Rep' & Erasure
Bristol Old Vic Theatre is looking for young storytellers with an interest in History and Theatre for an exciting new project...
As part of the project you will:
Dig into archival material, dating from the 1760s to the present day.
- Gain experience for your CV, or to support your studies
- Collaborate with artists to develop your ideas.
- Learn about digital storytelling including animation.
- Creatively direct a project, including scriptwriting and storyboarding.
- Design an exhibition, to tell the stories that you want to tell.
- Free tickets to shows and social activities.
- Gain skills and knowledge in working with archival material and conducting historical research.
- Meet like-minded people and gain confidence in a supportive environment.
We welcome applications from people who are:
- Aged 16 – 21
- Are passionate about change
- Interested in history, the performing arts and/or archival material
- Enthusiastic and committed to learning about Bristol Old Vic’s history
- Willing to learn new skills
- Work well as part of a team
We particularly encourage applications from people from the Global Majority who identify with the themes of the project, especially those with Asian, Middle Eastern and North African heritage.
DID YOU KNOW we're a very old theatre?
When the Theatre Royal (now Bristol Old Vic) was built, America was still ruled by England, electricity hadn’t been invented, sandwiches were a brand new phenomena, and Bristol was a very different place. This building has seen the Bristol riots of 1834, hosted the first ever hot air balloon, survived the Bristol Blitz and witnessed the seminal Bristol bus boycott. For every single significant moment of Bristol History over the last 257 years, artists have been here making plays. Now, we want to explore the plays that were being made, and what they say about Bristol History, and British Theatre History.
We’re going to do this by looking at one world famous set of stories – Arabian Nights - which has been programmed here over and over again. How have these stories been used to represent different cultures, countries and communities on our stage and in our spaces over the last 257 years? Whose voices and cultures have been represented, misrepresented or straight up erased?
We want this project to platform the opinions of young people in Bristol within the organisation and to the wider general public. This will be a creative exploration using games, drama and digital storytelling to explore and share meaning.
What to expect
| Dates | Details |
|---|---|
| 29th Jan 2024 | Application Deadline |
| 17th April – 17th July 2024 | Weekly sessions, Wednesdays 5pm – 7pm at Bristol Old Vic |
| 29th May 2024 | Half term holiday - no session |
| 30th Jul - 2nd Aug 2024, 10am – 4pm. | 4 day summer intensive to create the final product! |
All activities will take place at Bristol Old Vic.
An induction and several planning meetings will take place ahead of the start of the project, taking place in February and March (dates TBC).
How to register your interest:
Register your interest by emailing engagement@bristololdvic.org.uk and telling us why you’re interested in this project. This can be in the form of a paragraph, video, voice note, picture, example of your work – or however best you prefer to express yourself.
We will be meeting with people who have expressed interested on a rolling basis. If selected, you will be invited to an informal meeting (either by zoom or face-to-face) to find out more about the project and so we can hear about your interests.
If you have any questions about this role, please email heritage@bristololdvic.org.uk