Interview

Name:            Sarah Longfield
Occupation:    Toonspeak Young Person's Theatre

1. Who is Toonspeak Youth People’s Theatre?

Toonspeak has been working in North Glasgow since 1987.  We are a young people led company with half our board of directors made up of current participants aged 14+.  Everything we do at Toonspeak is free for the participants and we often provide free transport to make sure everyone gets here and home safe.  We run weekly drama workshops, committees where young people manage their own projects, productions including the new studio sessions who recently performed ‘Teenage Sexual Health: the Musical’ and loads more.  There are 6 of us in the office and 8 sessional staff + lots of great freelancers and volunteers.

2. In your opinion, what is unique about Toonspeak?

We are unique because of our approach to involving young people at the very heart of the organisation by representation on the board and involvement in decision making across everything we do.  It takes up lots of time and resource to make sure this is done properly, so we aren’t being tokenistic or asking young people to contribute without the skills and knowledge to make informed decisions.  We are also unique in our summer performance venues… as there is no theatre in our area, we have built temporary theatres on waste ground or parkland.  These are magical spaces which are only there for a week.  We’ve always sold out the shows we perform in these theatres and attracted a lot of local people who would have never gone to the theatre otherwise.

3. What upcoming projects are Toonspeak working on?

It’s quite far ahead, but I’m spending a lot of my time just now working on The Festival of the Imagination which will take place in August 2010.  This will be the biggest event of it’s kind EVER to happen in North Glasgow: a week long arts festival in a tented village, showcasing local projects.  It’s the biggest thing we’ve undertaken, but it’ll be amazing!

We’re also working on some smaller scale shows this summer.  Our Studio Sessions group are working on a piece about life choices and we are also going to be working with Lifelink to create ‘Survivors Guide to Suicide’ (funding permitting – fingers crossed!).  Also keep an eye out for a youth-led conference in the Autumn run by our Members Forum, focusing on involving young people in decision making in an arts setting.  We’re also developing a training programme called Theatre of Empowerment which will share our philosophy and techniques in empowering people and improving communities.

4. Tell us about your formative experiences of youth theatre?

I grew up in Slough.  If you’ve seen Ricky Gervais’ The Office, that pretty much sums it up.  Needless to say, there wasn’t exactly a thriving youth theatre scene.  I got involved in whatever I could and also found a little old lady, the lovely Miss Watson, who taught me Shakespeare and poetry recital – proper old school, but I loved it.  There’s nothing like getting a gold medal at Slough Arts Festival for your monologue!  I found lots more opportunities at College where I did A levels and a foundation in performing arts before going on to Bristol Uni to do Drama BAhons and then an MA in Cultural Performance.   

5. In your opinion, what are the intrinsic values of good quality engagement with young people?

Good quality engagement is long term.  It is about trusting young people and empowering them to realize their potential (which they might not know they have).  It is about having the resources in place to deliver what you promise. It’s about creating a safe and friendly environment where young people are not going to be laughed at (unless they want to be!).  It is about giving young people the tools and space to create their own art and take ownership over the project.  It is about taking time to make sure the participants know what they are achieving  - what skills and knowledge they have gained – so they can be proud and be able to articulate their own success.  It’s about having fun. The leaders are not trying to be the participant’s pals, but gain their respect and trust.

6. Open MIC – anything else you want to say?

When I was about 13 and not very confident or happy, I had 35 minutes of PSE drama a week at school.  In those lessons, I was taught how to improvise.  The ability to pretend to be someone else, to empathise with a different point of view and the chance to escape my own reality for a time, completely changed my life.  It made me a more confident grounded person.  It is because of that 35 minutes a week that I now do what I do.  At Toonspeak I’m able to offer that opportunity to hundreds of young people, which means I love my job!

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