Ordinary/Extraordinary 2019

Ordinary/Extraordinary is a collaborative arts project enabling learning disabled young people with a vocational interest in the arts to lead the development and delivery of a 2-day Arts Festival in October 2019; to generate participation; broker artist engagement and enable the creation of a wholly inclusive event celebrating connection and mental well-being in music, dance, drama and film at Dartington Hall.

Last years festival created partnerships which have sustained. Dance in Devon, Daisi, Soundart Radio and the Turning Tides Project, Play Torbay and Lifeworks are working collaboratively to enable the young leaders of this project. There is a strong synergy between the aspirations of the young leaders, the arts organisations working as part of the Ordinary/Extraordinary team and the social care providers enabling project development; we all want to create a world where learning disabled people gain equal access to culture and the arts and can use the arts to make social change:                                                                          

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                “Not every disabled young person has the chance to show what they can do, what WE can do.” Brioney                                                                                                                                                                                       “We are taking a risk; this is our chance; for people to hear what we want to speak” Lucy, Bryn and Brioney                                                                                                                                  

In the Spring of 2019 a small group of learning disabled young people came together at The Mansion in the heart of Totnes to work out how to use the arts to tackle loneliness in Devon and Torbay - Together they decided an inclusive 2-day art festival could be just the thing to connect local people; in this years festival they want to use drama, dance, music and animation as ways to connect people, celebrate difference and make new friends in an extended festival offer:

They feel Ordinary/Extraordinary could encourage social change; to help them go from: "Sometimes people don't want to be my friend" to “When you feel connected, you can be like friends." They want to "make animations that could talk to politicians" and use animation to "talk about coping with learning disabilities."

The money raised with Crowdfunder will help Ordinary/Extraordinary young leaders with a vocational interest in animation learn new skills working with a professional animator;  make animation shorts to promote the Festival online, lead family workshops at the Festival AND make a short film about loneliness to premiere at the Festival. The funding will also enable Ordinary/Extraordinary young leaders with an interest in music learn skills as music leaders, develop a regular jamming session in Totnes and perform for the first time ever at Ordinary/Extraordinary in the Autumn of 2019.