'I am a young person, please don't patronise me...or, Pleasedon't make me do Grease again'...

Steph Brocken, 2 October 2012

The key questions that I wanted to raise in this discussion were concerning the use of contemporary, difficult, challenging, perhaps even dangerous performance with young people. As a way in I offered Musical Theatre as a binary. I do not mean to denigrate it as an art form, I simply wish to draw attention to the prevalence of this form in work with children and young people.

Interestingly enough, perhaps due to the presence of this topic in many other previous conversations, the first item that came up for discussion was the role that reality TV may or may not play in this movement. The question was raised that maybe if more emphasis was given to the ‘behind the scenes’ on these shows, CYP would be more likely to wish to engage with more varied art forms. The fondness for singing and dance as encouraged by reality TV seems to have pushed ‘drama’ as a form to the bottom of the pecking order.

The consensus was that using contemporary approaches provides CYP with a broader vocabulary for telling stories, whether that be about themselves, issues or otherwise.

Young people CAN cope with difficult methods or materials. TRUST IN THEM.

The question of escapism vs. ‘a way of dealing’. How much should work with CYP offer escapism? The consensus here suggested that, although we should not be prescriptive in terms of the ‘issues’ that we explore, the work we do should offer a way of negotiating life rather than escaping from it.

An important point was offered regarding the separation of the mainstream and the experimental and how we must remember that what was once experimental may now be within the mainstream… don't be too snobby about what we present to the young people.

What are the barriers to conducting contemporary work with CYP?

*The assumption that to be a ‘real’ artist, you must be practicing and making your own work, not working with CYP, so perhaps not enough contemporary artists are working in this sector.

*'Giving them what they want'; youth-led work only allowing young people to use what they know, not extending or challenging their knowledge.

*In formal settings, the time and resources constraints placed upon teachers, getting the best results. We must address what the teachers are taught and what there is for them to see out in the big wide world…

How can small companies/ theatres help to facilitate staff and students to attend and engage with more challenging work? Should more companies be funded to employ freelancers to create such resources and programmes? Should there be more schemes to connect schools with contemporary performance?

Is there a gap in the market for organisations to deliver a specific type of work that serves a purpose to a school ie. a subject that staff do not want to teach such as PSHE?

'Citizens taking drugs and having sex'

The question of enjoyment vs. learning. Obviously this does not have to be a binary, but is any engagement good engagement? What if a group of CYP have enjoyed a project but not learned or developed from it? Pure enjoyment does not lead to sustainability; only if the work is of good quality will a broader audience want to see it and therefore give the CYP the knowledge of achieving highly. Perhaps we should see enjoyment as a starting point, a way to ignite the spark and encourage young people to engage in projects that provide a more challenging platform.

Clearly there are more questions than answers to be gleaned from this discussion and every point remains up for further debate. As a practitioner working in education, I wonder if my audience today, made up mostly of theatre professionals look kinder on my suggestions than education or youth work professionals would…?

This discussion forms part of my ongoing PhD research, if you have any comments or ideas, please do get in touch!

Tags:

schools, young people, Schools, connections, contemporary performance, Young People, children