The National Association of Youth Theatres, in collaboration with Arts Council England and the Department for Education and Skills is conducting a mapping exercise, cataloguing details of all youth and young people?s theatres in England.
e: naytrichard@btconnect.com; w: http://www.nayt.org.uk
The 2004 Comme Ca Art Prize has been cancelled, following the withdrawal of financial support by its private sector partner, Xceli Ltd, but organisers are hoping that the prize will be revived in 2005 and beyond.
The Arts Council of Wales has launched an Events Database to which Welsh artists and organisations are invited to submit details of exhibitions, festivals, conferences, launches and concerts. Users can contribute their own events using an online control panel. w: http://www.artswales.org/diary.asp
The Society of London Theatre has published its Box Office Data Report for 2003, providing detailed analysis of attendance figures and box office returns in London?s major commercial and grant-aided theatres. The report examines the effect of external factors on the West End, including seasonal variations and global events, and analyses the differences in number of performances, attendance and receipts between the subsidised and commercial sector.
The Frieze Art Fair 2004 has recorded a 50% increase on last year?s attendance figures with more than 42,000 visitors purchasing £26m worth of contemporary art during the four-day event.
An interactive DVD drama and website raising issues around disability and inclusivity has been launched by Jigsaw Theatre Company, which was founded by and for disabled people and has developed and toured productions to theatres and schools since 1987. ?The Big Picture? will be used as an educational resource, relevant to the PHSE curriculum. w: http://www.jigsawtheatre.org.uk
Belfast City Council has launched a consultation on how to turn the year 2006 into a celebration of cultural excellence, with a series of forum events and focus groups taking place in the city during November. It envisages the celebrations focusing on four themes ? ?One Belfast?, ?Youthful Belfast?, ?Creative Belfast? and ?Moving Belfast?. w: http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/belfast2006
The Beautiful Octopus Club @ West Yorkshire Playhouse is one of six winners of Audiences Yorkshire?s latest Marketing and Audience Development Awards. The award was made for the best approach to access and inclusion, for an initiative which encourages mainstream club goers to attend a night organised and developed by people with learning disabilities.
The National Youth Dance Trust is to link up with Youth Dance England, the newly formed national organisation for youth dance, established through the Department for Education and Skills? Music and Dance Scheme.
The PRS Foundation for New Music has launched an award of £50,000 for the creation and presentation of new British music. The New Music Award is open to artists working in any genre and artistic context, and the award will support the creation and performance of a new work.
The old brickworks in Chesterfield has been renovated to provide an exhibition space, workshop spaces and a sculpture garden, and will be showcasing contemporary fine art and crafts by local, national and international artists and makers. w: http://www.artscreative.co.uk