Let’s be honest – this is a confusing and worrying time for the majority of those working in theatre. Whereas Sunday night should have seen us all come together to celebrate the very best of our industry, we instead found ourselves watching a highlights show on ITV (which was excellent, by the way). Similarly, we have no idea what the immediate future holds as venues remain closed and shows continue to be put on hold. 

 

 

 

 

 

We are aware though that this industry is a family and, over the past few weeks, have been both humbled and inspired to see so many of you reach out to one another and offer support. It’s instances like this which make us realise that, whilst things may be difficult at the moment, we will all come out of this stronger and more unified than ever before. 

 

 

 

 

 

As a company that is the leading lighting supplier to West End and UK touring theatre, it’s slightly surreal not to be talking to designers, electricians and technicians on a daily basis about the shows we’d normally be working on together. That said, we still want to keep in touch and offer our support however we can. That’s why, following on from our previous email, we’ve once again put together a list of industry updates, financial resources, online training platforms and other links for you to have a look through. We will continue to send these fortnightly for the foreseeable future as we all try to navigate our way through this unprecedented time.

 

 

 

 

 

We hope you find the below useful. As always, if you have any questions or just fancy an informal chat, then please get in touch. In the meantime, make sure you stay safe and look after one another.

 

 

 

 

 

BRYAN RAVEN
WL’s Managing Director

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LATEST INDUSTRY UPDATES

 

 

 

 

 

Several industry announcements have been made over the past few days, whether it’s proposed venue reopening dates, the rescheduling of shows, new sources of financial support or digital assets. With so much changing, it can often be quite difficult to keep up-to-date with everything that’s going on. That’s why we’d recommend visiting  The Stage’s Coronavirus Live Updates. Not only does it collate all of the latest industry news relevant to COVID-19 but does so on one accessible page. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FINANCIAL RESOURCES AND SUPPORT

 

 

 

 

 

One of the biggest concerns for many during this time is a lack of financial stability. Below is a list of funds, packages and resources which look to address this issue:

 

 

 

 

 

• GOV.UK’s Official Self-Employment Income Support  
• ACE’s £160m Emergency Response Package
• £7m Welsh Arts Resilience Fund
• Northern Ireland’s £1m COVID-19 Creative Support Fund

 

 

 

 

 

There are also some really useful links on the Independent Theatre Council’s website.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FREE ONLINE TRAINING

 

 

 

 

 

We know that a lot of freelancers we work with are using this unexpected free time to acquire some new skills and training. For those wanting to do something similar, we would recommend visiting Production Futures who have put together a brilliant list of free tutorials, webinars and videos. There is also ALISON who are providing free online electrician courses as well as NCRQ who are offering their Safety for Managers online qualifications free of charge. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WATCH THEATRE FOR FREE

 

 

 

 

 

With more than 200,000 viewing in live to watch the National Theatre’s stream of One Man, Two Guvnors, it’s fair to say there’s still an appetite for people wanting to engage with theatre – even if it’s from their living rooms! With that in mind, we have put together a list of venues/online platforms that are currently streaming theatre shows. Unlike other lists currently out there, all of these shows are entirely free to watch and do not require you to sign up to any sort of subscription.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SOLT AND UK THEATRE WEBINAR

 

 

 

 

 

Last week, SOLT and UK Theatre held the first in a series of webinars responding to the COVID-19 outbreak. This first session focused on freelancers working in technical, backstage and/or production roles. Our Managing Director Bryan Raven joined SOLT CEO Julian Bird and Patrick Moloney (freelance Theatre Production Manager) to form the panel with over 700 freelancers joining virtually. Click here to read what was discussed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

THEATRE HELPLINE

 

 

 

 

 

The Theatre Helpline is a free, independent and confidential phone and email service that provides support to people working across the theatre industry. Originally set up by UK Theatre and SOLT two years ago to provide general support to the sector, it is now available to answer any specific COVID-19 related questions you may have. You can get in touch any time by simply calling 0800 915 4617 or by emailing advice@theatrehelpline.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AND FINALLY…

 

 

 

 

 

With so many in our industry finding a lot of upcoming work either cancelled or postponed, many of you have taken the decision to become Key Workers and help those who are either in isolation or classed as vulnerable in the process. So we thought we’d celebrate two of those we spotted on social media who have temporarily replaced lighting theatre shows to driving supermarket lorries. Well done to George Bach and Elliot Griggs! 

 

 

 

The post Theatre News: Industry Updates, Financial Resources and Online Training appeared first on White Light.