EXTENDED UNIVERSE aims over 2 years to “develop new young independent theatre audiences by making the artform relevant and attractive”. By putting the audience first (teenagers /young adults aged 15-25) and maximizing digital developments for storytelling we will:
- make theatre more accessible and attractive to young people
- give young people a voice through theatre, inspiring them to engage more deeply and more often
- increase organisation & artists’ understanding of young audiences’ behaviours, tastes and engagement
The partnership assembles 4 politically-engaged theatres across Europe: Boundless Theatre (UK), Grob (Denmark), Entropia (Greece) and Sala Beckett (Spain). All want to connect more with young audiences. Each bring specific expertise but together can impact more on audience development through peer learning, increased capacity and transnational exposure. An Artistic Development Team of 8 renowned theatre artists will experiment in transmedia theatre and extending it into social media over 18 months development and 3 international workshops (Activity 1). This culminates in a week’s artistic activity (Activity 2) of 4 inter-linked productions spanning live and digital platforms. We invite the audience to become the final ‘artist’ to extend the work on social media. Each partner will engage young people (Activity 3) through 4 Youth Advisory Groups (40 members) with wider engagement of target audiences through workshops and online. Partners will share expertise and project learning (Activity 4) through 4 partner meetings, digital collaboration and disseminate results (Activity 5) across the sector. The legacy will be more relevant work for young people and a stronger network of theatres who understand (artists & staff with better digital /audience engagement skills) and champion new work for teenagers to the wider sector. We will inspire more young people to see more theatre, creating more diverse, sustainable European theatre audiences.