New Youth Advisory Board for ‘fresh, bold ideas’
Harriet Clifford
Tuesday, October 6, 2020
Chichester Festival Theatre (CFT) has created its first Youth Advisory Board in order to identify and champion inclusivity and diversity, generate fresh, bold ideas to excite, inspire and resonate, and advocate for the voice of young people in theatre and the creative industries.
The Board will be chaired by Georgina Liley and Holly Mirams and is made up of 12 young people aged 16-25. They include members of Chichester Festival Youth Theatre and students from Bishop Luffa, Chichester College, Portsmouth Grammar School, University of Chichester and Worthing College.
Georgia and Holly said, ‘We believe positive change can be ignited by young people. We endeavour to create an atmosphere where debate and collaboration are celebrated, where young people’s voices are heard and where there is the space and opportunity to think boldly and dynamically about how best to drive CFT towards a diverse, inspiring and exciting future.’
Kathy Bourne and Daniel Evans, executive and artistic director of CFT respectively, said, ‘We are determined to ensure that Chichester Festival Theatre is able to include, listen and respond to the voices in our communities. The younger members of our existing and potential audiences are an essential part of those communities, and the creation of our Youth Advisory Board will be a pioneering asset in that strategy.’
The members of the new Youth Advisory Board are: Tewo Ajayi, Benedict Blythe, Veronika Buckwell, Tom Chown, Joe Clines, Amy Glenister, Hetty Hodgson, Ollie Howlett, Jessica Martin, Lucy Noble, Ellie Snow and Hugh Summers.
They will meet five times a year to discuss ways of making the theatre an inviting and exciting place for young people, also in open dialogue with the Board of Trustees. They will be appointed for one year and will meet for the first time this month (October).