Young voices recruited to share Newbury's lockdown experience in Unlocked & Unbolted
Corn Exchange Zoom conversations with 14-21s for theatre piece
CORN Exchange is inviting young people across the country to take part in Unlocked and Unbolted, asking them to share their voices, experiences and thoughts of the past few months.
Through online conversations, the Corn Exchange would like to hear how the Covid-19, lockdown, isolation, social distancing and the realities of this pandemic have directly affected them and their thoughts for the future.
These informal discussions will ask questions about how the world looks to them at this time, what should a return to a ‘new normal’ look like, have some things changed for the better or has visualising the future become increasingly difficult?
The collaborative project is supported by funding partners Greenham Trust and the Lily and Marcus Sieff Charitable Trust.
Young people aged 14 to 21 are invited to sign up for group Zoom conversations with the creative team led by director Bryn Holding. These conversations will become the inspiration and the source material for a new piece of theatre that will form a socially-distanced live performance presented by a group of young performers later in the year. Those taking part in these
conversations will shape the play and how that story is told as they listen to one another, discuss how they see the world and reimagine their futures together.
Zoom conversations started on Thursday and will continue on Tuesday and Thursday next week. Further information about the themes, age groups and times can be found on the Corn Exchange’s website, www.cornexchangenew.com/unlocked
The Corn Exchange is also keen to hear from West Berkshire-based young people aged 16 to 21 who would like to take part as a performer. Twelve young people will take part in a two-week rehearsal process from August 19, with both online and physically distanced rehearsals. Some previous performance experience is necessary and those interested should submit a video which includes them delivering a short poem (which can be found on the Corn Exchange website) plus a brief description of why they would like to take part in the project. These should be sent to getinvolved@cornexchangenew.co.uk by 5pm on July 24. Successful applicants will be informed by July 31.The Corn Exchange is working with Berkshire Youth on this project, which has been supported by the Lily and Marcus Sieff Charitable Trust and Greenham Trust. Greenham Trust has partnered with Berkshire Youth to launch the West Berkshire Youth Hub, a virtual and telephone-based support hub that is assisting young people, families and agencies through the Covid-19 lockdown.
For more information about Unlocked and Unbolted, visit www.cornexchangenew.com/unlocked
