Putting youth on the main stage: Watermill Theatre's Youth Ensemble
Matthew Nichols
Thursday, September 1, 2022
The Watermill Theatre in Newbury is taking a radical approach with its Youth Ensemble which could throw down a gauntlet to other theatres, suggests Matthew Nichols
When it comes to engaging with their communities, many regional theatres make some effort to ensure that the work they do with young people is part of their agenda. After all, the theory goes, if these people become familiar with theatre at a young age, they stand a chance of catching the theatrical bug and falling in love with performing, working backstage and potentially forging a career in the business itself. Different theatres create work with and for young people and with varying degrees of success but, at the Watermill Theatre, it sounds like something really special is happening.
Nestled in leafy Berkshire, just outside Newbury, the Watermill is a small theatre with an impressive reputation. Alongside its regular programming – think Othello, jazzy festive productions and a cosy adjoining restaurant for pre-show meals – its Watermill Youth Ensemble has reignited its creative manifesto and is creating a whole host of opportunities for young people. A recent production, The Girl of Ink and Stars, an adaptation of Kiran Millwood Hargrave's acclaimed novel, played to sold out audiences on the theatre's main stage.
In the limelight
Rather than tucking its youth ensemble away in a corner or a tiny studio space, the Watermill Youth Ensemble got to showcase the ensemble's work on the venue's main stage. Better still, the young thespians were also able to take part in a whole host of backstage roles, meaningfully engaging in ensuring that the production was accessible and, by all accounts, creating something ambitious, memorable and a radical gauntlet being thrown down to other theatres.
The Watermill's outreach director Heidi Bird was responsible for this production and explains the journey that the company has been on. ‘The programme has been absolutely brilliant, but we were at a point where we really noticed that there was a gap for young people with additional access needs or people who were considered at risk. The pandemic actually provided a great opportunity for us to re-evaluate how we delivered our youth programme and performances, and the Youth Ensemble formed.’
The venue is putting its money where its mouth is, too; any young person aged between 11 and 18 is able to apply and take part in the weekly workshops at the theatre. ‘This isn't based on ability or skill, or what sort of performer you are,’ says Bird. ‘But what we think the young people will gain from it and flourish.’ There are weekly sessions for people who are deaf or have specific access needs and these different strands are then all drawn together as the group moves towards its public performances. Some members of the ensemble were involved in preparing and performing elements of the British Sign Language (BSL) provision for the performances and by exploring avenues like this, the Watermill is giving its young members a genuinely real-world experience of how theatre is made, both on and off stage.
The future
Heidi Bird is genuinely enthusiastic about the future of the ensemble, and her infectious positivity is palpable. ‘The productions are on the main stage and are supported by a fully professional production team at the theatre. One of the things that was really important for me was that the production team was representative. We had a deaf associate working on the production, for example, alongside working with the BSL provision.’
The benefits for young members of the ensemble are many and obvious and Bird is keen to spell it out. ‘For us, it was really important that those young people could see themselves in those roles, not just on stage but backstage and in rehearsal too. What was wonderful was that the young people had never worked collaboratively before but were so incredibly supportive of one another. They're all still now in contact with each other.’
At its best this is what theatre can do, capturing the hearts and minds of young people and offering them an education, fun, and shining a light on possible future pathways for employment. Hearing about the commitment that the Watermill is making to its young members is genuinely inspirational. And it seems as though this is just the beginning.
‘In the long term we're hoping to develop our backstage strand even further,’ says Bird. ‘Our next production, A Monster Calls, is going to be in November and the choice of that play has come from the young people itself, articulating that mental health is a real issue for them at the moment and that they really identify with it.’ Bird, who runs the ensemble alongside Angharad Arnott-Philips, is clear about the purpose and vision of the group. ‘For me, theatre has always been about what you can take from it personally. Whether that's standing on a stage, which is a huge thing for many of our young people and a huge achievement in itself, or whether it's simply being accepted as part of a company and understanding how you can work with other people to make something, it's about all being in it together and working towards one goal.’
It sounds as though this is just the beginning for the Watermill Youth Ensemble. With ambitious plans to extend its provision, this small theatre in Berkshire is paving the way and lighting the path for the theatre makers of tomorrow. Long may they continue.
