National Youth Theatre

National Youth Theatre

Type	Registered charity and company limited by guarantee
Registration No.	306075
Founded	1956
Founder(s)	Michael Croft and Kenneth Spring
Key people	Paul Roseby
Motto	Discovering Epic Talent
Website	www.nyt.org.uk

The National Youth Theatre is a registered charity in London, United Kingdom that is committed to creative, personal and social development of young people through the medium of creative arts,^[1] and aims to use theatre to help in the personal and social development of young people. It was founded in 1956 as the world's first youth theatre^[2] and has built a reputation as a breeding ground for renowned British actors such as^[3] Daniel Day-Lewis, Dame Helen Mirren, Daniel Craig, Ben Kingsley, Derek Jacobi, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rosamund Pike, Colin Firth and Orlando Bloom.

Each year the National Youth Theatre hold intake acting auditions and technical theatre interviews around the UK and on average receive over 4,000 applicants. Currently around 500 places are offered on summer intake acting and technical courses (in Costume, Lighting and Sound, Scenery and Prop Making and Stage Management), which offer participants membership of the National Youth Theatre upon completion.^[4]

National Youth Theatre members are eligible to audition for the company’s productions, which are staged in London’s West End, around the UK and internationally.^[5] Its members staged the Olympic and Paralympic Team Welcome Ceremonies at the London 2012 Games in the Athletes' Village.^[6]

In 2013 National Youth Theatre raised their age-limit to 25 and introduced a new 6-week summer course called Epic Stage to cater for performance and production talent in their new upper age group of 18–25.^[7]

In summer 2014 National Youth Theatre will stage the Village Ceremonies at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.^[8]

History

National Youth Theatre on Holloway Road, Holloway

The National Youth Theatre was founded in 1956 by Michael Croft, aided by Kenneth Spring.^[9] Croft had been responsible for producing a number of school plays at Alleyn's Boys' School and following his departure, he was approached by a number of pupils from the school to continue working together on productions in school holidays.

The first production of Henry V created something of a stir. At the time, it was unusual for young actors to be performing Shakespeare and this innovative venture attracted the attention of a curious public. Amongst the first audiences were Richard Burton and Sir Ralph Richardson, who had agreed to become the first president of what Croft called "The Youth Theatre". The organisation evolved rapidly throughout the UK involving young people on a National basis.

Michael Croft died in 1986 and was succeeded by Edward Wilson as Director. Building on Croft's successful vision, Wilson took the company forward into new territory, increasing its range of activities and reinforcing its approach to technical production values. Wilson also recognised the opportunity to extend the organisation to more disadvantaged young people and started the first Outreach department in 1989, working initially with young offenders and gradually widening the opportunities to other socially excluded groups. Wilson also secured the organisation's current Headquarters building in North London, which now houses all of its production facilities including rehearsal rooms, scenery and costume workshops, sound studio, photographic dark room and administration.

Edward Wilson left the company in 2004 when Sid Higgins (Executive Director), John Hoggarth and Paul Roseby (Artistic Directors) took over. Since then, they have built on the legacy inherited from Michael Croft and Edward Wilson, and the organisation has continued to evolve, expanding its opportunities to young people from a more diverse background through a wider range of theatrical projects and collaborations.

John Hoggarth stepped down in 2007 and Paul Roseby continues as the organisation's Artistic Director.^[10]

In 2010 National Youth Theatre moved administrative offices from Holloway Road to the Woolyard on Bermondsey Street. In January 2012 and Paul Roseby was appointed as Artistic Director and CEO.

Alumni

Former National Youth Theatre members include:^[11]

Productions

Traditionally, National Youth Theatre have done most of their work with their members in the summer months, but increasingly this is changing. Creative events and performances take place throughout the year, courses take place in the Easter holidays and the company continues to expand its work with young people from all areas of the community.

2012

In summer 2012 National Youth Theatre created and performed the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Team Welcome Ceremonies, with 200 of its young member welcoming 20,000 Olympians and Paralympians to the Athletes' Village in the Olympic Park with 200 performances.^[12]

2011

The theme of National Youth Theatre's 2011 season was 'The F Word; Fear, Faith and Fundamentalism'^[13] which included the following productions:

• Our Days of Rage^[14] – a production that saw young actors and writers responding to past riots and protests in North Africa, the Middle East and in London at The Old Vic Tunnels.
• Orpheus and Eurydice^[15] – Molly Davies's reimagining of the Greek myth set at The Old Vic Tunnels.
• Slick^[16] – a cast of 250 young actors continuing the three-part environmental trilogy at Sheffield's Park Hill estate.
• Ghost Office^[17] – A site specific piece of interactive theatre written by Rachel Clive that takes its audience on a journey through redundant spaces bringing them and their stories to life in the Lighthouse building in Glasgow.

National Youth Theatre's 2011 intake members performed at the Watch This Space Festival outside the National Theatre. This was the first time the Stadium Arts courses work was open to the public. The theme was "Welcoming the World".

You can watch the National Youth Theatre's 2011 showreel here ^[18]

2010

The theme of National Youth Theatre's 2010 season was 'The Five Elements'^[19] which included the following productions:

• Living The Dream^[20] – a re-working of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Shanghai Expo.
• Ghost Office^[21] – 'Empty Buildings Filled with Stories’ a site-specific devised piece exploring the impact of unemployment in the West Midlands caused by the recession.
• S’warm^[22] – a 500-strong cast of young actors swarming around London from Battersea Power Station to Canary Wharf in a new style of street spectacle.
• Casino 52^[23] – an online drama produced by the National Youth Theatre in association with IdeasTap.
• Relish^[24] – a new play about the superstar Victorian chef Alexis Soyer at the Tramshed in the heart of buzzing Shoreditch. Written by James Graham.
• Stars Over Kabul^[25] – a tale of modern love and loss set against ‘Afghan Star’ the TV talent show that swept the nation. Written by Rebecca Lenkiewicz.

2010's intake members again performed their 'stadium arts' presentations at the Laban Centre. The theme this year was "The Foreigner".

You can watch the National Youth Theatre's 2010 showreel here ^[26]

2009

The theme of National Youth Theatre's 2009 season was 'First Timers'^[27] which included the following productions:

• Tits/Teeth^[28] – two young girls caught up in a body obsessed world – one comically and one much less so – from disco mania to body dysmorphia, bulimia and Japanese man bras. Written by Michael Wynne.
• Foot/Mouth^[29] – a night of black comedy from dismembered washed up feet to a world governed by a control of language. Written by John Nicholson and Steven Cann.
• Eye/Balls^[30] – the tale of a young student’s attempt at paying off her loan by joining the sex trade, and for sloppy seconds the author is grabbing the subject of young men away on a Stag night by the balls! Written by Sarah Solemani, who was something of a first timer herself as this was be her writing debut.
• Fathers Inside^[31] – based on true stories from inside male prisons. Following on from the Child’s Play programme using active theatre techniques to explore the challenges faced by young fathers in Rochester Young Offenders Institute, the National Youth Theatre mounted a scratch performance of Father’s Inside at the Soho Theatre studio in 2008 with a mixed cast of NYT members and participants from the social inclusion programme.
• Skunk^[32] – explores the effects that smoking the hydroponic weed ‘Skunk’ has on young people, how their families are affected and why this is becoming a bigger and bigger issue today. Loosely based on Kafka's The Metamorphosis.

National Youth Theatre's 2009 intake members performed a 'Stadium Arts' show outside the Laban Dance Centre in Deptford, south-east London. The performances lasted approximately 25 minutes and consisted of a combination of all the course cohorts work to create an ensemble physical theatre performance.

See also

• IdeasTap

References and notes

External links

• Official website
• IdeasTap page
• National Youth Theatre, Registered Charity no. 306075 at the Charity Commission

• The National Council for Voluntary Youth Services (NCVYS)