The below correspondence is posted here by kind permission from the Society of London Theatre
The Society of London Theatre (SOLT) is an organisation that works with and on behalf of their Members to champion theatre and the performing arts.
Performing Arts Guidance
The guidance Performing arts – Working safely during coronavirus (COVID-19) was updated on 15 March 2021:
- New shorter format focussing on actions to make your workplace COVID-secure
- Updated guidance covering Step 1 of the roadmap out of lockdown
Webinar: Consumer Trends in UK Theatre & Leisure Attractions’ – Monday 22 March, 4.00 to 5.00pm
SOLT & UK Theatre present a webinar from BVA-BDRC exploring the latest consumer attitudes and behaviour trends in the UK Theatre & Leisure Attractions’ Market. They will present finding from field work running during early March 2021. This session is for Producers, Executive Directors, and Marketing and Communications teams. Register your free place.
ACTION: Apply by tomorrow – Creative Freelancers: Shaping London’s Recovery
Cultural organisations can register their interest this week by 19 March to take part in a new £225,000 initiative to be delivered by Fuel to support performing arts freelancers.
‘Each freelancer will receive a bursary, match-funded by a cultural organisation, and collaborate on a six-month research project in targeted working groups, supported by a freelance facilitation team. They will feed into the Mayor of London’s work to improve job creation and retention for freelancers, as well as skills and training, and take part in advocacy and lobbying.’
COVID Testing
London Business Hub is hosting a webinar this Friday (19th March at 10am) to talk through business COVID testing options available to businesses and how to access these. You can book your place here.
See it Safely & ‘We’re Good to Go’
We’re delighted to let you know that everyone who has been approved to use ‘See it Safely’ can now also use Visit Britain’s ‘We’re Good to Go‘ mark. We have shared the relevant info with Visit Britain to set this up and they will be in touch with everyone soon to share the WGTG assets.
If you have any questions regarding See it Safely or to sign up for the scheme, please email kayley@soltukt.co.uk
Liberty Open Call: R&D grants for D/deaf and disabled artists
Applications are open until 30 June for Research & Development projects by London based D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent artists or organisations. £70,000 of grant funding available is for projects ranging from £3,000 to £10,000 and successful applicants will be invited to share their project’s work-in-progress as part of Lewisham’s London Borough of Culture Opening event in January 2022.
‘Proposals are invited for engaging and thought-provoking projects suitable for outdoor, indoor or digital presentation. All artforms are welcome, including music, visual art, comedy, poetry, street theatre and dance, digital art, participatory installations, workshops and other events.’
Environmentally Sustainable Theatre
Patrick Dillon is leading a new initiative to produce a common practical guide, a ‘Green Book’, of guidance for how to make theatre more environmentally sustainable. A ‘beta’ draft is now ready for producers and theatres to trial and provide feedback. They are consulting widely and need particular input from those producing and general managing commercially. If you would like to hear more, please rsvp to pghdillon@gmail.com and join a zoom (details below) at 4-5pm on Wednesday 24 March:
Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86228084042?pwd=QVg3dkhHMTUvdG82enJxWHNoTDB0dz09
Meeting ID: 862 2808 4042
Passcode: 228296
Please feel free pass on this invitation to anyone in your team who would like to attend.
Webinar: Learning from Lockdown: Key Practices to Modernise the Way We Work – 30 March: 10:30am to 12pm, or 31 March: 2pm to 3:30pm
This PiPA (Parents and Carers in Performing Arts) seminar will showcase industry leaders who will share how they have successfully implemented the following family friendly, inclusive working practices:
- On-stage job shares with New Adventures
- Backstage job shares with Mercury Theatre
- Family-Friendly Productions with National Theatre Scotland
- Supporting Disabled Workers with Birds of Paradise Theatre Company
Each event attendee will receive a practical guide: Working Practices for the Post-Covid Age. Reserve your place here.
16 March – thank you!
Thank you so much to everyone who got involved with the 16 March campaign. Overall, we raised £12,695 for the Theatre Artists Fund from public donations in one day only. Thanks to generous donations including £500,000 from the Jerwood Foundation, we have over £1 million to give out in our next round of grants – so if you do know anyone in need, please ensure that they apply.
We coordinated a wide range of print, online and broadcast press focused on the anniversary of theatre closures, learnings and challenges from the past year, advocacy points for the sector, and planning ahead to reopenings. Highlights of our coverage included BBC Breakfast / BBC World News, Radio 4 Front Row, Radio 4 Today, LBC, BBC News at Ten, ITV London Tonight, Sky News, Reeters, BBC News Online, Evening Standard, Daily Express, Daily Telegraph, Variety and FT.
We had an incredible response on social media with many stars sharing their turning point moments and posting selfies in support of the Theatre Artists Fund. #16March was trending all day and we had high profile support on Instagram stories from Hugh Jackman with 29.5 million followers, and Ian McKellen on Twitter with 4.1 million followers. This was a real testament to the power of working together.
100 Videos Described: opportunity from VocalEyes for large discount on film / video audio description.
VocalEyes is offering 100 artists and arts organisations in England a significant discount on film / video audio description (AD) services between 3 May and 31 August 2021. AD takes the form of an additional narrated audio track that provides information about key visual elements for the benefit of blind and visually impaired people. The opportunity is part of 100 Videos Described, a project funded by a National Lottery Project Grant from Arts Council England.
Discounts range from 40% to 65% depending on the length of the film. Shorter films will have a higher chance of success, and we will also give additional weighting to projects submitted by smaller and diverse-led organisations and those offering AD for the first time. For additional information, and to submit your film project visit 100 Videos Described on the VocalEyes website.
USEFUL RESOURCES
Coronavirus Recovery Guidance
- Coronavirus Recovery Updates and Guidance – for SOLT Members
- Coronavirus Recovery Updates and Guidance – for UK Theatre Members
- Media Briefing Notes
- See It Safely Toolkit
- Working Safely During Coronavirus – Guidance
- Coronavirus Government Guidance Library
Wellbeing and mental health support for you and your staff