BAC and Bloomberg present

Bloomberg Newsletter - Issue 1

B A C A N D B L O O M B E R G P R E S E N T THE GOOD NEIGHBOUR

Dear Bloomberg team,

We want to share with you what has been happening with Battersea Arts Centre and Bloomberg’s The Good Neighbour project.

But first, let me tell you what The Good Neighbour is all about. It is a show that is inspired by a man called George Neighbour: a Battersea hero who lived and died over 100 years ago.

The Good Neighbour is part of BAC’s mission to invent the future of theatre – for this project we have created a show to which you can bring every member of your family and friends!

There is:• an animated play space for 5’s and under• a fast-paced adventure across the building for over 6’s• a theatrical guided tour around Battersea for over 13’s and adults

There is food before you start - with breakfast, lunch and tea-time shows! – and the show runs from October 13th to November 4th 2012.

We have also been running a Good Neighbour Programme around the show – which gives new creative opportunities to members of the Battersea community.

We simply could not have done this project without Bloomberg’s brilliant support. We thought you would like some updates about the project. So here is out first – after the first week of the show’s run.

If you would like to find out more, please get in touch any time.

All the best, David JubbJoint Artistic Director & Chief ExecBattersea Arts Centredavidj@bac.org.uk

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GOOD NEIGHBOURS: ASSOCIATIONAL PHILANTHROPY AND CIVIC APPRENTICESHIP IN 19TH CENTURY ENGLAND

A LECTURE BY DR FRANKLYN PROCHASKA

Frank Prochaska is an historian of modern Britain with a special interest in philanthropy and nineteenth-century po-litical thought. Currently based in Oxford, he has taught at universities on both sides of the Atlantic and in recent years taught British history at Yale.

In a lecture that brought the diverse demographics of the Battersea community together, Dr Prochaska looked be-yond stereotypes of Victorian philanthropy to reveal the people and social dynamics behind societies for mutual aid, benevolent funds and other charities. He explored the key role these societies played in fostering local democ-racy and neighbourly cooperation as well as raising funds for the needy. This was brought into focus by the presence of Battersea’s old motto - ‘not for me, not for you, but for us’- which is inscribed in the Lower Hall in BAC’s building, the Old Town Hall, a local monument to civic pride and col-laborative effort.

The lecture was part of BAC’s investigation into new notions of philanthropy for the 21st Century as a grassroots, crea-tive activity, not simply the preserve of wealthy individuals, but strengthening neighbourliness and imaginative capac-ity across the board.

Attendees included: Paul Martin - Chief Executive of the WBCTony Belton - London Assembly for Battersea, LabourSarah Rackham - Catherine Lowe SettlementMichael Day - CEO Historic Royal Palaces

To download the full lecture click here.

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CA LOUST E GU L B E N K I A N FOU N DAT I O N

ARTS PROGRAMME FOR PARTICIPATORY PERFORMANCE

Since we began the Good Neighbour programme, in partnership with Bloomberg, we have been exploring ways of working with the Winstanley Estate in Battersea. Winstanley is a neighbouring estate to Clapham Junction and is where the riots began in this borough in August 2011.

We have been using the BAC and Bloomberg Good Neighbour programme to work with young people from the estate. We have also invited Marcus Faustini from Rio de Janeiro stay at BAC. Faustini has a Rio-based project called the “Agency for Youth”, an inspiring model of developing young people’s entrepreneurial and creative ideas.

We have researched and understood the Rio project and introduced Faustini to some young people from Winstanley working at BAC. This led to an application from BAC, Contact Theatre in Manchester and People’s Palace Projects to the annual arts participation award from Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. The application was for the creation of a UK cultural festival of young people’s ideas. There were applications from cultural institutions all over the country but BAC’s application to create a UK national network of young people, in partnership with Contact Theatre in Manchester, was selected by the Gulbenkian Foundation and will now run from 2013-2015.

A sustained period of R&D involving some 300 young people aged 15 to 25 years in the creative process will culminate in a 4-day cultural festival of young people’s ideas over the Easter weekend of 2015.

The programme supports the development of a new performance piece of uncompromising quality which brings together leading professionals and people from local communities, with demonstrable social and cultural benefits for all.

“At a time when there are over 1 million young people unemployed in the UK, a time when

we need to invent new social, economic and environmental models…it is the right time to

invite and support young people to develop their own ideas in their own communities.”

David Jubb, Joint Artistic Director BAC

The Good Neighbour programme has been created to forging links with the community using the production as a conduit.

In July 2012 a ‘Public Engagement Officer’ was appointed who has spearheaded the programme, establishing connections with leading community groups and running free workshops with them to promote the ideas encapsulated in The Good Neighbour. This has led to an audio installation of recordings of community members sharing how they feel about the community they live in, broadcast on radios in the Café/Bar. Building on this, The Intrepid Explorers journey within the show, includes the accounts from local people and businesses of the London 2011 Riots which are re-told in their own words.

We are also offering free and subsidised tickets for the production to families and groups who otherwise would not be able to come.

T H E G O O D N E I G H B OU R P RO G RA M M E

GIVING CREATIVE OPPORTUNITY TO THE LOCAL BATTERSEA COMMUITY

PROGRAMME AIMS

• To make BAC more accessible

• To expose new people to the arts

• To promote neighbourly attitudes

• To give the community a voice in BAC

• To celebrate the vibrancy of the area

• To learn how BAC better can serve the community

PU B L I C E N G AG E M E N T

Providence House Youth Group

CASE STUDIES

THE WANDSWORTH CARERS CENTRE

A group of carers (average age 67yrs) that meets every month. Their ability to access theatre is limited either due to mobility issues, disability and caring duties.

At least 20 families so far have been able to attend The Good Neighbour, after an outreach session

ST P E T E R S / W I N STA N L E Y E STAT E

BAC hijacked a streetdance class and ran a workshop which allowed children (average age 8yrs) to experience putting on their own theatre pieces for other people in their community.

This estate has been described as ‘notorious’, but the children flourished and enjoyed themselves.

PROVIDENCE HOUSE YOUTH GROUP

A group of younger children (average age 9yrs) most of whom have never experienced theatre before. They had a fun packed theatre workshop and were exposed to how theatre could impact their communities. The whole group came to see The Good Neighbour.

PROVIDENCE HOUSE GIRL GROUP

We were invited to visit this group of girls (average age 14yrs). The workshop focused on how they feel they fit into their community. It was fun and insightful.

Their experiences were so inspiring that their stories have been recorded and are now playing over the BAC radio installation.

WANDSWORTH OLDER PEOPLE’S FORUM

BAC’s very own Nahum Effik from Homegrown’s Beatbox Academy; led a music workshop with these members (average age 70yrs).

They were highly enthusiastic and enjoyed the experience so much they requested a second workshop.

‘It was amazing’ Robert Musgrove, Group leader

‘I don’t think there is any way I could improve this project.’Julia Fox, year 5 teacher, Falconbrook Primary School

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BAC SCHOOLS

STIMULATING WORK THROUGH RESIDENCIES AND BESPOKE WORKSHOPS

All the work commissioned for the Young Adventurers journey has been developed through the BAC Schools programme. Artists including Sheila Ghelani, Ruth Paton, Matt Blake, Bryony Kimmings and Kirsty Harris developed their pieces through residencies in local primary schools, while Coney and Bryony Kimmings ran bespoke workshops at BAC with local classes. The work produced through these interactions provided the framework for the finished pieces.

The BAC Schools programme provides the opportunity for teachers and children to collaborate with world-renowned theatre artists through specially-designed sustained programmes of workshops in the classroom. The work centres on the creative dialogue between artist and child, devising together their own inspiring new piece of theatre, which is performed to friends and peers. Projects are created to relate directly to curriculum requirements, and also stimulate the imagination, enhance speaking and listening skills and build visible self-confidence.

The schools work is mutually beneficial. The Good Neighbour’s connection to the Schools programme is a key aspect of BAC’s re-evaluation of what family theatre is for, what it is about, and who makes it. A prime example of this is the work by Sheila Ghelani. Prior to her experience with BAC Schools programme, she had never made work for the family audience. Two six week residencies in local primary schools led her to generate high quality work for this demographic, which would never have previously come about.

ArtistsRuth PatonSheila GhelaniKirsty HarrisMatt BlakeKazuko HohkiBryony KimmingsConey

SchoolsFurzedown Primary SchoolSt Mary’s RC Primary SchoolSacred Heart (Battersea) RC Primary SchoolFalconbrook Primary SchoolAllfarthing Primary SchoolSt Faith’s CE Primary School

T H E G O O D N E I G H B O U R

13th October to 4th November

The Good Neighbour is an interactive, site specific adventure for all ages, investigating the hidden stories of Battersea Arts Centre’s Victorian Town Hall building and the surrounding streets.

A Battersea Arts Centre production, The Good Neighbour playfully explores different ways that families and groups can enjoy theatre, giving audience members a choice as to what they want to see and do. The production includes three different journeys for three different age groups:

Early Investigators (5’s & under)Enjoy a theatrical play space in BAC’s newly refurbished Bees Knees area, accompanied by an adult.

Young Adventurers (6+)Adventure through Battersea’s former Town Hall pursuing a lost story, exploring different worlds and environments that combine to create a chain of discovery.

Intrepid Explorers (13+)Experience a theatrical guided tour of Battersea in which a radical history meets the present.

Times and Dates:10:30am 14*, 21, 28 Oct |4 Nov2:30pm 14*, 20, 21, 27, 28 Oct | 3, 4 Nov6:30pm 13*, 19, 20, 26, 27, 30 Oct | 1, 2 Nov*Preview Performances

Come for a delicious breakfast, lunch or dinner as part of the show. The menu is available here.

Running Time: Approximately 2 hours