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B=MC2, working in partnership with the Barbican Theatre in Plymouth, offers young people the opportunity to develop skills and gain experience in the creative arts. The group received a grant of £6,957 to run a Young People's Cultural Exchange Project, which worked with young people in the City from different backgrounds to create a theatre project aiming to develop new skills and creative confidence.
A new theatre company, called "Strange Youngens", comprising of young people aged 14-25 was formed to deliver a tour of workshops on Brechtian Theatre to nine schools in the City and further afield, culminating in a week's run of the play "A respectable Wedding" by Bertolt Brecht at the Barbican Theatre.
As a result of the project the group learned how to run a theatre company and sell a tour. They gained a network of contacts and have had subsequent offers of work. Each participant gained experience for their CVs and the group now aims to establish itself as a registered theatre company, which will enable it to stage future productions and workshop tours.
The most significant difference has been made for the young volunteersa within the project, who have gained many things. They have learned performance skills, workshop facilitation skills, how to work as part of a team within a professional yet realxed environment, and for some it has provided a leadership experience. They have gained increased confidence and self esteem, which has not gone unnoticed by their peers at school, who have made reference to the walking taller! They have also had the opportunity to network outside their school environment, helping them to improve their communications skills and confidence in interacting with new people.
Links were also made with young South African performers from the Arrow Project (an arts for reconciliation project). The group also shared their creative ideas with a cultural exchange which gave them the opportunity to mix with people from different cultural backgrounds.
Following on from the unexpected level of success of this project, they plan to re-invest the £720 profit made into another project of a similar nature. They have already been approached by Estover Community College to deliver Shakespeare workshops and are busy writing a business plan and working on new funding applications to enable the group to build on the experience Devon Community Foundation's grant has enabled them to gain.
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