When the Blue Elephant Theatre opened in June 1999, it had no funding but it sprang into life anyway, remembers Antonio Ribeiro.
The determination, enthusiasm and effort of a small group of volunteers, combined with the support of some forward-thinking officers in Southwark Council, resulted in the conversion over six months of a previously derelict building into a theatre studio and art gallery equipped to a high standard. Nestled between two large council estates in one of the most deprived areas in the country, the local community and new writing are at the heart of the theatre?s planning.
As part of our ongoing programme, we have built a relationship and developed a growing portfolio of high quality productions and workshops by established companies such as Theatre Encorps, ENO?s Baylis programme, Sphinx, Jazz Umbrella, to name a few, intertwined with local artists and companies.The effect of this crossover of the established with the new has had positive repercussions in developing new local audiences.
Our relationship with young people started with ?Heroes? as part of Black History Month 1999. It was our first production of a piece of collaborative work between three writers and a dramaturg, aimed at young people. It was about the unsung heroes in Black and Asian history, whose feats had a faint presence in British history school books. After each performance of ?Heroes? we had a forum led by myself and a dramaturg, involving the audience, writers and actors. Education packs were distributed to schools in order to further debate between students and their teachers.Audiences were drawn mainly from local schools, and this has been the beginning of our growing relationship with teachers and pupils in the area.
But we wanted to go further. It was clear that there was a genuine interest from local young people in the theatre, and so at the beginning of 2000 we ran an outreach programme of taster workshops and talks at local schools and in September of last year the Blue Elephant youth theatre met for the first time. Many of the young people who first turned up to the sessions had never taken part in any drama-related activities before, and thought art, and theatre in particular, wasn?t that cool. Over a period of six months they worked with music and drama practitioners to make up short scenes, poems and raps based on their experiences.With the encouragement of other professionals who offered to do workshops with the group, such as Mark Rylance,Artistic Director of Shakespeare?s Globe, through theatre trips to the nearby National, Globe and Old Vic, and by working with writer Helen Adams, we will be presenting ?Electric Halos? at the theatre for four performances, before opening it at this year?s InterNational Connections at the Cottesloe Theatre. I have seen the level of commitment of participants and perception of the arts change dramatically. Now the Blue Elephant has started to be seen as a place to hang out!
New writing is at the core of all our theatre work. In June this year,?Hijack?, a two week programme showcasing four new plays following a three-day intense workshop period, kicked off with a tryout performance of ?The Curse?, a short play by an eighteen year-old writer, Sally Caroline Nyaniria who lives in the neighbouring estate. In September we will be running writing workshops in schools, working closely with English and drama departments through a short-term project funded by London Arts.
One thing remains.This has all been achieved because of committed individuals, but we still require long-term investment and commitment from funders. I believe I am heading an incredibly exciting project with an impact in regenerating this area of London, and the time has come to step up a gear if we are to become sustainable.
Antonio Ribeiro is Artistic Director of Blue Elephant Theatre. t: 020 7701 0100, e: antonio.ribeiro@blueelephanttheatre.com, w: http://www.blueelephanttheatre.com