly, opened on International Women’s Day in March at The Riverfront, Newport and then toured Wales and England and was a huge success earning 4 and 5* reviews.

The Guardian stating “Accessible theatre? Do it properly – do it like this”.  Following this Taking Flight was invited to Grenzenlos Kulture festival in Mainz, Germany as an example of best practice in accessibility.  It was a huge tour and highlighted once more the inaccessibility of much of Wales; accessible accommodation is very hard to find, and some venues struggled to meet our access riders.  However, this did lead to some very inventive solutions involving temporary dressing rooms created with flats, curtains and even a marquee! Obviously not the ideal but with our hugely creative stage management team always looking for solutions rather than the problems and the support of venues we made it work. High applause to Angela Gould at RCT Theatres for her work in this department. 

Angela Gould, Theatre Programme and Audience Development Manager, RCT Theatres.

One of our lovely actors toured with her dog who was a lovely addition to the team. Max is a therapy dog; many places we visited were only familiar with guide dogs, which made us realise how much there is to learn about the different types of assistance dogs.  

Everything we learnt during this extensive tour will feed into the work we have been developing towards a scheme like the Ramps on the Moon initiative.  A scheme like this can never be replicated, but the interest and passion from venues in Wales to be involved is overwhelming.  Creu Cymru, hynt and Taking Flight have been in ongoing discussions about ways to make this happen.  We read with interest that it was also a priority for ACW and have begun conversations with them around a similar scheme. As we have been researching and pushing for this to happen since ‘Ramps’ began in 2016, we are passionate that this becomes a reality.  Taking Flight has just received funding for their next production, Road, at Parc and Dare, RCT Theatres and we hope this partnership will be the first step.   Taking Flight will give support to participating venues to be confident to manage and produce inclusive work, to provide excellent access and a warm welcome to all- both audiences and creatives. 

While peeling was out on the road in the Autumn, we also remounted the hugely successful and totally gorgeous You’ve got Dragons.  After a run at WMC we hit the road again for a UK tour including a week run at Lyric Hammersmith which was almost sold out and incredibly well received. The desire for inclusive and accessible work for young people is growing.  Watch this space for more news on You’ve Got Dragons next adventure.

getthechance.wales/2017/04/25/review-youve-got-dragons-taking-flight-theatre-company-ysella-fish/

Taking Flight has often dreamt of setting up a Deaf- led Youth Theatre for D/deaf and Hard of Hearing young people and with funding from BBC Children in Need we have finally done it. Led by the tremendous Stephanie Back in BSL and English, the youth theatre began last week and the results are already fabulous. The Wales Millennium Centre are our amazing venue partner and host the weekly sessions for D/deaf children aged 4-18. We have been overwhelmed with interest in this project, demonstrating that this has been needed in Wales for a long time.     

There has also been a surge in interest from companies and individuals wanting to consider access while writing funding applications.  There is a general excitement around making work accessible. There are some brilliant intentions and I’ve had exciting conversations with companies about different types of access and have been able to recommend consultants and access professionals.  

The ground has been fertile for change for some time and there is much more inclusive and accessible work being created here than when we first started 12 years ago.   Theatres are also much more interested in programming diverse work and many have invested in Deaf Awareness training with Taking Flight (Led by Steph Back). 

Steph Back

 There is a real desire to diversify audiences and welcome them to theatre spaces.  Taking Flight’s next symposium on 28th Feb at Park and Dare RCT theatres on Relaxed Performances brings the brilliant Jess Thom, Touretteshero to Wales to discuss ways to provide the warmest possible welcome to those who may find the traditional etiquette of theatre a problem.   

Jess Thom, Touretteshero

There has been a surge of work featuring D/deaf and disabled performers, productions like Jonny Cotsen’s Louder is Not Always Clearer, Leeway Productions Last Five Years and Illumine’s 2023 really engaged new audiences and the venues have really built on this success.    There have been more productions that embed access in a creative way, a gorgeous example in Gods and Kings by Fourinfour productions with integrated BSL from Sami Thorpe.  I had lots of fun working with Julie Doyle and Likely Story integrating BSL interpreter Julie Doyle into Red. Companies are choosing to interpret, audio describe or caption all the shows in a run rather than just one which is really encouraging and promoting more equality of access to shows.

So, the will to make accessible work is absolutely there, the best of intentions are definitely there and, now the funding for access is factored into budgets, the funds are usually there. However, why is it still access that falls through the cracks, gets pushed aside or forgotten as a production approaches opening night?  I hear stories of interpreters and audio describers who can’t get into a rehearsal space to prep or are placed somewhere on stage that is neither aesthetically pleasing nor practical.  It can still sometimes feel like access is something that needs to be ticked off a list in order to fulfil a funding application.  

I am absolutely sure that this is not the intention; but we are all so overstretched, one person is often doing multiple jobs (especially in small companies) and when no one is directly responsible for access or it simply forms ‘part’ of someone’s role. So those best intentions and exciting plans are really hard to fully achieve.  Taking Flight are exploring this lack of provision for access co – ordination with Bath Spa University so watch this space for the results of our research… The next generation of theatre makers are coming, and they really care about making work that can be accessed by all – that makes me happy.