Sparks fly upward

Last year, theatre director Richard Eyre stated that there is a growing division between those who believed that the arts are accessible and those who feel disenfranchised by them. He maintained that there has been a failure to instil an appreciation of the arts in schoolchildren today, and blamed the lack of emphasis on creativity on an overly rigorous culture of testing in schools. Eyre went on to say, “My fears are that you enlarge the divisions in society between those for whom the arts are a part of life and people who think it is impossibly obscure and incomprehensible… I would use the word apartheid”.

Eyre’s words resonated loudly within the walls of West Yorkshire Playhouse, as did the Government’s announcement to address this balance through the ‘Cultural Offer’, where young people are to receive five hours of culture a week through school. Ed Balls, Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, said, “All children and young people should have the chance to experience top quality culture – whether that is seeing a play or dance performance, learning a musical instrument or producing some creative writing… I want to give young people the chance to both experience and take part in creative activities to help them learn and develop.” Staff at the Playhouse, like those at many other arts venues across the country, work hard to develop and sustain rewarding relationships with schools and young people, and as a result are beginning to see young audiences who are more culturally literate than in the past. However, this isn’t merely about future audiences, it is also about setting young people up with skills that they will use for the rest of their lives, to help them build confidence, provide them with the ability to achieve and subsequently allow them a sense of ownership in the arts.

Workshops as a tool

The main tool used for developing these relationships is workshops. Through practical workshops young people often get to experience and have a go at something they have never tried before, and this often leads to an unleashing of potential previously unseen in the classroom. Creativity becomes a tool for learning, and professional artists engage young people and teachers in a subject. Children participating in a rap writing workshop rarely acknowledge they are meeting the demands of the literacy curriculum, and this forum allows and encourages the less academically minded to excel, whilst learning the skills of a new artform.

The Playhouse offers and runs workshop-based projects with people of all ages, from babies as young as six weeks through to people in their 90s. Part of this extensive programme of work is SPARK, a pioneering arts education project, partnered and funded by Provident Financial. SPARK engages primary school children in areas of cultural deprivation, thus addressing exactly the “divisions in society” that Eyre discusses. One head teacher from a school involved in the project commented, “Our children suffer from a lack of experience in arts. We have no after-school drama clubs and they won’t be taken to the theatre, so it is the school’s responsibility to provide these experiences. If these don’t happen in school then they won’t have any art opportunity.”

Reaching out

SPARK reaches over 6,000 children across the UK and the Republic of Ireland, in partnership with seven other regional arts venues: Battersea Arts Centre, Birmingham Rep, Bolton Octagon, Dundee Rep, Edinburgh Lyceum, Newport’s Riverfront and Axis Arts Centre in Ballymun. Over 200 classes in 52 schools are given the opportunity to participate in creative workshops led by local artists as part of their schoolday. In the first year of the project, 37 different artforms were offered including animation, street dance, drama, performance, drumming, sculpture and banner-making, and 1,188 workshops were delivered. The artforms chosen by each class were explored over a five-week period in the classroom, with the teacher present, and culminated in celebratory events, often back in their regional theatre, in which children showed their work to an audience of peers, teachers and parents. SPARK allows children to become actively involved in the arts, breaking down social and cultural barriers, eliminating incomprehension and obscurity. This project goes so much further than an annual trip to the theatre or opera: SPARK not only enhances learning within the school environment but also encourages creative development and improves personal skills such as team-building, self confidence and public speaking. Feedback from children has been resoundingly positive. One Year 6 pupil said, “It made me feel great and now I have a new hobby and will be able to do it all the time. Thank you for this chance.”

Sustaining relationships

SPARK has enabled each venue to form sustainable relationships with at least six local primary schools, giving those pupils longer-term access to the arts. Sarah Quelch, Participate Director at Battersea Arts Centre has commented, “At BAC we see SPARK as a massive opportunity for partnership funding and creating long, sustained relationships with schools. We know that we are not leaving the schools high and dry after we have been in to work with the children – we are going back to the schools and really building good relationships. The LEA and Council will view our work differently and it will create stronger community links. It will be a brilliant strength for BAC.”

The cultural awareness that workshop projects such as SPARK help to develop in our children should be nurtured. The ‘Cultural Offer’ is another step in the right direction, which should be applauded by all who care about the future of the arts in this country. However, at a time when funding cuts are threatening several leading arts organisations, it is worth remembering how regional theatres can and do play a vital role in this country’s cultural life, often through something as simple as a workshop. One Year 5 SPARK participant wrote to us, “I am writing to thank you for inviting us. The Yorkshire Playhouse is a great place! There’s so many things I can say. It was an experience of a lifetime. We got taught by a professional dancer (Wow). I LOVED IT!” Another wrote, “I would like to say a big thank you to Lianne for teaching us how to dance and for the opportunity to dance on a real life stage. There was two thousand eyes, it was scary. P.S. I would love to come again.”