Encouraging expression: Diverse Voices workshops
Theatre tells stories, but what makes a story worthy of the stage? As readers of Drama & Theatre know, there's more to our subject than entertainment. The best stories challenge archaic ideologies, champion unrepresented voices and teach us about humanity and the world. It's always been this way: Medieval theatre established didactic performances as a means to confer religious teachings. Now, we see similar principles used via Theatre in Education (TIE), in Brecht's epic theatre style and forum theatre. Diverse Voices is a charity that combines theatre facilitation with educational lessons through Drama workshops in order to prevent and bring awareness to toxic behaviours in society. The group sees its work as a tool to empower young people to make decisions that will bring about positive outcomes in their lives.
Topics covered include bullying, racism, employability and peer pressure, crucial themes for young people. Diverse Voices believes tools such as role-play, discussion and drama games led by art-based practitioners hold great power in getting young people to empathise and create change.
‘Theatre has the power to significantly enhance self-esteem, motivation and achievement. By employing theatre as a learning medium, young people can infuse purpose and value into their creativity, discovering their own unique paths to finding answers,’ says Veronica Antipolo, Diverse Voices's operations assistant, ‘For us, theatre is an effective means of exploring sensitive topics that impact their wellbeing and development, empowering them to engage with society as independent, mature and responsible individuals.’
Diverse Voices provides breakfast, lunch and after-school programmes, as well as during the holidays, for schools in and around London, for 4-16 year olds. They tailor all clubs and workshops to meet the specific needs of the young people involved, whether it is the topic, or delivery of the sessions. Their promise is that the students will develop their imagination, focus and vocabulary. Their hard work then gets showcased at the end of each term to family and friends, as well as at public events hosted by Diverse Voices.
What is the best thing about working at Diverse Voices? ‘Simply put, making a difference and witnessing young lives transformed daily through our learning programmes and clubs is truly rewarding. It is always an honour to see someone who has never encountered an art form before fall in love with it,’ says Antipolo. ‘We are always looking for further ways to expand our impact, new ways to reach young people in order to improve opportunities and access, therefore we would love to hear from any organisation who wishes to collaborate on this.’
Unlike traditional classroom settings, drama allows for hands-on learning by encouraging students to form opinion and perspectives that challenge conventions. In drama classes, expression isn't limited to word alone: it flourishes through movement, puppetry, projections and spoken word – nurturing confidence and presenting interests in myriad creative approaches. However, since the pandemic, the creative arts have witnessed a rapid decline in investment and Diverse Voices has ‘felt the brunt of it first hand.’ At a time where people were divided and separated in the pandemic, and since, the arts continue to bring people together and create unity. The fact it is undervalued will only hinder society as a whole.
‘Our approach to sustaining our programmes is grounded in the belief that they – and in general the arts – should be accessible to all; this principle drives us to deliver our work with minimal costs to our beneficiaries,’ says Antipolo. ‘While we greatly appreciate any funding we receive, if that is not feasible, we always strive to keep costs to a minimum.’
If people are interested in organising Diverse Voices to visit their educational setting or would like to speak to the team, please get in touch via email to info@diversevoices.co.uk or by visiting diversevoices.co.uk. Their learning programmes (a combination of high-quality short films, online lessons and lesson plans) are accessible to schools up and down the country. All their facilitators have DBS checks and are first-aid trained.