The Grenfell Project
This project started as a show for our final year of our Acting and Performance course at the University for the Creative Arts, where "The Grenfell Project" was been showcased at the Farnham Maltings and the Marylebone Theatre in Shepherds Bush as a piece of devised work.Through personal testimony and verbatim theatre techniques we performed this as our final year show.
A few of us decided that this is to important a topic to give up there and are aiming to tour the show so that we can spread the message across the UK. There are still over 3,000 apartment blocks around the country that are still covered in the cladding that cause the Grenfell tragedy to be so severe due to its flammability.
What We Need
We already have one show booked at The Bread and Roses Theatre in Clapham, but we wish to continue touring so we can reach as many people as possible. This is how donating to our show will help us tour:
- Booking influential and popular theatres that will encourage and support our show whilst bringing people into the venue through the venue's prestige.
- Booking rehearsal space for the cast and director to work.
- Buying webspace for advertisements and links to our shows
- Printing leaflets and flyers as well as programmes so all our lovely cast and crew can be credited.
The Impact
In the past, the community of Kensington and Chelsea has been divided by those who are stereotyped as being deprived financially and those who are not, with this poverty profile being a defining factor in their treatment by their council. Through this performance of testimony - from Ladbroke Grove residents, rescuers and some of our own experiences - we wish to inform the public on how and why this disaster is seen as an act of incompetence and greed. We aim to tour our piece so that a widespread message can be communicated, whilst educating those in schools and youth centers about the decisions that caused the fire, in hopes to create a more supportive generation.
Risks & Challenges
A topic such a Grenfell is an ethical conundrum. We wish to fairly portray everyone involved in this tragedy whilst trying to obtain justice for the residents of the community. Verbatim theatre has had a recent surge in popularity and with many moral issues up for debate it is important as aspiring artists to experiment and find our path to a fair and inclusive performance. As actors, it is important for us to explore how to fairly represent those whose experiences we are bringing to the spotlight and being respectful of their misfortune. We also have the job of revealing faults in the councils support for those at Grenfell whilst not attacking them on a personal level.
Other Ways You Can Help
If you aren't in a position to contribute you can still help us out by:
- Share this Indiegogo campaign to your friends, family, colleagues who you think might be interested!
- Share our Facebook page!
- Come see the show! On at The Bread and Roses Theatre from the 26th of February to the 2nd of Mach. Check their website for more information! https://www.breadandrosestheatre.co.uk
