Review: Applied Theatre Podcast
Freya Parr
Wednesday, February 1, 2023
One reviewer describes this podcast as 'a fun exploration into different branches of the sector with a likeable host'.
Mclittle Stock / Adobe Stock
Tom Craig is an applied performance maker and Derby Theatre’s Community and Learning producer, but alongside this work he has also developed the Applied Theatre Podcast. Featuring interviews with educators and practitioners, this is a useful resource to learn about the practice of others while also offering creators a platform to share their work. Released semiregularly since October 2020, the podcast received the Outstanding Drama Education Resource Award at the Music and Drama Education Awards in 2022.
While it may not be a particularly high-end, glossy production, the podcast offers a kaleidoscopic look at some of the UK’s most exciting artists, facilitators, producers, dramaturgs and creators making theatre at a grassroots level. It would be a particularly useful resource for A Level teachers who are on the lookout for practitioners to study with their classes and want to go beyond the ‘big names’. In each episode, Craig meets people working at the intersection of theatre, art, social work, community outreach, technology and education.
He might not have an interrogative, journalistic approach to broadcasting, but Craig has a superb comradery with guests and showcases their work in an insightful and engaging way. Across the 17 episodes released thus far, we have met multidisciplinary artists, researchers exploring the impact of theatrical engagement with older adults, programming curators, companies creating digital theatre apps, and even lecturers and NHS professionals working with VR projects in a healthcare context. While the early episodes might have just featured traditional theatremakers, the remit of the podcast has broadened – for the better. The range of participants means the subject matter is wide-reaching and diverse. It’s rare to have a resource of this quality available on a free-to-access basis. A great way for teachers and educators to engage with applied practitioners from a variety of different contexts and backgrounds.
