The global COVID-19 pandemic has been challenging for everyone and we have all had our own unique struggles.
We are raising money to fund The Christmas Show ONLINE. We want to continue with our tradition of bringing audiences an amazing Christmas show, albeit a virtual one this year, whilst also giving our freelance performers a chance to earn some money and go back to work, even if it’s just for a few days.
This is an ALL OR NOTHING campaign so our target is the minimum amount we NEED to reach to put the show on. If we don’t hit our target by November 5th then all donations will be refunded and the show will not happen.
Losing your job is tough but losing your industry is terrifying! Too many production companies, performers and technical staff are worried about their future and we want to provide a small glimmer of light in these dark times both for ourselves and for all the people we work with who make our job awesome!
We have been hit HARD! We don't know what the future holds for Darley Dance Productions because we don't know how long we can hold on not making any money. What we do know is that we have to try just one last time to do something this year.
For years it was our dream to put together an exciting variety show which brought professional performers to local stages. We wanted to bring together freelance performers and produce a variety show which families could easily enjoy by wrapping up warmly and strolling to their local venue.
In 2018, the dream came true and we launched The Christmas Show! 2019 saw our show start to gather momentum as audiences loved it and we were delighted to add a second venue. This year, 2020, was supposed to be bigger and better than ever with more venues and an even more fun packed show. However, fate had others ideas…
During one week back in March we had all our events cancelled one after another, just before lockdown hit. We haven’t worked since March and we haven’t been able to offer anything to our freelance performers other than a shoulder to cry on!
Now we want to try to end the year on a high!
We would like to create this year’s show and put it online. We have spoken to a videographer and worked out exactly how we can shoot the show safely, within COVID-19 guidelines but still have it looking amazing.
We have worked out how to keep both our cast and our audiences safe and we would love the opportunity to put our plans into action.
This will mean that our audiences won’t miss out on the show; they can watch it safely, wrapped up warmly in the comfort of their own homes AND it means that we will be able to give our performers some much needed work! We want to see our freelancers go home with a pay check from us this year, even if it’s just a small one because we want to show them that the industry IS still here and will be ready and waiting for them when the world is ready for their return.
Let’s be totally honest with you… It goes without saying, that because we haven’t worked this year, we haven’t made any money. We have tried time and time again to come up with ideas for things that we could do but sadly none of them have come to fruition. In truth, we are struggling. We have no idea what the future looks like but we are just trying to take things one day at a time and hold on for as long as we can.
Instead of giving up and going under, we thought we would try one last time and reach out to our community to ask for help.
This is an ALL OR NOTHING campaign which means that if we don’t hit our target then all of the money is refunded and our show simply doesn’t go ahead.
We need your help to make sure that doesn’t happen!
DONATE: Of course you can help us by donating! We will be so grateful for every donation, however big or small, so if you can donate please do. Even if it’s just the price of a cup of coffee, we would be so grateful!
If you have donated, you can get a link to The Christmas Show Online. Make sure that you opt in to get updates from us or share your info with us and we will be sure to send you the link!
REWARDS: If you would like more for your money then please check out our rewards down the side of this page. We are so grateful to the people who have donated a reward and we’re thrilled to be able to share these rewards with you!
SHARE: The more people who know what we’re doing, the better. We want to show everyone that we’re here, we’re still trying and we need your help. If you can share our campaign in any way then we will be forever grateful. Whether that’s online, on social media or just chatting to people about what we’re doing; it all makes such a huge difference to us.
ENGAGE: We’re on twitter, facebook, Instagram, tiktok, pinterest, we have our own website and you’ll find Abbi and Georgia on Linked in. There are so many places you can see us talking about our show. Liking posts and pictures, sharing posts, watching videos, making positive comments, will all help! FYI, we spend most of our time online on Instagram @darleydance but you’ll be able to spot us everywhere.
SEND POSITIVE VIBES: If you can’t do any of the above then please simply send us some good luck! We believe positivity is key and we’ve done our best to stay positive throughout this time, so good vibes are always welcome!
If we hit our target and we are successful in producing The Christmas Show Online then our performance will be recorded safely, within current guidelines, during November. Our show will then be available online at some point in December. Obviously this date will be confirmed when we have completed the filming.
Anyone who makes a donation of any size will be entitled to a link to our show and a digital download of our show programme. When you donate, be sure to opt-in to get updates from us and we’ll send you the relevant details about how to watch our show online.
If there are any problems or you haven’t heard from us by December 1st 2020 then email us [email protected] and we’ll send you the link.
Of course this will only happen if we hit our target so be sure to keep track of our progress and help wherever you can! Thank you.
You may be wondering what the money will be spent on so we have broken it down below. We are doing everything we can to keep costs as low as possible.
A GOOD VIDEOGRAPHER: We don’t want our show to be a Zoom performance. We have loved seeing all the companies and groups of people coming together to perform on Zoom but we would like to do something a little different where we can try and turn the situation to a positive by getting a little more creative. We want to give audiences who have supported us, something extra special to enjoy this Christmas.
OUR PERFORMERS: This, for us, is the most important bit! Without our freelance performers we would have no business! There are 9 performers in our show and we want them to know that we are doing all we can to support them. We want them to go home with a pay check from us this year! Even if it’s just a small one!
If you would like to get to know our performers better then head over to our Instagram @darleydance
OUR VENUES: The venues where we normally perform and rehearse are local venues, local church halls and places that now cannot actually stage performances due to the social distancing rules. They are simply not big enough. Our virtual show will allow us to use several of these venues to shoot and rehearse in, giving them some extra pennies too.
INSURANCE & BUSINESS COSTS: Pandemic or no pandemic, the business costs are still there, insurance, technical equipment required for our shoot etc. These things add up to a small portion of our costs but still need to be taken into consideration.
We’re so excited that we now have a focus and something to plan for again so if there is any chance that we can make The Christmas Show Online happen, then we’ll take it!
If you have any questions or queries at all then please feel free to contact us through any of our social media pages or by emailing [email protected]
Thank you so much for reading through this page and for supporting us. We can’t tell you how grateful we are! Please stick around and follow our journey and keep your fingers crossed that this Christmas we can bring The Christmas Show Online right to your home!
Over the years we have performed at some amazing places and worked with some wonderful people. We asked a few people if they could put together a testimonial for us and we couldn't have been more pleased with the feedback we received. It makes us want to carry on even more!
THANK YOU to Karim Merchant & Merchant's Jewellers for taking the time to make this amazing testimonial video for us.
“We were thrilled at the magic and exceptional performances that Abbi and her team brought to the waters at Mercia Marina.
The show created such a buzz and the performers were followed wherever they went by families and children wanting to be part of a magical fairy-tale and interact with the characters.
The many independent businesses at Mercia not only had the benefit of crowds of shoppers but could also advertise in a high-quality souvenir event programme distributed at many events by Darley Dance Productions. Abbi’s team worked tirelessly giving everybody ample photo opportunities and delivering performing princesses on the Piazza with popular songs, acting and even a snowman!
We used the fantastic images from the show for promotion in a double page spread in a local lifestyle magazine which was very well received.”
-Tony Preston
Sales & Marketing Manager
Mercia Marina
Thank you Tony for sharing your kind words.
Thank you Katie for sharing a testimonial with us.
We are so grateful for evry kind word that is said and we hope so much that we can move forward into an exciting future and work with all these people again.
We are so lucky to be surrounded by so many wonderful people and we are so grateful for all of the support.
THANK YOU