prompt magazine issue 67 april 2013

ISSUE NO. 67April 2013

Families matterAs the Family Arts Campaign takes shape, Prompt looks at how arts organisations across the UK are welcoming family audiences.

takes shape, Prompt looks at how

are welcoming family audiences.

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Welcome…to the April ‘Campaigning’ issue of Prompt! As the Family Arts Campaign takes shape, we’ve dedicated this issue to fi lling you in on the plans for the initiative and giving you more information on how your organisation can get involved.

As well as taking a detailed look at the campaign’s progress so far, we’ve highlighted some of the incredible work taking place across the country that has inspired us and looked at how access to theatres is improving to welcome more families.

We’ve also taken a look beyond successful family theatre models to explore what we can learn from museums, a market that has embraced families with huge success and off ers a wealth of advice and experience from which the arts can benefi t.

Last month marked the launch of another vital campaign organised by the TMA, Equity and Th e Stage, My Th eatre Matters!, which calls upon theatregoers to shout about how important their local theatre is to their community in the face of local government arts cuts. In the news section you’ll fi nd details about how you can help us to spread awareness and support this crucial initiative.

We hope you enjoy this issue of Prompt and that you’ll join us campaigning.

David Brownlee

04 | News

09 | Going placesPrompt speaks to Lisa Maguire about her new role as Executive Producer at National Theatre Wales.

Families matter 11 | Smith on stageAlistair Smith argues the importance of drama in education.

12 | Keeping it in the familyJo Caird talks to the team behind the Family Arts Campaign and fi nds out how TMA Members can get involved.

17 | Family First Nights Caroline Bishop talks to Mousetrap Theatre Projects about Family First Nights and looks at whether it is a viable model for regional theatres.

22 | Learning from museums Dea Birkett discusses what arts organisations can learn about welcoming family audiences from the work already taking place at UK museums.

26 | Welcoming all familiesMark Fisher explores how theatres are evolving to make their work more accessible to family members with access needs.

TMA events & training29 | EventA look at discussions that took place at this year’s open space event exploring issues surrounding employment opportunities for East Asian actors.

31 | Forward ThinkingJim Price offers Prompt an insight into the golden rules of leadership.

32 | Meet & GreetKate Stanbury introduces readers to Gemma Nelson, TMA’s Marketing and Membership Manager.

34 | Sounding BoardThree industry members discuss how they engage family audiences with their programming.

36 | ResearchDavid Brownlee looks at The Audience Agency’s research on how 21st century families are accessing information about arts events.

38 | CalendarYour at-a-glance guide to forthcoming events and training courses.

Editor: Charlotte Marshall | Editorial Assistant: Clare Ollerhead | Design: Alex Tranda, SOLT Digital Team | Cover photo by Alex Rumford Contributors: Dea Birkett, Caroline Bishop, David Brownlee, Jo Caird, Judith Dimant, Mark Fisher, Juliet Forster, Lisa Maguire, Clare Ollerhead,Jim Price, Alistair Smith, Kate Stanbury, Gavin StridePrompt is brought to you by the Theatrical Management Association, 32 Rose Street, London WC2E 9ET. Tel: 020 7557 6700. President: Rachel Tackley. Chief Executive: Julian Bird. General Manager: David Brownlee. Prompt is printed by John Good, Progress Way, Binley, Coventry CV3 2NT. To advertise in Prompt please contact Viv Plumpton on 01993 777726. All views expressed in Prompt are not necessarily those of the TMA or its members. The inclusion of advertising material in Prompt does not imply any form of endorsement by the TMA.

Issue 67 | April 2013 CONTENTS


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Pledge your support with My Theatre Matters!

Last month saw the launch of My Th eatre Matters!, a new campaign spearheaded by the TMA, Equity and Th e Stage to support local theatres across the UK in the face of funding cuts from local governments.

My Th eatre Matters! gives theatregoers the opportunity to shout about how important their local theatre is to them. Th eatre fans are being encouraged to make their voices heard by sending specially designed postcards to council leaders, join an ever-growing online community at www.mytheatrematters.com, follow the campaign on Twitter and Facebook, and wear badges to show their support.

Launched in response to devastating cuts in local government funding, Brian Attwood, Editor of Th e Stage, said: “Many theatres are facing reductions, and in some cases complete cuts, in support from their local authorities. It is the single biggest threat currently facing our industry. One need only look to see what has happened in Taunton, Sheffi eld, Newcastle and even in Westminster to see that this is a national problem, facing theatres up and down the country. While there are many enlightened councils out there who continue to support their local theatres, we fear there will also be many who see them as an easy target at a time of cuts. We need to show that theatres

Theatres are at the heart of our communities.Let’s shout about how much that matters.mytheatrematters.com @theatre_matters

Add stamp or leave this side blank, pop it

in a collection box and we’ll

deliver it.Council Leader’s name

Council name

Address line 1

Address line 2

Town

County

Postcode

If posting, look-up address details at mytheatrematters.com/mylocal

NEWS

aren’t an easy target, but are public services that are really valued by their audiences.”

Rachel Tackley, TMA President, commented: “It seems theatres are increasingly seen by decision makers as a luxury, not the beating heart of a community providing benefi ts for everyone from cradle to grave. Ask a Councillor what they associate with the word ‘theatre’ and most would probably say words associated with fun, entertainment and enjoyment. Th at’s no bad thing, but as the purse strings get tighter and tighter, they need to know how much their communities value the economic, social and educational impact of their investment in local theatres.

“My Th eatre Matters! is designed to help real people tell their stories about how important their local theatre is to their life, and help them be heard. If we all shout loud enough, we can ensure theatres get the investment they need to play their full role in safeguarding and revitalising our communities in these challenging times.”

Publishers John Good are also lending their support to the campaign by including adverts in programmes across the length of the country, while performers will be publicising the cause at curtain calls. Many well-known faces have already signed up and their pictures can be seen on www.mytheatrematters.com alongside their reasons as to why theatre is so vital to communities.


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Key points for Members:

• My Theatre Matters! has taken inspiration from the successful campaign fighting local government cuts to libraries and aims to mobilise audiences to lobby local government members and officers.

• The second objective is to develop a national database of concerned audience members who could be mobilised for further action locally, regionally or nationally.

• Theatre fans, performers and industry members will be encouraged to upload their photo to www.mytheatrematters.com along with their reason for believing theatre to be crucial to their community and add the My Theatre Matters! logo to their image.

• Their photo can then be used to spread awareness by uploading the image to Twitter and Facebook.

• The campaign can be followed on Twitter @theatre_matters and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mytheatrematters

• Please help spread the word on Twitter using the hashtag #mytheatrematters

• Any arts organisation in the UK can be involved, whether they are TMA members or not.

• If you would like to be part of the campaign by helping to distribute postcards and/or host a postcard collection box, email [email protected] or call 020 7557 6700 for more information.

• Further support for the campaign is being provided from organisations including SOLT, Unison, Independent Theatre Council, Creu Cymru, Writer’s Guild of Great Britain, Theatres Trust, NODA and Dance UK.


Kids Week confirms month run The Society of London Theatre’s annual family promotion Kids Week will run for the whole month of August this year, following 2012’s record-breaking, award-winning campaign as part of the London 2012 Festival. Now in its 16th year, the hugely popular SOLT initiative aims to introduce children, from toddlers to teenagers, to theatre by offering one children’s ticket free with every adult ticket purchased for a range of London shows, plus a further two children’s tickets available at half price. The scheme also runs a programme of exclusive workshops alongside the ticket promotion offering children incredible theatrical opportunities. Last year was the first time the initiative had run for a full month, with more than 129,000 people taking part. Data collected from families involved reported that 92.9% had been inspired to take their family to the theatre more often, with 99.5% of participants saying they would recommend Kids Week to a friend.

Stage One moves into the regions Stage One, the charity committed to developing and supporting producers for the theatre industry, has announced it will now offer two regional producing apprenticeships having been awarded £30,000 from the Eranda Foundation. The funding will allow Stage One to expand its already hugely successful Apprenticeship Scheme to offer a unique 12-month training programme for entrepreneurial new producers with two regional host producers and/or organisations. A further £1,000 will be earmarked by Stage One to cover travel costs for regional apprentices to attend its industry-led training workshops, which are a vital part of the schemes. Joseph Smith, Chief Executive of Stage One, commented: “We are very keen to promote the opportunity regionally, across the UK, with the aim of identifying new young producers who will work in theatre production nationwide.”

Shaftesbury Theatre expansion plans Bennetts Associates Architects’ proposals for the redevelopment of the Grade II listed Shaftesbury Theatre have been granted by Camden Council allowing for internal and external alterations to the theatre’s existing stagehouse and flytower. The work, which will include an extension to the flytower and consolidate the theatre’s support spaces currently housed in several locations across the site, will ensure the long-term viability of the venue to accommodate large-scale, self-produced and touring productions. James Williams, Chief Executive of the venue, said: “Whilst maintaining the grace and beauty of the Shaftesbury we will now have a contemporary addition that will enhance the facilities of the theatre giving us the capacity to accommodate the increasing demands of productions. We are thrilled with the benefits that this will bring to our customers, producers and actors visiting and working at the Shaftesbury.”

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Children take part in a Singin’ In The Rain workshop during 2012’s Kids Week | Photo: Pamela Raith

Bennetts Associates Architects’ Shaftesbury Theatre Redevelopment Proposal

NEWS


Wales Millennium Centre launches new online streaming service Wales Millennium Centre is aiming to increase accessibility to the arts and offer Welsh artists a global platform via its new online streaming service, The Centre Connected. The service will enable audiences to watch free, regular, live performances from the venue’s Glanfa Stage from the comfort of their own homes or on the move on their smartphones or tablet devices. In addition, Wales Millennium Centre will curate a series of short insight films offering audiences more information about some of the emerging artists who perform on the stage. Wales Millennium Centre’s Jonathan Harper said: “The talented artists who perform on our Glanfa Stage are part of the life and soul of our public spaces. To be able to stream their work live to anyone, anywhere across the world, will help them reach a whole range of potential new audiences.”

Just For Laughs launches new theatre subsidiary Just For Laughs Group, the producer behind the world’s largest comedy festival, has announced it is launching a new theatrical subsidiary, Just For Laughs Theatricals, to operate both in London and New York. The new company will be headed up by producer Adam Blanshay and will develop and produce plays and musicals internationally. Blanshay said: “It is my plan to bring the values the Just for Laughs brand has already established as pioneers of comedy to produce exceptional shows on Broadway, in the West End and worldwide.” The new company’s projects as co-producer already include West End productions A Chorus Line, Old Times and Merrily We Roll Along, and this spring will see the opening of its new Broadway musical Kinky Boots.

Tsatsas wins Frantic Assembly role Despina Tsatsas has been appointed the role of Executive Producer at leading contemporary theatre company Frantic Assembly. Tsatsas, who will take up the post in May following a wealth of experience at organisations including Mark Rubinstein Ltd, the Young Vic and ATG, described herself as “thrilled” to be joining the company, saying: “Every time I see a Frantic Assembly show, I leave the theatre inspired and invigorated. The company’s charismatic, physical approach to theatre enriches the sector with its boldness and contemporary vision.” Frantic Assembly’s Artistic Director, Scott Graham, commented: “Despina brings extensive experience in the subsidised and commercial sectors of British theatre… Frantic Assembly is entering an exciting new era and I feel Despina has exactly the right skills, energy and ethos to join the team and push this company forward.” Tsatsas’ predecessor Lisa Maguire will take up the role of Executive Producer at National Theatre Wales. Read our interview with her on page 9.

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Despina Tsatsas

Adam Blanshay

NEWS


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What was your first big break?My first arts job at the Lyric Hammersmith. It was a fantastic opportunity to be part of a building I loved, receive an excellent introduction to working in theatre and learn from brilliant and inspirational people. Your first job is so important. I really empathise with people starting out now with more limited opportunities and the emphasis on internships rather than proper entry-level employment. What has been your best career move so far?Joining Frantic Assembly. My first six months there were the most daunting of my working life. I took a risk to be honest, but I trusted in the brilliance of the Artistic Directors and they more than delivered. I would strongly recommend to anyone that they work for a small company for some of their career. It can be extremely challenging but it’s an incredible learning experience and requires a resourcefulness, resilience and independence that bigger institutions can’t teach you. Best learning experience to date? Working at the Young Vic during an exhilarating period in the lead up to closing the building for redevelopment. The energy and confidence of the organisation at that time was extraordinary, but there was always a questioning and a desire to keep doing things better. I worked on the Directors’ Programme, which gave me the opportunity to learn about working with a wide range of artists and has greatly enhanced my abilities as a producer. Biggest hurdle you’ve had to overcome?There have been many testing projects and experiences but I suspect sadly that the biggest hurdle is probably yet to come. I’ve been lucky that the majority of my career has corresponded with a period of healthy investment in the arts. I’m conscious that we are collectively going to face a lot of hurdles in the next decade. Who has influenced you most? Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett, the founding Artistic Directors of Frantic Assembly. They came to theatre from non-traditional backgrounds with no training and (literally) threw themselves into making work that was relevant to their lives and connected with new audiences. As a young person Frantic Assembly inspired my passion for contemporary theatre. Working alongside them has made me braver and more confident. The Frantic Assembly ethos encourages honesty, accessibility, integrity… and a sense of humour. Qualities all too often lacking in British theatre!

Lisa MaguireThis month Lisa Maguire takes on the role of Executive Producer at the National Theatre Wales. Here she tells Prompt what she has learnt from seven years at Frantic Assembly, why it’s daunting to move to a company still in its infancy and why the biggest challenge of her career is yet to come.

What are you most proud of from your time at the company? The quality and reach of the work. During my time with the company we created an award-winning series of productions, including Stockholm, Othello, Beautiful Burnout and Lovesong, watched by more than 175,000 people in the UK and internationally. What piece of advice do you live by? Assumption is the mother of all f**k ups. What does it mean to you to be joining the National Theatre Wales? It really means a great deal. It’s an honour to be working for a national company and a huge privilege to be joining such a vibrant and passionate organisation. My mother’s family is Welsh so I’ve grown up with some connection to the country and I look forward to exploring it more. Are you excited to work with a company still in its infancy?In just two seasons NTW has delivered a programme of extraordinary ambition and quality. The bar has been set extremely high so it’s actually quite daunting to think about sustaining that. But yes, there is certainly something exciting about working with a ‘young’ company with a fresh outlook and genuinely innovative practise. The rest of the team are one step ahead of me though so I have a lot of catching up to do. What are your immediate plans in your new post? To immerse myself in the company and the country. To find out as much as I can about the artists and audiences we will be working with in year three and beyond. To get to know my colleagues and collaborators. What will be your biggest challenge? Having made a big impact in a short space of time, I think it’s our challenge to continue developing NTW and meeting people’s expectations of us. What are you most looking forward to? Making great theatre – in whatever form it takes. Starting with the immersive gig Praxis Makes Perfect. I’m a big fan of musician Gruff Rhys and, as mentioned previously, Scott Graham who will be throwing some shapes for the project.

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GOING PLACES


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Over the next 18 pages Prompt looks at how the Family Arts Campaign is

taking shape, explores how Mousetrap Theatre Projects are paving the way for

other family initiatives, discovers why theatres should be looking to museums for

inspiration and takes a look at theatres that are opening their doors to a wide

range of different families.

Families matter

Untitled-1 10 3/20/2013 11:32:26 AM

A dramatic educationAlistair Smith argues the importance of drama in education and warns of a future where theatre risks becoming irrelevant to a vast majority of society.

Unless my memory is playing tricks on me, my very first trip to the theatre was to the Yvonne Arnaud in Guildford, at some point in the early 8́0s, to see Winnie The Pooh.

I was three, maybe four-years-old, and had been taken by my parents. This was soon followed by a trip to London to see a stage version of The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe at what was then the Westminster Theatre, recently rebuilt as the St James. Again with my parents.

Much of my childhood and teenage years were punctuated by trips to the theatre – taken either by my mother, who was an English teacher, or my school, which was blessed with an active drama department and teachers who weren’t shackled to the curriculum.

I was a regular visitor to the National Theatre – a short train journey from where I grew up in Surrey – and the Barbican to watch the Royal Shakespeare Company. I also made pretty regular trips with my family up to Stratford-upon-Avon, later catching the odd touring show in Woking (following the opening of the New Victoria) and regularly seeing shows pre-West End in Guildford.

Although I was very fortunate, my experience was by no means unique. But then, looking around people working in, watching and writing about theatre, nor am I.

The hegemony of background for people working in theatre is shocking and the simple reason for it is this: white, middle-class children are given greater access to the theatre than those from other social and ethnic groups.

Now, one can put forward various arguments about why that might be the case, but it is a fundamental truth, I think, that the habit of theatregoing is acquired young and that opportunity has traditionally been reserved to a relatively small section of British society.

People complain about the cost of theatre as the reason for this perceived elitism. I’m sure that’s part of it, but it can’t be the whole story. I also regularly go to watch Tottenham Hotspur play football and the price of Premier League tickets is pretty much equivalent to a top price seat to a West End show. Yet the faces I see in the bar before the game are far more varied than those I see in the interval at pretty much any theatre in the UK (with very few notable exceptions).

So, if people aren’t being put off by the cost, what is it? I would suggest it’s a perception that theatre is not FOR people like them.

For those of us who are exposed to theatre young, we are given the opportunity to make it a part of our lives. Not everyone will, of course, but that’s fine.

Most of the population, or at least the male half, are exposed to football at an early age – playing and watching it. Not all will enjoy it, but they will all be given a chance to discover whether it is something they enjoy. And that is why you find people from all walks of life at football matches.

Now, there are some great initiatives to encourage theatregoing among youngsters from all backgrounds in the UK. The Mousetrap Foundation has done sterling work over the years, Kids Week is a great initiative in the West End, the new Family Arts Campaign looks like it could make a real impact and some of the work done by the Royal Shakespeare Company around teaching Shakespeare in schools has been inspired. But, with the best will in the world, there is no way that industry-run initiatives can hope to reach everyone.

It needs the state education system to do that. Which is why the recent rumpus over the government’s proposals for changes to both the primary and secondary curriculums (centred around its plans to introduce English Baccalaureate Certificate exams that would have downgraded creative subjects in schools) are a really crucial issue for the theatre and wider arts industry.

It’s why Liz Forgan chose it as the subject for her valedictory speech as chair of the Arts Council.

Rather astutely, she referred to education secretary Michael Gove as having “almost the most important cultural job there is, even though the word culture doesn’t appear in his title”.

She’s right – he does.

She also warned that his EBacc proposals risked “depriving the next generation of the basic tools with which to recognise themselves and their culture”.

She’s right – they did.

The short term result of pressure from Forgan and others like her has been that Gove has backed down on his plans to introduce the EBacc exams. But, while this has certainly been a victory of sorts for the sector, there is still plenty to be concerned about, not least the fact that drama has been removed from Key Stages 1 and 2 of the primary curriculum.

This completely flew in the face of recommendations to the government by the excellent review into cultural education by Darren Henley, which actually recommended that Dance and Drama be made subjects in their own rights, rather than be treated as junior partners to PE and English.

Instead of taking up Henley’s recommendations, or even just ignoring them, they appear to be trying to achieve the precise opposite of what he has put forward.

This is an issue that should worry all theatres. If we ever want theatre to become more than a minority pursuit, then we need more, not less, drama in the curriculum. Otherwise, in 20 years time, theatre risks becoming a complete irrelevance to the vast majority of the population.

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Alistair Smith is Deputy Editor of The Stage. You can follow him on Twitter @smithalistair

SMITH ON STAGE


“It’ll challenge any preconceptions held by the public that family or child-friendly applies to things that are not necessarily exciting or challenging.”

David Brownlee

Alastair Tallon

Keeping it in the familyJo Caird talks to the team behind the Family Arts Campaign and finds out how TMA Members can get involved.

“It’s not reinventing the wheel,” says Project Director David Brownlee about the Family Arts Campaign. Designed to improve arts organisations’ family offerings and get information about what’s available across to the public, this wide-ranging cross-arts campaign launches on 15 April. “There’s lots of good stuff but not everybody knows about it... It’s just about sharing that and getting everybody up to speed and getting everybody moving on that journey in terms of improving what they’re doing with their focus on families.” Taking inspiration from the successes of the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival and in response to a call from the Arts Council for an audience development

programme with families at its heart, a new grouping of organisations came together to develop an ambitious nationwide plan. Led by a consortium of performing and visual arts trade bodies, the two-year Family Arts Campaign works on two fronts, combining high-profile public-facing projects with dedicated support to arts organisations. Campaign Manager Alastair

Tallon has high hopes for the project: “What we’re expecting at the end of the campaign is a step change between where arts organisations are now in terms of their relationships with families and their understanding of families to where they will be by March 2015”. The Family Arts Festival, which will take place over the autumn half-term breaks over the next two years (19 October to 3 November 2013 and 18 October to 2 November 2014), is the campaign’s headline measure. Members of the Association of British Orchestras (ABO), Dance UK, Independent Theatre Council (ITC), the Visual Arts and Galleries Association, the Society of London Theatre (SOLT) and the TMA will be encouraged to run family-focused events and activities during this period, which will be promoted via a website and marketing drive funded by the campaign. Brownlee hopes that at least 500 organisations will get involved in the 2013 festival: “They could be offering special discounts, they could be putting on special events, they could be adding value to things they’re already doing, but focusing specifically on families”. It’s the idea of the 2014 festival, however, that really excites him. “Our ambition for next year will be higher because we think people will have had time to think about it, focus on it, to really understand families more. So this year I think will be great. But it’ll be a taster for a fantastic 2014.”For the spring half-terms of 2014 and 2015, an event called Take a Grown-up Day is in the early stages of planning. It will give young people the lead in encouraging adults to try new cultural activities including visiting libraries and museums. The third strand of the campaign to address audiences directly is a Family Arts Standards Badge aimed at improving

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FEATURE


the quality of experience across arts events. Organisations taking part will pledge to meet a published set of quality standards, with some going on to take part in the Family & Parenting Institute’s (FPI) existing, but so far entirely business-oriented, Family Friendly Scheme. Tallon would like to see between 100 and 200 organisations sign up to the scheme, which enables companies to work towards specific improvements in what they offer for family audiences with monitoring and guidance from the FPI.As far as the standards badge is concerned, however, Tallon says he sees no reason why it shouldn’t be embraced by the whole sector. “It says to people, ‘this is what families want and expect and if you want to attract your family audience you need to meet those standards’. Because we know from the research being done that this is what families’ expectations are.” One of the most significant issues faced by arts organisations is confusion over what actually constitutes family-friendly work. Mark Pemberton, Director of the ABO, is keen to stress that “it is not just about the children. It’s about how rewarding is it for parents and grandparents as well”. The problem is not that this work isn’t taking place – Pemberton, Brownlee and Tallon all emphasis that there is plenty of excellent practice out there – rather it’s that knowledge is not being shared between organisations and art forms that could be of huge benefit to the sector. The campaign is seeking to address this through a national web of local family arts networks that will bring together organisations across the arts, including museums and libraries.

Tallon anticipates that these networks – each made up of at least six organisations, with a minimum of two art forms represented – will work together to produce or market events taking place as part of the Family Arts Festival. That said, he’s entirely open to what this local response might entail. If a network felt that family arts provision was more needed at a time of year other than the period planned for the festival, they would be free to create their own response and would be supported through that process. The local family arts networks are all about “being able to regionalise and localise a much broader campaign” and thereby enabling organisations to “develop a local response to a local need”. As with the other aspects of the campaign, the support provided to the local networks will not be financial. None of the £1.1 million of funding awarded to the campaign by ACE will go directly to organisations involved. Instead, says Tallon, it will be put towards “capacity building for the arts organisations. So the supporting programme here that sits below the line is designed to help them deliver better stuff above the line”. This includes running seminars for local networks to enable knowledge sharing, offering member organisations discounted access to Family Arts Conferences and enabling networks to join the FPI’s We Are Family Friendly programme. It will also allow Tallon and his team to develop a nationwide ‘test drive’ programme to help venues attract families that do not currently engage in the arts. Inspired by Mousetrap Theatre Project’s Family First Nights, which uses partner

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A family audience at Orchestras Live’s Lullaby Concert | Photo: Paul Coghlin


organisations, including social service agencies, community organisations and housing associations, to identify low-income families and offer them £5 tickets to West End shows during the summer holidays, the campaign’s test drive programme is expected to take as many different forms as the organisations taking part. Brownlee explains: “We are seeking to get the best models for the right places, taking the learning from Mousetrap but also taking the learning from others as well. Some of them will work with absolutely free tickets, some of them will work with greatly discounted tickets, but [it’s about] getting those principles out there.”The beauty of this capacity-building, knowledge-sharing approach is that once the campaign has run its course, all this good work will continue. Sustainability is in-built. Of course a large tranche of the campaign’s funding will go towards the running of the Family Arts Festival. Brownlee and Tallon are delighted to have secured the services of Festival and Events International, the team behind the London 2012 Festival. It’s an event that has been in the

“What we’re expecting is a step change between

where arts organisations are now in terms of

their relationships with families and their

understanding of families to where they will be

by March 2015.”

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“Wherever you are, think how you could take the next step: have a look at the standards, see how you can use them to improve what you’re doing at the moment, get involved in the 2013 festival and then engage with us over the next two years.”

For more details of how to get involved in the Family Arts Campaign, please visit www.familyarts.co.uk

pair’s mind from the very start. “We wanted to build on the impetus that came from that [the London 2012 Festival] about families getting up and doing more things together, because there was this huge range of events they could get involved in,” says Tallon. “[It’s] being able to say, ‘look, that was 2012 and look what you can do now in 2013’”. The festival website (which outside of festival time will be a searchable portal for families seeking to find out about family-friendly venues around the country) will be all-important. The idea, Brownlee explains, is “to focus on that infrastructure and give the best possible platform to promote to as many families as possible”. While for some arts organisations the issue around engaging with families is to do with the work itself, for many the problem is simply getting the message out that there are family-friendly events and activities are taking place. The campaign should help to address this situation by raising the profile of such work and

the organisations excelling in this area. It’s also about broadening the sector and the public’s sense of what ‘family-friendly’ means, shifting the focus away from baby-changing facilities and towards nuanced work that will entertain and engage family members of different generations. Crucial to the campaign, believes Jane Beardsworth, Director of the North West and project lead for Arts Council England, is that “it’ll challenge any preconceptions held by the public that family or child-friendly applies to things that are not necessarily exciting or challenging”. The first step on this road, believes Pemberton, is for the sector to begin interrogating the notion of ‘family’ itself: “When we’re doing things for family audiences, what do we mean by that? Who are we actually targeting? There are many variations of the word family that we need to take account of.”The fact that good practice exists – and it does, in many forms across the performing and visual arts – is an indication that such conversations are already taking place. The Family Arts Conferences, the first of which takes place on 15 April (marking the official launch of the campaign), will be a fine forum for them to continue before the campaign gets into its stride with the first Family Arts Festival in the autumn. And when the campaign draws to a close in 2015, the hope is that those conversations will continue. Brownlee’s message for TMA Members at this stage of proceedings is unequivocal: “Get on the journey. Wherever you are, think how you could take the next step: have a look at the standards, see how you can use them to improve what you’re doing at the moment, get involved in the 2013 festival and then engage with us over the next two years. It will be fantastic for families and it will be fantastic for you in terms of engaging with audiences.”

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Big Dance in Market Square, Derby | Photo: Alan Fletcher

Kids enjoy the Spiegeltent at Norfolk & Norwich Festival in 2010 | Photo: Rod Penn


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Last summer, 574 people from 133 families went to see Shrek The Musical for just £5 per ticket. Another 101 families saw Wicked; 75 saw The Wizard Of Oz; 26 Ghost The Musical. All at £5 a head. With top price seats in the West End edging £90, it’s an extraordinary offer. It’s provided by Family First Nights, an outreach scheme run by theatrical charity Mousetrap Theatre Projects, which aims to introduce theatre to disadvantaged families for whom a trip to the West End is financially out of reach. Now in its 15th year, the scheme can lay claim to having enabled thousands of children to see a show and supported parents as they make their first trip, as a family, into the West End.Started in 1999 by Susan Whiddington, Director of Mousetrap Theatre Projects, which is funded by the Society of London Theatre’s associated charity the Theatre Development Trust and long-running production The Mousetrap, Family First Nights works with social services, housing associations and charities in London’s 33 boroughs to identify families on low incomes who wouldn’t ordinarily be able to afford a trip to the theatre. These families are invited to apply for £5 tickets to a show of their choice from a selection on offer – last year’s 21 shows also included Singin’ In The Rain, Monty Python’s Spamalot and The 39 Steps – for a performance during a five-week period over the school summer holidays in July and August. Families can comprise grandparents, carers, cousins – the dynamic can be fluid as long as at least half the group is aged three-17. Last year 619 families took part.Participants don’t have to be first-timers, but most are, says Whiddington. The important thing is that these are families who couldn’t otherwise go – hence leaflets for the scheme are given to selected families directly rather than distributed indiscriminately. “We don’t leave leaflets at a library, because you’d get a lot of middle-class families who say ‘oh this is a

Family FirstNights

For the past 15 years Family First Nights has been enabling parents and children to take their first theatre trip together in London. Caroline Bishop examines the model and asks if the regions could follow its lead.

17A Wicked Family First Night | Photo: Alex Rumford

A Shrek The Musical Family First Night | Photo: Alex Rumford

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great deal,’” she says. “That’s not who this programme is for. It really is trying to identify people who have never been. Of course there are people who have been, the kids have gone through school... but it’s really giving that experience as a family.”Promoting theatregoing as a family activity is what sets this scheme apart from others, stresses Whiddington: “It’s different from going with your school and your teacher. It’s about getting families to spend time together in a really positive, fun, enjoyable way. A lot of these families don’t get a lot of free time and when they do they couldn’t afford something like going to the theatre.”The scheme isn’t just about the ticket price, either. A team led by Programmes Manager Elaine Grant ensures families are supported throughout the experience: they’re offered advice on how to travel to the theatre, how to collect tickets from the box office, the prices to expect for extras (ice creams, programmes), even how to dress. For the first-time

theatregoer, this advice is crucial to ensure they can manage any future trips they’ll hopefully make on their own, says Whiddington. “One of the hallmarks of the programme is that we don’t do groups, we don’t do coach-loads; every family has to come into the West End on their own, they have to go to the box office like any other patron and collect their tickets. They have to have the experience of doing it themselves, or else they won’t do it again.” The scheme’s job, in short, is to make theatre as accessible as possible – through both price and logistics – so that people who previously thought they couldn’t do it change their minds. “We say ‘you can’ and it’s really easy and once they do it once, they know.”As an added enticement, the scheme has followed Kids Weeks’ – the Society of London Theatre’s annual campaign for families – lead in the last few years by offering a few free workshops to enhance families’ engagement with the production they’re seeing.

“It’s about getting families to spend time together in a really positive, fun, enjoyable way. A lot of these families don’t get a lot of free time and when they do they couldn’t afford something like going to the theatre.”

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Participants take part in a Stomp workshop | Photo: Alex Rumford

Families attending a tour of the Tudor Room at the National Portrait Gallery before a Horrible Histories workshop | Photo: Alex Rumford


Family First Nights will cost £55,456 to take 650 families this summer. It’s funded by major donors including The Colwinston Charitable Trust, The Dorset Foundation and, for the first time this year, the Theatre Development Trust. It also relies on the goodwill of theatre producers, who reduce the price of tickets they allocate to the scheme – the number of which is up to them to offer – down to around £15, which Family First Nights then subsidises further to £5. In some years the programme has been able to exceed its target number of families thanks to the generosity of producers. “Sometimes they will give us tickets for £5, which means no more money is coming out of our budget but we are still able to offer more families this great opportunity. A lot of producers are very generous,” says Grant. Building relationships is therefore key, but the benefits aren’t all one way: Family First Nights puts bums on seats at a time of year that traditionally sees a decrease in audiences, and fulfils producers’ social responsibility to reach out to diverse audiences, including opening up access to low-income families with autistic and disabled children, who came to a relaxed performance of Shrek last summer. “This was the first time we attended any theatre production due to our son’s disabilities,” commented one mother in the 2012 evaluation report. “It gave us access to an area which we would have previously avoided mainly on cost as if things went wrong a lot of money would have been wasted.” While such families are not specifically targeted, “the interest of these families to take their children to the theatre is huge,” says Grant. “The initial support and information we give each family makes them comfortable and relaxed with the whole process of attending these performances.”

Though it may be taking the long view, another major benefit of the scheme is its potential to pay off in the future by inspiring the next generation of theatregoers. “You just don’t know what impact it’s going to have on a young person and what their future is,” says Whiddington. Despite having data for all 14 summers of Family First Nights, Mousetrap hasn’t had the funds to do a longitudinal study on the impact of the scheme. However, anecdotal evidence suggests it does promote theatregoing – in the 2012 evaluation report, 98% of respondents (some 26% of total participants) said they would take their family to the theatre again. That’s demonstrated by the uptake of the scheme’s follow-up offers. Once families have taken part in the summer £5 programme (which they can only do once), they are subsequently mailed a series of new offers they can take

“It gave us access to an area which we would have previously avoided mainly

on cost as if things went wrong a lot of money

would have been wasted.”

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A Mousetrap Theatre Projects workshop | Photo: Alex Rumford FEATURE


“The initial support and information we give each family makes them comfortable and relaxed with the whole process of attending these performances.”

advantage of throughout the winter period, covering plays, musicals, opera and dance. They can stay on this mailing list as long as their children are under 17. While rarely £5, the offers still mark a significant saving on full-price tickets and are hugely popular, says Grant. “Last year we offered 70 different productions during the year. As soon as the email hits their inbox it’s almost seconds, the response.”But for some families, even £5 per ticket is a stretch. “The only bad thing is that we can’t apply for FFN tickets every summer holiday,” said one participant. So how big a legacy can a scheme like this really have, given the prohibitive price of commercial theatre tickets for these families? Whiddington says they encourage families to visit their local theatre for lower ticket prices, and tell them about the Society of London Theatre run TKTS booth and Kids Week, but she admits that “for a lot of these families [Kids Week] would be outside of their reach.”But it’s a start – and one which isn’t as yet being replicated

across the UK. Could it be? Firstly, the funding has to come from somewhere, and Whiddington says support for a non-educational scheme doesn’t come easily. “When you talk about something as generic as having a wonderful experience at the theatre with your family, that is sometimes a hard sell.” Secondly, it requires an element of community goodwill. It’s an administratively heavy programme with a vast database and the team relies on volunteers – often past participants – during the summer period for labour-intensive tasks such as stuffing envelopes. The scheme also benefits from the sheer range of theatre available in London, a crucial factor in giving families a wide variety of choice for their theatre visit, and spreading out the team’s requests for reduced tickets over many producers. In cities with fewer venues, theatres could benefit from collaborating with other art forms to bolster the selection on offer, feels Whiddington. But most important is the will of these venues to open their doors to new and diverse audiences. “I think there’s a lot of interest in doing that for all kinds of reasons. I don’t think it’s just philanthropic, it makes sense.” As for Family First Nights, as it plans its 15th birthday year – with celebrations yet to be unveiled – can it look to a rosy future? Should the will – and the funding – remain, the pair sees no reason why it shouldn’t continue for another 15 years, because there will always be families who can benefit from it. “A lot of these young people could be future theatregoers,” says Grant. “They need to start somewhere.”

Caroline Bishop is a freelance journalist and former editor at SOLT/TMA. www.carolinehbishop.co.uk

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A Mousetrap Theatre Projects workshop | Photo: Alex Rumford

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structure. People tend to think museums are free. They aren’t. More than half charge at point of entry or for exhibitions, and this number is increasing rapidly as funding shrinks. So Kids in Museums thought it was a good time to do a Family Ticket Watch (www.kidsinmuseums.org.uk/family-ticket), asking families what they want in a family ticket and museums (and other organisations). The aim was to find ways in which both museums and families could benefit from having a more flexible family ticket structure. Families said they don’t mind paying, but they do mind unfair pricing, and that’s what they felt they faced. Many struggled to get a family ticket because their family didn’t fit the standard two adults plus two children. They had three or four kids, an older cousin lived with them, the grandparent was the main carer, they were a single parent family. Our Flexible Family Ticket Guidelines suggest ways in which it’s possible to make family tickets reflect today’s, not yesterday’s families. And to assuage organisations’ concerns that this might lead to loss of income, we commissioned a Flexible Family Tickets – Commercial Considerations report, suggesting ways in which introducing this structure

We all want to be family-friendly. It’s motherhood and apple pie. No one in the arts is going to stand up and shout ‘We don’t want families!’. But there’s a huge gulf between saying and doing, policy and practice. And families come in all shapes and sizes; most places only welcome a few of them, not all the rich varieties. It’s a challenge to us all to change that.Kids in Museums, an independent charity, works with museums, galleries, historic homes, heritage sites and arts organisations to support and encourage them to welcome families, in particular those who have never visited before. We publish the Kids in Museums Manifesto – 20 ways to make a visit family-friendly (www.kidsinmuseums.org.uk/manifesto), compiled entirely from 1,000s of comments by families. It’s clear, simple and, most importantly, defined by families not museums or arts organisations. It’s what families themselves want. Around 500 museums and galleries have signed up in support of the Manifesto, recognising it as an aspirational and inspirational document, and have pledged to work towards putting its 20 points into practice. They use it in all sorts of ways – but mainly as an accessible family audit tool for the whole organisation. It’s a quick check on how you’re doing.There are many points on the Manifesto that apply to theatres as much as galleries and museums. Some are about behaviours – the arts organisations’, not the users’. For example, ‘Be positive and do away with the word “No”. Tell visitors what they can do at the door, don’t pin up a list of things they can’t’. That could apply to any arts venue. Families told us they are fed up of the first thing they see when they arrive being a list of stuff they might do wrong, whether it’s try and bring in their pushchair or take a call on their mobile. It’s important to note that such small changes are cost free, although do require a big investment in making sure all your staff are equally on board.Another area of great concern to families is the ticketing

Dea Birkett, Director of Kids in Museums, argues there is no need to reinvent the family-friendly wheel when museums have so much to teach arts organisations about welcoming this audience through its doors.

Learning from museums

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“Families come in all shapes and sizes; most places only welcome a few of them, not all the rich varieties. It’s a challenge to us all to change that.”

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can increase, rather than threaten, income. We also give examples of museums that do it well.Of course, family tickets to exhibitions don’t exactly translate to family tickets for shows. But the ideas can inform and stimulate. It’s odd if a show is marketed as for families, yet that family friendliness isn’t reflected in the pricing structure, which is designed for independent adults. It’s about getting a whole organisational approach to families, from front of house to ticketing to catering.Museums, and arts organisations in general, can focus on their exhibition, show or event being the family-friendly element. For example, a museum will typically spend a lot of time making sure an exhibition targeted at families has things kids can touch and buttons to push. But families have told us it’s the total experience – from the glass cabinets to the café – that determines whether it’s for them. It’s no good putting on a show that enthrals a five-year-old if there’s nothing they can drink or eat in the café during the interval. Almost half the points on the Kids in Museums Manifesto are about facilities rather than content. When families are paying for an arts experience, they want a day, afternoon or evening out. They’re not just going for the arts event itself.It’s important, too, that families know what they’re going to. Children’s activities are not family activities. They are different things. I’ve spent far too much time sitting in a room at a table with some pipe cleaners, coloured paper and a roll of sellotape scattered on it at a so-called family event. It isn’t. It’s just for my kids. I was very bored.A family event is for families, which may contain a broad

“When families are paying for an arts experience, they want a day, afternoon or evening out. They’re not just going for the arts event itself.”

range of ages and interests. As a result, a family event has to be layered. It’s difficult to pull off, but some museums have managed. Weston Park in Sheffield has wonderful galleries that have something in them for just about everyone. Low down stuff for small children, high up stuff for adults and lots of thing in-between. You don’t have to appeal to everyone, but you do have to make sure you don’t make false family-friendly promises in your marketing. If it’s for kids, say so. If it’s for families, make sure it really is.It’s also important to let families know which ages you are aiming at. Don’t only cater for the easy option – children aged five to 12. That way, you lose substantial parts of your audience, which you may struggle to get back as they grow up and become parents themselves. Museums are now making major efforts to attract babies and teenagers, the two forgotten family audiences. Not many theatres welcome babies, and if they do it’s to special performances. I know there are real issues here. But it was once also unthinkable to have babies in museums, disturbing the reverent hush. Now more and more museums don’t only tolerate, but reach out to families with very young children. They work with Sure Start centres. In Manchester Museum, they’re doing pioneering work, linking up with new parents through health visitors. It takes a cultural shift within an arts venue to welcome babies, but it’s not impossible. And getting them in when they’re a few months old is the first step in building your long-term family audience.As they grow up, they may also draw in older members of their family. Children and young people are rarely seen as the instigators of family visits, but often portrayed as being

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“Reinventing the family-friendly wheel shouldn’t happen anymore. We have to share our successes and failures across the arts in order to make it better for everyone.”

dragged along. The higher the art form, the stronger a drag it’s supposed to be. But in disadvantaged families – or new audiences – the only person who will probably have experienced such an arts event is a child on a school visit. So they’re the ones we should be turning to to bring more new families in.Kids in Museums runs Takeover Day in museums, in partnership with the Children’s Commissioner, an annual day on which young people take over a museum, from manning front of house or the social media output, to being director for the day. It’s a simple, effective way of introducing teenagers to a museum experience. More than 120 museums took part last year, introducing more than 2,000 young people to museum visits. Some theatres took part, but not many. There’s no reason why they shouldn’t. Those young people then become ambassadors within their own families, encouraging them to come along too. Kids in Museums is now also working with the Family Arts Campaign to look at ways in which school visits can be transformed into family visits. That way, the child’s experience can live on in conversations at home, and the wider family members can benefit. And you get new audiences.Much of the most innovative work of inviting new families through their doors is done in partnership. Historically, arts organisations make partnerships with other arts organisations. But the most exciting alliances arise from less obvious places. Mumsnet and the NCT are all very well. Parent bloggers are a great source for spreading the news of your latest offer. But for our Family Ticket Watch project, we worked with organisations whose users and membership may not be traditional museum visitors. Among these

Kids in Museums’ next Family Fortunes workshop will take place in Manchester on Wednesday 18 September. To book go to www.kidsinmuseums.org.uk/workshops

were families in the forces through organisations such as the Army Families Federation, foster parents through the Fostering Association, and Contact a Family who work with families with disabled children.It’s important to reach out to families who might not otherwise reach you. And, of course, to reach across the arts sector. There’s lots of very good family-friendly work being done. In straightened times, it’s important we all learn from each other. Reinventing the family-friendly wheel shouldn’t happen anymore. We have to share our successes and failures across the arts in order to make it better for everyone, in particular our audiences.

Kids take over the front desk of a museum

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It is 09:00 on a December morning and the fi rst snow of winter is falling. Despite the hour, the Edinburgh Festival Th eatre is spilling over with ushers. All told, there are 30 of them. Some are waiting eagerly in the foyer, others are positioned in the stalls. Th e full-time staff are out in force too. Even the Press and PR Manager is here – and she’s supposed to be on maternity leave. General Manager Brian Loudon, usually to be seen front of house in a dress suit, marches past in a high-visibility jacket, while Cerin Richardson, the Learning and Participation Manager, double-checks everyone is ready.Today is the theatre’s fi rst ever relaxed performance – a year in the planning – and it’s all hands on deck. “I had to put my long johns on this morning,” says Loudon, heading into the snow to deal with the arriving buses.Braidburn Special School is the fi rst to get here, coming in via the stage door for easier access. Th ey fi ll the front stalls, including an area where the seating has been removed to allow extra wheelchairs. Th ey are the fi rst of 450 children and carers booked in to the 10:00 run of Birmingham Rep’s Th e Snowman. As this is a relaxed performance, they have been promised a regular show but with a few tweaks. Th e technicians have set the sound and light levels a little lower and are ready to make further adjustments should the need arise. Th ey’ve dropped the strobe, gunfi re and artifi cial snow altogether, and are leaving on the house lights at a low level. Th is is a performance where behaviour that would be frowned upon at any other time – arriving late, leaving early, making a noise, taking medication, eating food – is perfectly acceptable.On the surface, some of these details may sound

straightforward, but the implications for the theatre are large. To remove seats in the auditorium, for example, means hiring extra technical crew. To have up to 50 wheelchairs in the room has meant negotiating a special licence with the city council. And the only way to make sure the teachers and carers know what’s going on was to bring them in six weeks ago so they could discuss the day and choose the most appropriate areas to sit.It’s only with the fi nancial support of Walter Scott & Partners, an Edinburgh global investment company, that the theatre has been able to aff ord the extra performance, additional front of house staff and free buses, not to mention

“� ey all say it re-energises theatre as an artform. � ey feel more connected to the audience and, inter-departmentally, they work together in a way they don’t on other things.”

Welcoming all familiesMark Fisher explores how theatres are evolving to make their work more accessible to family members with access needs.

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the extra ramps and audio-description service. None of this happens over night. Richardson has gone to painstaking lengths to make sure the children adjust to the unfamiliar environment of the theatre, sending the schools recordings of the soundtrack and a copy of The Snowman film, and encouraging the teachers to create a storyboard of what is to happen throughout the day.The level of excitement makes it all worthwhile. This is no routine performance, but a special event that has set the whole theatre buzzing. It’s hard to tell whether the staff or the audience are enjoying themselves the most.It’s the kind of success story Kirsty Hoyle, the TMA’s former Access Manager, is very familiar with. “We’ve just done a relaxed performance of The Mouse And His Child at the RSC for about 500 people,” she says. “One of the cast members ran off as soon as the audience had left and said, ‘That was the best thing I’ve ever done’. All the techies came up going, ‘That was brilliant. When are we doing the next one?’” By focusing on welcoming families with specific needs, theatres are discovering a renewed sense of purpose, even if that was never the intention. “They all say it re-energises theatre as an artform,” says Hoyle. “They feel more connected to the audience and, inter-departmentally, they work together in a way they don’t on other things. It brings everyone together.”Hoyle’s first relaxed performance – then called “autism-friendly” – was at London’s Unicorn Theatre in the summer of 2010. Polka and the West Yorkshire Playhouse had started doing similar performances at around the same time. Now she is in charge of the Relaxed Performance Project, a collaboration between the TMA, the Society of London Theatre and The Prince’s Foundation for Children & the Arts, supported by the Nancy Lurie Marks Family Foundation. Its

aim is to help 10 producing theatres and receiving houses stage relaxed performances of musicals, plays and children’s shows. Drawing on their experience, Hoyle will evaluate costs and formulate a “How to” guide, as well as organising two conferences, one in London, one outside, to share their knowledge.Increasing numbers of theatres are making similar efforts to make performances more accessible to families with specific needs. The central challenge they face is how to reach the audience in the first place. Even leaving aside the question of cost, it can be dispiriting to go to all the effort of laying on captioning, audio-description or relaxed performances if nobody shows up. But letting people know such services exist takes time. “I do understand the nervousness of theatres because we’re talking to an audience who don’t come to theatre traditionally,” says Hoyle, who would like to see the government promoting relaxed performances through the education, health and welfare systems. “We’re also talking to an audience who don’t have access to the marketing we normally send out.” Toby Davey, Deputy Director of the audio-description charity VocalEyes, says reaching these new audiences is a “slow burn” that pays off in the long-term: “For the first two or three audio-described performances, a theatre might get small numbers of blind and partially sighted people coming, but as long as they’re giving a good experience, they’ll get word of mouth from people talking within their own community.”Anyone looking for specialist marketing tips should take a look at the legacy website for the See a Voice project (www.accessibletheatre.org.uk/marketing/). Focusing on captioned and audio-described performances, this project ran in 27 theatres until 2010 and resulted in a set of practical suggestions about what motivates the audience

A relaxed performance at Festival Theatre

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“It works so much better if you’ve got the top of the organisation really committed to access. � en it � lters down through all the teams.”

Mark Fisher is a freelance feature writer and the Guardian’s theatre critic in Scotland. He is the author of The Edinburgh Fringe Survival Guide.

Websites mentioned in this article:

A Guide to Theatre Access: www.accessibletheatre.org.uk

Relaxed Performance Project: www.facebook.com/relaxedperformanceproject

See a Voice: www.see-a-voice.org

Stagetext: www.stagetext.org

VocalEyes: www.vocaleyes.co.uk

*Source www.actiononhearingloss.org.uk28

and how it can be reached. “Marketing and promotion is key,” says Davey. “If you don’t know about it, you don’t know it’s available. Once you do fi nd it, it’s incredible. We have anecdotal information about people who will go to every audio-described performance they can.”Spurred on by legislation, theatres have substantially improved the physical accessibility of their buildings. Ramps, lift s and Braille signage have become commonplace. Now the focus is shift ing to the accessibility of the work itself. Following the social model of disability, Hoyle says the onus is on theatres to work out what barriers prevent people from attending. “We’re saying, ‘OK, you don’t currently come to us, what are we doing wrong? What can we do as an industry to adapt our practice so that you feel we are an option for you?’”As someone who is registered blind, Davey knows fi rst-hand how audio-description can make theatre-going worthwhile again. His eyesight had been steadily deteriorating when he attended his fi rst audio-described performance – Take Me Out at the Donmar Warehouse in 2002 – and he found the combination of pre-show information, touch tour and live description to be a revelation. “I need an idea of what the show is about to be able to talk about it aft erwards,” he says. “Th e wonderful thing about description is that I can go with my sighted friends and family and I’m just as well informed as they are – sometimes better.”In the case of captioning, evidence suggests more people use the service than it at fi rst appears. Lynn Jackson, Communications Offi cer at STAGETEXT, which provides captioning and live speech-to-text services, says that although only about 5% of the audience will book because there are captions, anything up to 30% will make use of

them. “Th ere’s a massive invisible audience for captioning,” she says. “Th ere are a lot of other people who may be in denial about their hearing loss or people whose fi rst

language is not English. We’re trying to raise awareness because there are so many people who could benefi t from it.”If take-up is low, it could be for a number of reasons unrelated to marketing. Th e target audience may not like the sound of the show or may be unavailable on the day of the captioned or audio-described performance (is a Wednesday matinee really the best time to schedule one?). But with more than 10 million people in the UK who are deaf, deafened or hard of hearing*, and nearly two million with sight loss, there’s a sizeable audience out there. Jackson’s experience is that once a theatre has bought in to the idea of captioning, the enthusiasm follows. “It works so much better if you’ve got the top of the organisation really committed to access,” she says. “Th en it fi lters down through all the teams.” Th is also means the organisation thinks about accessibility from the start, making it a routine part of the budget, the production process and even the art itself, instead of being a last-minute add-on. Hoyle argues that true change will happen when theatres start treating access as part of customer service: “If you mentioned to a boss that somebody had had bad customer service, I imagine their ears would prick up and they’d say, ‘Send the letter to me, I’ll sort it out.’ But if somebody has complained about access, it’s always someone else’s problem. It needs to come under customer service and front of house and, until that happens, it’s always something that’s passed from department to department.”

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Photo: Matt Humphrey


Websites mentioned in this article:

A Guide to Theatre Access: www.accessibletheatre.org.uk

Relaxed Performance Project: www.facebook.com/relaxedperformanceproject

See a Voice: www.see-a-voice.org

Stagetext: www.stagetext.org

VocalEyes: www.vocaleyes.co.uk

*Source www.actiononhearingloss.org.uk

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“What are we going to do, right now, to end the marginalisation of East Asians in British theatre?” This was the question posed at an open space event held at London’s Young Vic theatre on 11 February. Organised by Arts Council England, Equity, SOLT/TMA and the Casting Directors’ Guild, the event drew almost 200 attendees – a mixture of actors, casting directors and other theatre professionals – all with a common interest: addressing the lack of employment opportunities for East Asian artists in UK theatre.

Actor Daniel York opened the day telling delegates how, as an actor with 20 years’ experience including roles at the Royal Court, the National Theatre and Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre, he feels that he has now hit something of a glass ceiling and each year finds himself attending fewer and fewer auditions.

“It has often seemed to me that in the last 10 or 15 years our industry has sat back and congratulated itself on the increased number of ‘black and Asian’ faces on our stages. Unfortunately ‘Asia’ all too often has stopped dead at Pakistan. East Asians, the fastest growing minority group in Britain today, have been sidelined, ignored and marginalised to the extent that even now it often appears to me that theatre producers will even actively avoid casting them in plays.”

Each of the attendees was encouraged to ask a question or raise an issue they wanted to address and post it on a giant board situated on the Young Vic stage before moving into breakout groups to debate. This format resulted in an energetic day, full of movement and interaction and each of the groups I sat in on had a genuine passion for what they were discussing and a desire to see real change made within the industry.

In every breakout group, one thing that came across very clearly was that this is an issue with no simple solution but that there are a number of steps that could be taken in order for the careers of East Asian actors to move forward. One group discussed the role that drama schools should play in being realistic about their intake whilst being as inclusive as they can be, and a number of actors spoke of feeling like “the token East Asian” in their place of study. Some of the casting directors present felt that agents also needed to be more forward thinking and to consider submitting their actors for roles other than just those that call for a specific ethnicity.

Another issue discussed by a number of groups was the difficulty in trying to reach a point where stereotypical “Chinese takeaway owner” roles are not the only ones being offered. One group acknowledged that black and Asian actors are possibly more

Opening the DoorPrompt’s Clare Ollerhead recounts discussions that took place at February’s long-awaited open space event addressing concerns about the lack of employment opportunities for East Asian actors in the industry.

vocal in making their case and that East Asian actors need to stop putting themselves into boxes in the way other people may have a tendency to do. There was also a strong belief that British East Asians would benefit from a move towards the attitudes of the US, where there is more of a general Pan-Asian culture with far less emphasis on individual nationality.

As the groups broke for lunch there was an opportunity for attendees to continue to chat as well as to use the Young Vic’s ‘Newsroom’ to take to Twitter, make use of the #EAactors hashtag and share their opinions of the morning’s discussions. Participants were also encouraged to begin to file their reports at www.devotedanddisgruntled.com/events/opening-door/

The discussion groups at the afternoon session were no less lively and covered a range of diverse topics such as ‘Positive Discrimination – Is any representation better than none at all?’, ‘What are black and Asian actors doing so right?’, ‘Metrics – How do we measure success and what do we want?’ and ‘How do mixed race East Asians fit in?’

One of the final groups of the day looked at things from a slightly different angle, asking ‘Do we need new writing by East Asian playwrights?’ Producers pointed out that although somewhat constrained by the money making needs of their venues, they are keen to use more diverse work, but that they simply don’t receive submissions from East Asian writers and are not sure how to begin to address this. There was frustration from both theatres and actors at the lack of a well-funded East Asian production company, Yellow Earth having lost its funding in 2011. An interesting debate opened up between those who agree that perhaps East Asian actors do need to be more proactive in creating their own work and those who said that they are actors not writers and should not have to write their own material to find work. However, everyone did agree that, aside from creating work, there is a need for East Asian actors to connect and share ideas wherever they can, with suggestions of a centralised network to hold contact details.

At the end of the day there was a real sense of energy and positivity in the room as the attendees shared what they felt they had gained from the day and what they hoped would happen as a result. At the time of going to print, the event’s steering group was due to meet in March to decide what the next steps should be and, while it was generally acknowledged by all who attended that this was only the very beginning of what will be a long process, there was also a definite feeling that it was a move in the right direction.

29

EVENT


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FORWARD THINKING

Jim Price

The key to successful leadershipAhead of his training workshop for TMA next month, MadAbout’s Jim Price offers Prompt an insight into the golden rules of leadership and argues leaders either get what they want or what they deserve.

There is a widely held belief that an organisation would have few, if any, problems if only the employees would do their jobs correctly. In fact, the key to successful improvements more often lies in changes within the system where the work is done. The leader is a key part of that system. For example, a receptionist cannot ‘put the customer first’ if their manager or supervisor puts ‘balancing the till’ above the needs of the customer.

Leadership by common sense is not really leadership. How many times has someone said to you “just use your common sense”, leaving you to walk away wondering what you should actually do, but unable to seek clarity for fear of admitting you don’t have any common sense? Contrary to popular belief, there isn’t too little common sense in business, there’s too much! Of course you have common sense; your common sense is common to you. Whenever anyone asks “why didn’t you just use your common sense?” What they are actually asking is “why didn’t you do it the way I would’ve done it?”

So this leads us to the first of our key leadership tips: Have a clear PURPOSE. You wouldn’t get into the car and drive off without knowing where you were headed and why. You would also be able to measure your progress along the way, through time or distance. Often, even if the leader has clarity, their teams don’t or don’t understand what part they play: “I want my organisation to be more successful – that’s just common sense isn’t it?”

Start your PURPOSE thought process with a strong vision. How will your work benefit the world? What will you give your customers that is aspirational? Successful organisations have outwardly facing visions, those that are customer-centric. “To be the number one in the industry” is not as customer centric as “Deliver a world class experience”, which focuses the organisation on what it exists to deliver. This clear purpose enables employees to make key decisions: “Which of these options will deliver a world class experience to our customers?”

This brings us to the second key leadership tip: Create a culture of AUTONOMY. A vital element in staff motivation and engagement is the feeling of control over one’s destiny, the ability to influence what we spend our time doing. Strong leaders have a clear and unwavering belief in their vision and team’s purpose but then allow the people who work with them to define how this will be achieved. Effective autonomy delivers two major elements needed to get people doing things that deliver results for the organisation: involvement and pinpointing.

With involvement, much has been written on the skill of coaching and in simple terms it boils down to just one question the leader should ask: “how do you want to go about achieving this?” Pinpointing is the vital art of being absolutely clear in what somebody is being asked to do or say to deliver results. Not only does this give clarity and confidence to the person, it also gives the

leader a clear behaviour to measure and reinforce. Of course, the more involvement a person has in the things they should say and do, the more autonomy they feel, the more engaged they are in the task.

This leads us to our third and final key leadership tip: MASTERY. Mastery is the feeling of improvement, that we are getting better at something. The team’s leader should ensure that everyone in the team knows what they do that is adding value to the team’s purpose, and when they do more of it, they receive some form of reinforcement so they will do even more of it.

So, by now you are probably wondering if you have it, are you an effective leader? Does your leadership style bring out the best in your team? The simplest way to measure this is to find out what happens when you’re not there.

If the performance of the team goes up, then is there a chance that you are doing something that gets in the way of the team being as effective as it could be? Do you have an open door policy? Does this mean people come to ask you questions they are quite able to solve without you? Are they fearful of making mistakes? Do they genuinely have AUTONOMY?

If the performance of the team goes down in your absence, does this mean they only deliver to satisfy you, or to avoid your immediate wrath if they don’t? School pupils keep their heads down and get on with their work when the teacher is present. If we remove the teacher, more ‘fun’ behaviour takes place.

If the performance of the team remains the same then you can pat yourself on the back. It probably means that they are clear with what they have to do and find the work itself rewarding in some way. They get something from it and don’t rely on you for their reinforcement. Everyone is self-motivating in the right environment. Effective leaders control the team’s environment and adapt their leadership ‘style’ according to the needs of each team member and the work they do.

Of course this is just the beginning of the conversation and if you’d like to learn more about leadership skills, join me at the TMA in May. In the meantime, remember the three golden rules: Purpose, autonomy and mastery.

MadAbout creates, designs and delivers powerful development programmes that are engaging, thought-provoking and memorable. Jim Price is an inspirational speaker with an impressive track record in delivering training aimed at helping leaders to maximise their results through greater staff satisfaction.

Leadership Skills will take place on Tuesday 14 May 2013 at TMA, London. To book your place visit www.tmauk.org/events, email [email protected] or phone 020 7557 6700.

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Prompt final artwork Charlie version.indd 31 3/20/2013 12:35:36 PM

How long have you been working for the TMA?I have been at the TMA for two years and nine months.

Why did you want to work for the organisation?Before I joined the TMA I worked as an admin and marketing assistant for an arts organisation in Yorkshire. When I saw the role of Member Services Administrator advertised at the TMA, I thought it would be a fantastic opportunity to work for a leading national membership organisation while continuing to work within the arts and, in particular, within theatre, which was of great interest to me.

What did you do before joining the TMA?

Whilst studying Music at Leeds University I knew I wanted to pursue a career in the arts and sought as much experience as I could within arts administration and marketing. I undertook a number of work experience placements at the West Yorkshire Playhouse, Theatre By The Lake and Highlights Rural Touring Scheme, working in marketing and admin departments, and even in the box office too! I also worked for an events music service, which coordinated professional musicians for weddings and other functions, and arranged people’s special music requests for string quartets. I was really fortunate to get a job straight after graduating as an assistant for what used to be Audiences Yorkshire, a regional audience development agency, offering admin and marketing support to a small team.

Tell us about your current role as Marketing and Membership Manager.

I manage the day-to-day marketing and various projects for the TMA, overseeing a lot of the marketing, services and communications for Members and others in the industry. A large proportion of this work is co-ordinating our communications, putting together our newsletters and various updates and supporting the Training & Development Manager [Wade Choudhuri] and General Manager [David Brownlee] with their work.

Gemma Nelson As Gemma Nelson progresses into her more senior role as Marketing and Membership Manager at the TMA, she talks to Prompt’s Kate Stanbury about her time at the organisation, its current projects and the changes that Members are likely to see over the coming months.

How have your duties changed since starting your new role? Since joining the TMA I have progressed from an administrator to a manager, which has all come rather quickly, but I’m very much relishing my new role. There’s more focus on strategic work and planning, particularly around supporting David with the work that is going into the TMA’s new business plan, as well as shorter and longer term marketing campaigns across the organisation. Training courses, events and networking opportunities are a significant part of what the TMA does and I am responsible for putting together marketing campaigns for these and developing them to ensure that they meet the needs of those in the industry. I’m also keen to continually explore new opportunities and approaches to the way we work.

What aspect of your new position are you enjoying the most?

An exciting part of my role is working on the implementation of the TMA’s new business plan, which will lead to some significant changes to the way that the membership model is structured. In particular, I’m working on the development of a professional membership model, which we’re looking to launch at the end of the year.

I love the variety in my role and there’s so much going on at the moment in terms of the campaign work for My Theatre Matters!, as well as reviewing other areas of the business and potentially a rebrand, which is exciting. I’m also looking forward to working on the development of the data collection and TMA box office reports and, in a few months’ time, we’ll have a year’s worth of data, which will hopefully provide some valuable insights.

What is your involvement in the My Theatre Matters! campaign?

I’m currently involved in many aspects of the campaign and am working on the preparation of materials that will go out to theatres, organisations, audiences and other individuals. I’m also involved in the development of the campaign website, social media and other messaging. My Theatre Matters! is

MEET & GREET

32


Gemma Nelson

a major public-facing campaign aimed at supporting local theatres across the UK and we’re working in partnership with Equity, The Stage, Cog Design, John Good and many other supporting organisations. The campaign is open to all theatres, not just those that are TMA Members, and we’re aiming to encourage them to get their audiences to voice their support for their local venue, particularly to local governments. We want theatregoers and other members of the community to let their councils know how much they value their local theatre and how important it is to their community at a time when there are significant cuts in local government funding and local authorities are being faced with hard decisions. Any theatre can be involved in the campaign and you can get in touch with us or visit www.mytheatrematters.com to find out more.

What changes are TMA Members likely to see in terms of marketing and membership over the next year?

There will be significant changes towards the end of this year when we launch the new membership model and professional membership. We’ve been consulting Members and others working in the industry around the UK about their thoughts on the services we provide and what benefits they would like to see from professional membership. We want to have a much broader and more welcoming membership that is inclusive to anyone at any stage in their career, in any role, working professionally within theatre.

What achievement in your career are you most proud of?

I can’t think of any particular achievement, I’m just really grateful to have had the experience and enjoyment of working in a variety of different arts environments; working for arts companies from both a small, local level to a national organisation. Actually, one highlight was having Barbara Windsor latching on to me at the Olivier Awards because she was struggling to walk in her heels…

What are you hoping to achieve in your new role?

I’d love to be able to develop the membership further, to make more people – and a more diverse range of people – aware of the TMA and the support and benefits we provide, making it more inclusive and welcoming, and more representative of people working professionally in theatre. I also want to develop my marketing knowledge further and explore new markets nationally and perhaps internationally, new channels and new approaches. I’m very keen to work on the development and implementation of a company-wide CRM [Customer Relationship Management] system so that we can improve our ways of communicating with Members, partners and other stakeholders, and develop our relationships.

Are you happy for Members to contact you about the projects you’re working on?

Of course! Anyone can get in touch by emailing me at [email protected] and I’d be happy to keep you updated with our news and developments through the course of the year. Also, feel free to tweet us @uk_theatre

Gemma Nelson’s Prime Picks:

Most useful website:Definitely the BBC – news, weather and loads of good recipes too!

Must-read publication: The Stage is a great read each week (and the website too) for keeping up-to-date with the latest industry news.

Always listen to/watch: I don’t watch much TV at all, but I am a Downton Abbey fan and I watch some other Sunday evening dramas. Mad Men is by far the best thing around!

Can’t be without: Music. I play in an amateur orchestra each week and love being able to keep up with my playing as well as the social side it brings. I couldn’t live without keeping fit and enjoy running, walking and I recently got back into cycling too.

33


Juliet Forster, Associate Director at York Theatre Royal

Theatres don’t always programme high quality work for families because they’re not always sure the audience is there. We started a new venture about five years ago when we staged The Railway Children at the National Railway Museum. That was our first big family thing outside of pantomime and we really wanted to give it the highest possible standard. Having a real train helped it sell, but also helped us discover

that what families want and what they will pay for is a whole experience.

Since then, it has become a regular event for us to programme a family show over the summer, and, even though we are back in our theatre, we put great effort into transforming the rest of the building. This year, with The Legend Of King Arthur, as well as providing related activities and creating additional locations for the story within the building itself, we are introducing a downloadable app that has a gaming element. It is the level and quality of investment made by the theatre that makes it a unique experience.

I think a lot of it comes down to commissioning good work. The key to our real successes – The Railway Children, Peter Pan, The Wind In The Willows – is that we’ve commissioned new scripts. We’re not just regurgitating something that has fallen out of fashion or isn’t as relevant anymore. It might be an old story, but we’re looking at it in the most immediate and appealing way. With The Railway Children, the quality of the work was in the writing, the direction, the performances, the design, the imagination; the steam train was just the icing on the cake.

The funding cuts make it harder and harder for theatres to get a return on the work that we do, which means beginning to cut corners and, ultimately, the knock on effect is a reduction in quality. We’ve been building year on year with our summer shows, how we do it, how we achieve the best quality and how we create a more interesting – and enhanced – experience for families. What ends up happening as a result of the cuts is people take less risks and the art form doesn’t move on.

Family viewingAs plans for the Family Arts Campaign get underway with organisations around the UK coming together to look at ways of engaging family audiences, Prompt asked representatives from three theatres how they think we can get more high quality theatre productions for families into the nation’s theatres.

We should be providing work for a family audience and every theatre should be serving its community. That’s why we’re here. Families – so people of all ages – are our community and we should be providing work that can be enjoyed by them all. Gavin Stride, Director at Farnham Maltings

We currently have 109 venues signed up to house (www.housetheatre.org.uk) and I think all of those could be considered family-friendly. And what I mean by family is everybody. What we should be doing is thinking about how we can make all of our work available to all of our audiences, rather than pigeonholing it as being for adults or six to eight-year-olds or 14 plus. How do we run a business by saying that

we are going to restrict our audience to 30% of its potential?

We have to rethink what we mean by family-friendly theatre. That might be about putting it on at different times, playing with the form, setting as few rules as possible, even changing some of the language that we use.

I am not going to belittle the impact of the funding cuts but, like with everything, there is both a crisis and an opportunity. We need to find ways of thinking differently about what we’re trying to do and how we might do it.

We’re getting a lot of feedback from organisations that were previously funded and organisations that were 100 miles away from the nearest bit of public subsidy that are saying ‘thank God this has made things possible’. To give one example, I’ve stood in a venue that has and still receives Arts Council investment, but we were able to put in a piece of work that they couldn’t previously because they wouldn’t have had the resources or the time to programme it. The director of that venue turned around and said that he’d never seen that audience in that building before.

I hope that this notion of family-friendly turns into something that reframes theatre in a way that all work becomes available to everyone. Theatres need to think about how they can make their work available to the widest possible community.

Juliet Forster

Gavin Stride

SOUNDING BOARD

34


ISSUE NO. 67April 2013

Families matterAs the Family Arts Campaign takes shape, Prompt looks at how arts organisations across the UK are welcoming family audiences.

takes shape, Prompt looks at how

are welcoming family audiences.

Get in touch!

In the next issue:

We would love to hear your views on any of the subjects in this issue of Prompt. To contact us, email [email protected]. If you would like your letter to be considered for publication in a future issue, please mark ‘for publication’.

The July issue of Prompt will focus on My Theatres Matters!, the TMA, Equity and The Stage’s campaign to raise awareness about local government arts cuts and the threats to local theatres. Don’t miss your issue to discover how you can get involved and find out what the legacy of the campaign will be.

Comments, questions, suggestions?

To request

your copy

CALL: 020 7557

6700

Judith Dimant, Producer at Complicite

Talking for Complicite and companies like ours who haven’t until now explored this market, it seems that we came to it organically. We didn’t think ‘let’s do a family-friendly show’. It all came together as a result of the ages of the people who run the company. We’re all in our 50s and we have our own families. Consequently we have become interested in slightly different things and

we’re more aware of what captures audiences.

We wanted to do something that was for everybody. Lionboy is a book that is for everybody and we hope that parents and carers will like our production as much as eight-year-olds and above. I’m not sure how you can dictate to people to make

family-friendly work. It has to be artistically led. Our work at Complicite is always artistically led. It just so happened that this time we’ve all thought that this is a great book.

Annabel Arden [co-founder of Complicite] went to the author and said ‘These books are really theatrical and I would like to bring them to life’. The way that we make things is very much about the person making it. They bring their material and we facilitate it.

Our budget for this is just like any other major Complicite show. We don’t make our work to make money. We are really aware that, by doing this, we are going to completely extend our audience reach and bring a new audience to our work. Just by going out and doing a UK tour, it will bring back a lot of people who haven’t seen our work. We’ll have new audiences who have read the book and I think we’ll reach a whole new market.

We’d love to do this one and see how successful it is. If it’s really successful, we’ll follow our usual model and bring it out again next year and maybe even do it internationally.

Judith Dimant

SOUNDING BOARD

35


“Things have changed for me. Even though they are not my children, the things we do in leisure time has had to change because the price of things, even transport, has gone up. I look for things like the Arts Trail in East London that are free. If I want to take my brother’s kids out and take them for lunch… and the gift shop as well… it can get really expensive. But I still want to take them to places that are educational and are exciting.”

Aunty with two nieces aged six and four-years-old, London

As part of the research and consultation process to inform the development of the Family Arts Campaign Delivery Plan, Th e Audience Agency was commissioned to undertake focus groups in Manchester and London to test the ideas for the campaign with diff erent types of families. We also wanted to know more about the drivers and barriers for families attending the arts. Research already exists that explores in detail what motivates families to attend the arts, their specifi c needs in arts and cultural settings and the factors that act as barriers to inhibit engagement (Family Friendly Toolkit, Arts Council England). In order to build on rather than repeat this work, their analysis concentrated on exploring any contemporary changes that families may experience in relation to their arts engagement and any new or developing factors that have infl uenced them in recent months. Th e research found that the economic downturn is changing the way some families plan their leisure time. Some participants described paying more attention to voucher off ers and deals as well as planning days out further in advance:

Low cost has always been a priority for families. However, rising transport and food prices mean that the availability of free activities is becoming even more important in enabling families to continue to access high quality arts on a budget. Cost was a particular concern for families participating in the London focus groups. Th is was also found to be a factor for parents and primary care givers as well as other members of the family.

Talking to 21st century familiesMuch has changed in recent years in the way families fi nd out about arts events, but leafl ets and free magazines continue to be more useful for many families than Twitter, David Brownlee fi nds.

“The recession is defi nitely one point I consider. I tend to use a lot of voucher sites to see what is the best deal as a package I can actually get. It has changed my pattern. Previously I used to just go down on the day and buy a ticket but now I tend to plan a few weeks ahead so I can get a good discount.”

Father with one seven-year-old daughter, London

“I just fi nd Google so amazing – you can type anything into it and it will answer everything. Usually if I want to go somewhere… all I do is go on to Google and type ‘What’s on free in London’ or ‘Picnic areas in London’ and it just comes up.”

Mother with two sons aged 16 and 18-years-old. Also regularly looks after nieces and nephews all under 16, London

In every focus group the dominance of digital marketing channels for families planning arts attendance was clearly evident. All participants engage with some kind of digital content. Information was more commonly accessed via Google searches than by visiting specifi c websites. Many participants describe using Google as a quick and convenient way to access comprehensive information about everything that is going on in their area. Google searching is a popular way to plan events across all types of families, including grandparents.

Th e focus groups found that social media websites, primarily Facebook and Twitter, are also an important planning tool for those that use them (our major survey of more than 2,000 families founds that Facebook was cited as an important route for fi nding out about events by more than twice as many people than Twitter).Some participants actively follow arts venues through social media as a way to keep up to date with events. Some also share information with other parents:

“Facebook feeds from major museums. Recommendations and ‘likes’ get shared amongst networks of mums.”

Mother with one daughter aged six with a disability and one son aged four, Manchester

“I will tag anyone I can think of that would be interested”

Mother with one daughter aged 16-years-old with High Functioning Autism and one son aged 14 with Unique Chromosome Abnormality, Manchester

36

RESEARCH


Established in 1894, the TMA is the leading membership body representing the interests of and providing professional support for the performing arts in the UK. Our Members include theatres, multi-purpose venues, arts centres, concert halls, commercial producers, touring theatre, opera and ballet companies, sole traders and suppliers to the performing arts.

Th e TMA provides a collective voice for the management of the UK performing arts. We support our members with the very latest in current thinking and best practice, and our services include specialist legal, fi nancial and employment relations expertise, practical support and guidance.

Th e TMA’s agreements with the trade unions are the benchmark for the employment and engagement of those working in the middle and large scale UK performing arts. We represent the interests of arts organisations from across the UK to central, local and European government, funding and other bodies concerned with the performing arts.

bringing the industry together Member benefi ts

A wide range of local and national professional networking opportunities

Advice, guidance and support on legal matters, industrial relations, business management and corporate governance

Reduced costs through the TMA’s Group Purchasing Scheme

Reduced rates and advance booking for our high quality training and events programme

To fi nd out how to become a member or how you can get more value from your existing membership, call Gemma Nelson on 020 7557 6706 or visit www.tmauk.org

“I’m on Twitter and Facebook all the time so if anything comes up on my timeline I’m gonna see what it is, follow the link to see if it is something interesting.”

Brother with full time care of two boys under 16, London

“I fi nd more and more that I’m getting it from people who have tweeted about what they’ve done the weekend before. It’s not all conversation; it’s also people linking to things on the internet.”

Mother with one daughter aged two, Manchester

“I use it [Facebook] quite often. My friends, if they see something that might be of interest, they’ll send it to me. It is quite useful.”

Mother with one baby son. Also an Aunty who lives with and regularly cares for one niece aged seven-years-old and one nephew aged 4-years-old, London

Several participants had stumbled across information on arts events on social media sites without actively searching. Th is more casual route to accessing information was also described as acting as a prompt to attend.

Word of mouth and personal recommendations have always been an important driver to attend for families. For the mothers in particular, participants who are engaging with social media are now connecting with others parents online.

Despite the infl uence of digital channels, free newspapers remain a convenient and comprehensive source of information for families, particularly regarding local and free events.

Some participants commented that the recent closure of listings titles have made it harder to fi nd out what’s on and made websites an even more important source of information:

In our rush to post and tweet about our exciting events, it’s important not to forget the importance of traditional channels of communication to families. For me this research is a reminder that as well as listening to trusted friends on social media, the voice of Google is a huge infl uence on families’ decisions on where to invest their time and money. If you search on family activities in your town, where do you appear in the search results?

“I get a brochure saying what’s on in Tower Hamlets where I live. Also the East End Life newspaper. Every week that’s always got lots of information on the activities and what’s going on where, the prices and what’s free.”

Mother with two sons aged 16 and 18-years-old. Also regularly looks after nieces and nephews all under 16, London

“I mourn the loss of …City Life magazine. You could just have that every week, read it, everything was in there. I hate not having the one place to go to”

Single mother with one son aged three, Manchester

37

RESEARCH


AprilMon 15 Family Arts Conference, Birmingham

Wed 17 Managing Third Parties in the Work Place

Mon 22 IOSH Managing Safely

Sun 28 Olivier Awards with MasterCard

Tue 30 Networking for Success

May Wed 8 Time and Stress Management

Thu 9 Introduction to Finance

Tue 14 Leadership Skills

TMA diary datesPrompt looks at what’s coming up in the next six months in training and events. All courses are in London unless stated otherwise. For further details on all TMA training courses and for location information, visit www.tmauk.org/events or email [email protected] to receive a full brochure.

Wed 15 Practical People Management Skills & Creating a Vision for your Team

Tue 21 Personal Effectiveness & Emotional Intelligence Skills

Wed 22 Managing Confl ict with Customers

Thu 23 TMA AGM and Annual Lunch

JuneThu 6 Working Effectively with Creative People

Tue 11 Recruitment and Selection Skills Training

Thu 13 Finance for Non-Finance Professionals

Wed 19 Health & Safety Essentials Plus

Tue 25 Essentials of Fundraising in the Arts

JulyThu 4 Introduction to Marketing

SepThu 12 Frontline Conference 2013, Birmingham

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38

CALENDAR

for venues and producers

Better ValueReducing cost and improving cover for our Members

Peace of MindSpecialist support and the highest quality of service from industry experts

Play your partIn buying together to reduce the costs for everyone

Launching 2013For the latest news, visit www.tmauk.org/insurance/

TMA Insurance is a brand name of W&P Longreach, who are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA)


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prompt magazine issue 67 april 2013

Documents

family arts campaign

family members

welcoming family audiences

arts events

prompt issue

arts organisations

campaigning issue of

local theatre