Writing new theatre with learning-disabled actors

Aim

During this theatre 'shutdown' period, we will develop four new plays with strong roles for professional actors with learning disabilities.

What we believe and what do we do?

We believe the best theatre is made by diverse groups of people working together. 

The routes into theatre training and theatre careers may be different and actors may come in through Separate Doors, but we believe we can, and should, all perform in the same excellent work, in the same house, addressing universal human themes. 

We bring together exceptional learning-disabled and non-disabled talent. 

We develop, promote and encourage high quality theatre-making with integrated casts for general audiences. We train actors with and without learning disabilities in the Silent Approach, a non-verbal methodology which allows all kinds of actors to work together with equality. We nurture the skills of non-disabled directors and writers, developing their ability to create work with and for vocational learning-disabled and neurodiverse talent. 

Our work

We exist to provide opportunities to young disabled people hoping to perform in professional, general-audience, theatre; young people who, without active support, would not get a foot in the door. Our passion is brilliant, engaging, enjoyable theatre, and our work develops the skills of actors with learning disabilities, so that they can work in front of general audiences.

Our previous projects were published as Separate Doors Reports 1, 2 and 3, and were widely distributed. In August 2020 we produced a Covid-19 Crisis pamphlet asking, What next for UK theatre?  Our publications are available as rewards in this crowdfunder.

Our Project

The skills of exceptional learning-disabled actors are still not widely recognised, and without new plays being written for and with them, their skills will remain undiscovered and ignored.

So, in 2021, we will focus on creating new plays that deliver opportunities for integrated casts: actors, and characters, with and without learning disabilities.

We will do this by working with emerging playwrights, a company of professional actors that are both learning disabled and non-learning disabled, and experienced directors and facilitators. 

Our goal is develop four new pieces of drama that will be showcased at Chichester Festival Theatre and further developed at Derby Theatre in 2022. 

We will do all this with input from our Advisory Board which is made up of professional actors with learning disabilities: from left to right Nicky Priest, Imogen Roberts, Joe Sproulle and Rebekah Hill.

We also aim to help people learn from the year-long process:

•  we want to develop a model for creating new text-based plays which include the learning disability life experience – and offer excellent roles for trained professional actors with learning disabilities. 
• we want to encourage new writers at a key point in their development, to open their eyes to the creative possibilities of integrated work. 
• we want to ignite interest in, and engagement with, our Silent Approach as a means to make viable, high-quality theatre which includes actors with and without learning disabilities. 
• and we want to support deep learning within the theatre industry, provide challenge and debate and provoke change at a seminal moment in our society and our history.

“The expertise Separate Doors offers needs to be rolled out and made available to all students and professionals. Let’s face it, there will be more and more integrated work being made in the years ahead. The industry needs opportunities to work with the best learning-disabled and neurodiverse talent and playwrights really need this training.” Ben Weatherill, Playwright

Why this project now?

Under current Covid restrictions, theatre production is at a virtual standstill, and digital alternatives are not a substitute. But, new writing is work which can be done: developing new stories with new writers for new future audiences is very possible. Separate Doors is ideally placed to offer seed commissions for new writing, working  across the UK with high-profile partners and leading actors with learning disabilities. We will commission writers to work with us to create four 20-minute dramas. Each will be a piece of brand new work featuring leading roles for actors with learning disabilities.

Initially framed for digital presentation, the four pieces will ultimately form a single, unique, ‘real world’ work. The creative journey to live, audience-facing production will be documented digitally. Throughout the project, impressions will be archived and ultimately collated into a new Separate Doors pamphlet for distribution in print format to the UK theatre industry and beyond. Our New York and Sweden associates will also disseminate and promote the process with a view to international residencies in 2022/23. The pamphlet, film and impressions of the process will be made available online and widely disseminated.

Project Timeline

How you can help

Please consider making a pledge to our project. Your pledges will help us pay for Covid secure travel and accomodation of our advisory board while they partipate in casting sessions and meetings with our selected playwrights. 

Your help, in any amount, will enable us to deliver on our  project by freeing-up our small volunteer team from scrambling for grants and funding during this exceptional time.

We have a number of rewards available at multiple values that allow you to learn more about us and the work that we do. We hope you'll decide to pledge and support the writing of tomorrow's theatre. Our work makes a significant difference for actors with learning-disabilities, to everyone who creates theatre with them, but most importantly, to everyone who is excited, thrilled, moved by their brilliant work.

Thank you!

“We need to be on the same stages and in front of the same audiences as everyone else, in really good work, why shouldn’t we be?" Meghan Denton, Actor with non-specific learning disability

This project successfully funded on 23rd March 2021