Outdoor theatre to be commissioned as part of the Cultural Olympiad in the South East
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On this, International Paralympic Day (8 September 2011), Accentuate is proud to announce the commission of a new outdoor theatre show tracing the history of the Paralympic Movement as part of the Cultural Olympiad in the South East.
Disabled visual artist Rachel Gadsden and Mark Smith of Deaf Men Dancing will be leading this ambitious project with over 100 disabled and non-disabled young people from across Buckinghamshire as well as from South Africa, USA, Rwanda and Australia. They will also be collaborating with Paralympians past and present from across the globe on the project.
Accentuate is the South East of England’s London 2012 legacy project and aims to create a cultural shift in the opportunities available for Deaf and disabled people. Accentuate consists of 15 ambitious projects in the South East which represent the arts, film, tourism, business, sport and heritage. All 15 projects aim to promote the talent of Deaf and disabled people in whatever area they work in. Accentuate aims to create a cultural shift in the way disabled people are seen and provide a variety of opportunities for disabled people to take part and to lead. Accentuate is funded by Legacy Trust UK, SEEDA and the regional cultural agencies, including Arts Council England.
This specific project for the outdoor theatre will be launched at Stoke Mandeville stadium, birthplace of the Paralympic Movement, on Friday 9 September to coincide with the launch of London 2012 Paralympic Games tickets.
Work begins on devising the piece on 27 September with a three day residency delivered by the full artistic team and four - times gold medal winning Paralympian, John Harris, at Stoke Mandeville Spinal Injuries Unit for children and young people. Part of this residency process includes the young people choosing a name for the project. Workshops will then continue throughout the Autumn term with partners Stoke Mandeville Spinal Injuries Unit, Shed in the Park and Stocklake Park School. Rachel Gadsden will also be working in John Waycliffe Christian School in South Africa in contribution to the project.
Other international partners will collaborate online through a new ‘e-community’ website managed by Creative Junction as part of their broader young persons project Create, Compete, Collaborate (CCC). CCC has an ambition to see every young person in the South East have an opportunity to engage with young people from another country.
Caterina Loriggio, Creative Programmer for London 2012, says: “This project will make a tremendous contribution to the South East’s Cultural Olympiad programme. Rachel and Mark are very exciting and extremely talented artists to work with and will do an excellent job not just inspiring the young people but in creating a new piece of work telling a fascinating but little known story about the beginnings and development of the Paralympic Movement.”
Christina Pepper from Creative Junction is excited that young people from both the UK and abroad will be able to help develop and influence this new piece of work.
She says, “A huge part of London 2012 is about inspiring young people and this project will be an opportunity for the young people taking part to learn about different cultures, broaden their horizons, experience new artistic skills and really feel a part of the London 2012 spirit.”
Emma Slawinski, Programme Director of Accentuate says: “Screen South, through the Accentuate programme, is very proud to be supporting this new commission. It is vital that we make the most of the opportunity provided by the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, as well as celebrate the wealth of talent we have within the South East. The involvement of young people at all stages of the commission, both in this country and internationally, will ensure the commission has a legacy far beyond 2012.”
Early next year work will begin on designing and developing the show ready to be performed in time to coincide with the opening of the London 2012 Paralympic Games in London.
Information will be available as the project develops on
www.cccecommunity.creativejunction.org.uk/
Notes to Editors:
About Rachel Gadsden and Mark Smith, Deaf Men Dancing
Rachel Gadsden has a BA and MA in Fine Art and is a contemporary British visual artist, who exhibits internationally and works across mainstream and disability art sectors. Rachel’s artistic methodology is expressionistic, energetic and raw, echoing the deepest motivations of what it is to be human.
In 1999 Rachel exhibited at the Dostoyevsky Museum, St Petersburg, Russia. “Wasteland” was awarded the Most Popular Painting Prize in the Hunting Art Competition 2003; subsequent awards have included an Arts Admin Digital Media Bursary 2004, Dada Visual Artist of the Year 2005, Shrewsbury International Painting Prize 2006, Holton Lee International Disability Arts Prize 2007, Momentum Arts Council UK and Dada-South Bursary 2009 and in 2009 Rachel was awarded the Dada Awards International Arts Award.
In 2007-2008 Rachel was appointed Historic Royal Palaces first contemporary Artist in Residence at Hampton Court Palace, and in March 2009 was also appointed the first artist to work with Parliamentary Outreach for the Breaking Barriers Project and Exhibition and the Rethink Parliament National Project and Exhibition 2009-2010.
Recent commissions include the creation of artworks for the Beijing - London Paralympics Handover Ceremony for Wheelpower UK at Stoke Mandeville Stadium. Rachel is very excited to have recently been awarded an International Unlimited London 2012 Cultural Olympiad commission, Unlimited Global Alchemy.
www.rachelgadsden.com
Mark Smith is a freelance choreographer. Born deaf, he trained in all forms of dance from the age of four, studying at the Royal Ballet School and Bridget Espinosa’s London Studio Centre. Mark developed his own unique style of choreography. A combination of sign-language and movement blended together.
He was one of the five leading choreographers for Sadler’s Wells song & dance revue called ‘SHOES’, written by Richard Thomas & directed by Stephen Mear. ‘Shoes’ transferred to the West- End at Peacock Theatre, London. Mark choreographed The Union Theatre’s all-male Gilbert & Sullivan production ‘IOLANTHE’. It received 4 stars reviews across the board and transferred to the Wilton’s Music Hall.
Mark is also the Founder and Artistic Director for his own dance company called DEAF MEN DANCING (DMD). This company is a collaboration of professional male dancers/choreographers who like Mark are deaf. Mark received an Upstream Award in 2011 from Dada South to extend his vision for DMD.
Mark and Rachel were successful recipients of a Without Wall’s Outdoor Commission 2011 and they created their first collaborative performance artwork which has toured Festivals throughout 2011.
http://www.youtube.com/deafmendancing
About Accentuate
Accentuate is the London 2012 legacy programme which seeks to change perceptions and offer a wide range of opportunities across the South East to showcase the talents of deaf and disabled people. Accentuate is an ambitious transformational programme of 15 major projects, with the potential to create a national change. Inspired by our proud heritage of Stoke Mandeville as the birthplace of the Paralympic movement, Accentuate will continue to carry the baton to ensure disabled people have the potential to be the leaders of tomorrow, in whatever field they choose.
Focussing on quality and bringing together sports, arts, culture and heritage, Accentuate aims to change the perception of disabled people so a real cultural shift can occur between now and the London 2012 Paralympic Games. Accentuate is funded by SEEDA, the regional cultural agencies and Legacy Trust UK which is an independent charity set up to create a cultural and sporting legacy from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The home of Accentuate is Screen South.
www.accentuate-se.org
About Legacy Trust
Legacy Trust UK is an independent charity whose mission is to support a wide range of innovative cultural and sporting activities which celebrate the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and which will leave a lasting legacy in communities throughout the UK. Legacy Trust UK is funding cultural and sporting activity in each nation and region of the UK, and Accentuate is the Trust’s programme in the South East of England.
The Trust is funded by a £40 million endowment from the Big Lottery Fund (£29m), Department for Culture Media and Sport (£6m) and Arts Council England (£5m), and is a Principal Funder of the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival.
www.legacytrustuk.org
About The Cultural Olympiad
London won the bid to host the Games in 2005 with a promise that culture and education would be re-established as key pillars of the Games – as in ancient Greece, as envisaged by the founder of the modern Olympic Games, Baron Pierre de Coubertin and as in London in 1948; we will integrate culture into the very heart of our celebration.
The London 2012 Cultural Olympiad is a four year celebration designed to encourage the widest range of people across the whole of the UK to get involved in the London 2012 Games. Since the Cultural Olympiad started in 2008, over 14 million people all over the UK have participated in or attended performances as part of Cultural Olympiad programmes inspired by London 2012 and funded by our principal funders and sponsors. Over 155,000 people have attended more than 8,000 workshops as part of the Cultural Olympiad programmes. This includes 2.4 million participants in Open Weekend since 2008. The Cultural Olympiad will culminate in London 2012 Festival, June 21 – September 9 2012.
The Creative Programmers are the regional representatives of the London 2012 Culture team and lead on bringing the Cultural Olympiad to life in each region and nation. To date, over 400 Cultural Olympiad projects have been supported by the Creative Programmers across the UK.
www.london2012.com/culture
About Creative Junction
Creative Junction is a community interest company based in the South East working with and for young people and the creative and cultural sector to make change happen. This change comes through embracing a collaborative approach and from building partnerships to develop creativity and to connect powerful, innovative learning across sectors.
About Create Compete Collaborate (CCC)
CCC is the South East Partnership for London 2012’s main offer to children and young people. It is an ambition that every young person in the region will have an opportunity to collaborate with other young people from a different country between now and 2012. Projects can take any form and may be related to any field as long as young people get to directly communicate with one another, at least once. CCC both champions and creates new, positive international experiences for young people to broaden their horizons. As the World looks to the UK in 2012, CCC hopes all young people in the region will welcome this once-in-a-lifetime experience, looking outwards with open minds and curiosity.
www.cccecommunity.creativejunction.org.uk/
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Arts Council England champions, develops and invests in artistic and cultural experiences that enrich people’s lives. We support a range of activities across the arts, museums and libraries – from theatre to digital art, reading to dance, music to literature, and crafts to collections. Great art and culture inspires us, brings us together and teaches us about ourselves and the world around us. In short, it makes life better. Between 2011 and 2015, we will invest £1.4 billion of public money from government and an estimated £0.85 billion from the National Lottery to help create these experiences for as many people as possible across the country. www.artscouncil.org.uk