Young Vic announces new work from creative engagement department

The Young Vic Theatre has announced new works from its Taking Part department and participants of its Creators Programme. 

A new free immersive exhibition called MANTELPEACE is set to look at the world of young men growing up in London, running from 9-20 July, and has been created by those from Taking Part, the Young Vic’s Creative Engagement Department. 

This department works with young people, adults, schools, and the local community in Lambeth and Southwark, engaging with over 15,000 people a year and providing free tickets to all shows and free creative and artistic opportunities to participants. Taking Part’s three strands, Learning, Participation, and Neighbourhood Theatre, create work at the heart of the organisation. 

A work that has come from the Young Vic’s Creators Programme and has received the Genesis Future Directors Award programme is Stef Smith’s The Girl in the Machine. 

Elsewhere, Taking Part’s Neighbourhood Theatre has launched The Collective, bringing together 50 artists to create a show staged at the Young Vic next year. 

Shereen Jasmin Phillips, director of Taking Part, said: ‘Our new Taking Part projects promise to bring light and fun to the Young Vic. MANTELPEACE focuses on the joy of journeying through teenage years to manhood, creating a space where young men from our community can be brave, support each other, and build and share connections through illustration, music, sound and movement. 

‘The Collective will explore and redefine the co-creation of a show, utilising varied artistry from people’s everyday lives in an epic new production showcasing that everyone has the potential to explore their creativity. Working with lead artist Adam Karim on MANTELPEACE and director Michelle Payne on The Collective, I can't wait to see what all our participants will discover, create and curate for our audiences.’

Sue Emmas, associate artistic director of the Young Vic said: ‘We are excited to be working with Annie Kershaw on Girl in the Machine, an exceptional play by Stef Smith.  We’ve been lucky enough to work with Annie as an assistant director and we’re looking forward to collaborating with her as an artist as she continues her Young Vic journey.  With the valued and continuing support of the Genesis Foundation, Annie will realise her vision for this new production opening in the autumn.’