Royal Court Theatre Young Agitators 2020 Announce Five New Projects

Over the course of the lockdown, from May 2020 to the present, the Royal Court Young Agitators have been working together digitally to forge a community. From this experience, the 29 Young Agitators have formed five projects STARDOLL, CONCLUSION PENDING, rest to protest, Side Dish and it’s better outside, each launches later this week.

Now the Young Agitators have broken free of the tiny squares of zoom to crack open a new conversation about who makes theatre and whose narratives need to be shared right now in this moment … this is just the beginning …

 

Rework – a digital zine by STARDOLL
Available from Friday 31 July 2020

STARDOLL have created ‘Rework’, a digital zine collating creative responses to a unique prompt in each edition. The aim of the zine is to celebrate those in society who have not been afforded the same access to their imagination as others. Rework’s pilot issue ‘Both & More’ will highlight the work of creatives from immigrant communities and families.

The pilot issue will be released on the Royal Court Theatre website on Friday 31 July 2020 12 noon.

STARDOLL are a group of theatre makers who are bored of the status quo – the same voices, stories and lives – and want to rework the narrative.

The company are Carla Addyman, Grace Murray, Segen Yosef and Yasmine Dankwah.

https://royalcourttheatre.com/2020-young-agitators/stardoll/

 

Is Art Privilege? A digital sculpture by CONCLUSION PENDING
Available from Friday 31 July 2020

Conclusion Pending are creating a sculpture in a digital space that will symbolise their message: the Arts are a necessity that society is treating as a privilege.

From Friday 31 July, the company will distribute postcards to residents in each of their local areas with the image of the sculpture photoshopped to appear beside local schools, and messaging encouraging recipients to visit the Conclusion Pending’s website. Once online, they’ll be guided through the political landscape of the Arts as privilege vs. necessity, and empowered to support change through shared online resources and petitions. 

Conclusion Pending is a movement that empowers emerging artists from underrepresented backgrounds by highlighting the importance of Arts Education. They believe that arts should be part of the school curriculum and are working to increase access and breakdown barriers for young people. 

#AskForArts

The company are Aoife Delaney, Rosie Thackery, Prabjot Sandhu, Muminah Abdullah, Malika Sandover  Kieton Saunders-Browne 

 

“We are the people who ask the questions.

We are fluid.

We are bothered

We inspire others to inspire others.

Our conclusions are always pending.

Through arts and activism.”

 

Instagram: @conclusionpending

Facebook: conclusionpending 

https://royalcourttheatre.com/2020-young-agitators/conclusionpending/

 

rest to protest 

Who do you rest for?
Who is being allowed to rest?
When did you last feel rested?

rest to protest looks to sleep as a political act of resistance for ourselves, and the people that we love.

“We are the children that have been gifted rest from those without it.

These are our stories.”

rest to protest is an online collection of art and stories which will begin on Saturday 1 August at 7am and will last for five days.  

Each day will bring a new experience of rest.

Stories will be awake during certain hours of the day, giving you an opportunity to absorb them in your own time. They will stay awake for around an hour at a time. Whilst the stories are awake, you can access them as many times as you wish. 

The stories will go to sleep for periods of time to encourage personal rest and reflection.

‘Rest to Protest’ are a group of emerging artists exploring how individuals can truly ‘rest’ in a world obsessed with productivity. This is their opportunity to give breathing space and time to the people who have given it to them. They reject talking at each other and instead give time to truly listen to these voices. 

The company are Harriet Beynon, Mahesh Parkar, Jonny Khan, Beth Fisher, Perpetua Png and Louise Valente.

Twitter: @resttoprotest
Instagram: @resttoprotest

Transcripts of the audio will be available to increase access to the  stories.

https://royalcourttheatre.com/2020-young-agitators/resttoprotest/

 

The Voices in the Back of Your Head by Side Dish

The set is your home, your body, the inside of your brain.  

Join Side Dish in confronting our misconceptions, revelling in that misunderstanding, and finding familiarity in the other.

Side Dish asked writers around the world to consider domestic actions that mean something to them. The Voices in the Back of Your Head will be delivered to you as audio pieces on their website, served with a set of simple instructions for domestic activities to carry out while listening. The aim is to bring listeners closer to an experience in another language without the need for translation.

Writers and performers include Carla Fuentes Abu Abbarah, Gabriel Akamo, Mishal Bandukda, Jack Bourton, Caitlin Brown, Lilith Cristina, Lucy Donald, Lucy Doig, Yuqun Fan, Chipo Gore, Eliezer Gore, Aaron Kilercioglu, Elete Nelson-Fearon, Riwa Saab, and Caro Black Tam.    

The Voices in the Back of Your Head will debut on Zoom from Thu 30 July – Sat 1 Aug in front of live audiences, and will also be accessible on sidedish.myportfolio.com after the shows premiere. 

Tickets are free and will be bookable via the Royal Court Theatre website. Bookers will be sent a link to join the event via Zoom an hour before the performance.

Thursday 30 July, 7.30pm. 

Friday 31 July, 7.30pm. 

Saturday 1 August, 7.30pm. 

 

Accessibility Note: Transcriptions for each of the audio pieces will be available during the Zoom calls and on the website.

Side Dish are theatre makers who perform the act of creative recovery. They unpick our stories and histories to create and reimagine our collective future. The company members are Mishal Bandukda, Jack Bourton, Lucy Donald, Eliezer Gore and Riwa Saab.

To see documentation of their making process, follow @sidedish2020 on Instagram and Twitter. 

https://royalcourttheatre.com/2020-young-agitators/sidedish/

 

in return of… by it’s better outside

IT’S BETTER OUTSIDE is a collective of artists attempting to create work beyond the institution who believe their only use is to create and facilitate joy.  Curated by Aaron, Benin, Elete, Esme and Isabelle. 

In Return Of…  is a digital cycle of artistic offerings where people name what gives them joy as well as providing an artistic response to what someone else has named. These responses can be in any form: images, audio, video or text. 

IT’S BETTER OUTSIDE have also created a zine that will be distributed digitally and physically, to enable others to initiate similar cycles, in their own ways, beyond the website.

They are initiating a sense of sharing that relies on reciprocity, there for those who would like to put something into the world and know that it will be held.

To participate, go to [INSERT DOMAIN HERE] from Saturday 1st of August. It is an ongoing project, so feel free to engage at any point. The theme will change each month. 

https://royalcourttheatre.com/2020-young-agitators/itsbetteroutside/

 

To view all the projects and the work they are launching see here.

 

For the full press release, click here.