A Night Less Ordinary - Free Theatre Ticket Initiative
Press Release
Immediate
16 February 2009
The Drum has free theatre tickets for young people
Participants from The Drum’s Young, Gifted & Brum project have provided support for the launch of an exciting new scheme A Night Less Ordinary. A Night Less Ordinary is aimed at anyone aged under 26 who would like to attend theatre events, free of charge! This is what YGB participant Ashanti Anderson aged 14 had to say when she learned about the scheme.
“It will encourage me to come and attend things at The Drum. Usually, I might go with Mum to things but that is what she wants to see. Now I’ll have the chance to choose what productions I want to see."
Rhiannon Bailey added;
“I think it’s good because kids will have a better choice and it will give us more opportunity to see things other than the cinema or things with parents. It will also encourage young people to get involved in other things like Young Gifted Brum.”
Arts Council England have supported 13 venues and organisations across the West Midlands, including The Drum, to give free theatre tickets to under 26 year olds as part of a national scheme to get more young people into theatres. A Night Less Ordinary is supported by £2.5 million additional funding to the Arts Council's core grant from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and will fund 618,000 free theatre tickets for under 26 year olds in the next two years.
The scheme will launch with special events including taster workshops, free screenings and backstage tours at venues across the region.
Arts Council England Chief Executive Alan Davey said:
"Venues around the country have responded to this initiative with energy and imagination. Through their creative commitment, many more young people will experience what theatre can do - inspire, challenge, and help make sense of the world; an engagement and an inspiration that can last all their lives."
“A Night Less Ordinary offers people from our local communities to come in and find out about the venue and what type of events we put. It’s also an opportunity to help demystify the arts for people who think theatre is not for them or for those who’ve never tried it before. We’ve got some really exciting events scheduled over the next few months so there’s never been a better time to get access to tickets for some fabulous shows, completely free of charge”, commented Drum’s Director of Communications, Jennie Gentles.
Each week, The Drum will have a limited number of tickets to give-away each week for young people to see selected events at The Drum. People can choose from theatre, dance, spoken word or film screenings. The tickets are available Wed – Sat on certain events and are offered on a first-come first served basis. For more details contact The Drum’s Customer Service Team on 0121 333 2444 or visit their website http://www.the-drum.org.uk/about-us/free-theatre/.
The scheme will run alongside the reduced price schemes for young people which we currently operate.
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For more information about The Drum’s A Night Less Ordinary Scheme contact Jennie Gentles, Director of Communications on 0121 333 2444 or email j.gentles@the-drum.org.uk
For more details and information about the national A Night Less Ordinary Scheme contact Rachel Hartley, Assistant Officer, Communications on 0121 631 5762 or email rachel.hartley@artscouncil.org.uk
Notes to editors The Drum’s Young Gifted & Brum
Young, Gifted Brum is an exciting new programme designed to engage children and young people aged 8 – 18 in performing and digital arts. We aim to develop the skills of young people in a wide range of arts activities and offer support through tutors/trainers and mentors to help build confidence, self-esteem, respect and understanding between groups in the community.
Participants will have an opportunity to showcase their talents at two annual events, whether their talents lie in producing writing, directing, delivering events or performing in them. We want to enthuse and motivate young people to make life changing decisions about education, continued training and different routes to employment.
If you would like are interested in participating in this project or would like to find out more, contact our Youth Associate, Dee Whittle on 0121 333 2444 or email d.whittle@the-drum.org.uk
A Night Less Ordinary Awards have been made at three different levels, details as follows:
Premium Award - £50,000 each
Malvern Theatres
Birmingham Rep
Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford
Birmingham Hippodrome
Standard Award - £30,000 each
New Vic Theatre, Newcastle under Lyme
Belgrade Theatre, Coventry
Warwick Arts Centre
Regent Theatre, Stoke on Trent
Flexible Award - £10,000 each
Oakengates Theatre at The Place, Telford
Playbox Theatre, Warwick
Breaking Boundaries (Ludlow Assembly Rooms, Arts Alive Touring Scheme)
The Drum, Birmingham
Courtyard Centre for the Arts, Hereford
