Central Outreach activities continue throughout Summer Term

Throughout the Summer term the student, staff and alumni teams that collaborate to deliver Central’s Outreach programme to young people across the country have continued to deliver their work digitally in response to the ongoing restrictions brought about as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.   

The Outreach team have continued to adapt their activities to reach young people remotely wherever they are.  The goal of this work is to raise aspiration and attainment and to encourage progression to higher education, either at Central or elsewhere.  This is particularly key for learners who are traditionally under-represented at university level.   

In response to these aims, a bespoke online programme was developed in collaboration with Backstage Niche and other partners, called ‘So You’re Interested In…?’.  Backstage Niche works to inform and encourage the younger generation from various Global backgrounds to consider the exciting possibilities of a career in backstage theatre. Their aim is to plant a seed in their minds at a young age and expose them to the vibrant world of theatre which exists behind the curtain and not just onstage.

The ‘So You’re Interested In…?’ programme consisted of a series of workshops exploring the huge variety of creative careers on offer, including stage management, set design, sound design, lighting design and costume design. Further workshops were delivered focusing on writing, working with communities, directing, using your voice, and performance. 

Alongside work with young people, the Outreach team collaborated with mezze eade and Romana Flello from The London Consortium RinD project to present a series of online teacher workshops exploring Anti-Racism in Arts Classrooms.  This series included an introductory workshop, two sessions exploring texts by writers from the Global Majority, and a final session exploring how to apply these approaches to practice and utilise them in school settings.   

Of the sessions, teacher participants said: 

‘Really enjoyed the sessions, found them really thought provoking and necessary’ 

‘Really friendly/supportive space, brilliantly led, thought provoking/inspiring.’ 

‘I left feeling enthused and full of ideas!’ 

‘I also really liked being introduced to new texts and terminology that made discussing ideas/thoughts/feelings easier (e.g. global majority)’ 

‘I loved having open conversations, the sessions felt like a really well organised safe space.’ 

RinD, a London Theatre Consortium project, aims to address systemic imbalances in KS3, GCSE and A level drama, and support intersectional anti-racism work happening in UK schools, theatres and theatre companies.  RinD promotes the study, directing and programming of plays by writers from the Global Majority.  Their projects support schools, theatre and youth companies to embed anti-racism pedagogy in their practice, build the skills and confidence in teachers, facilitators and practitioners to teach and direct texts which represent the lived experience of their students and young people, and prepare young people to engage empathetically with Britain’s rich society of heritages and ethnicities. 

For more information and to learn more about our work with young people, including how you can get involved, visit our Outreach pages. 

Pictured: Maame Atuah, Student Recruitment and Access Administrator and Central alumna (left), runs a stage management workshop for young people with the founder of Backstage Niche, Sylvia Darkwa-Ohemeng (right).