The Alliance of Associations and Professionals in Theatre & Live Events (AAPTLE), which represents  theatre workers across all disciplines in the UK, advocating for a better, more sustainable and fairer  future for them and the improvement of the industry as a whole, today announce the campaign Not  Here All Year - marking the anniversary of theatres closing their doors as a result of the Covid-19  pandemic.  

From 9th March, AAPTLE will be sharing freelancers’ photographs of venues in the days ahead of the  closure and throughout the last year, highlighting the loss of work over the year, and to celebrate the  industry, looking forward to when venues are able to reopen. Photographs will be shared on  Instagram with the #NotHereAllYear, with those across the industry encouraged to take part. 

Johanna Town and Dominic Bilkey, Chairs of the Association of Lighting Designers and the  Association of Sound Designers respectively, said today, “It has been an extraordinarily tough year for  theatre and live events professionals. The #NotHereAllYear campaign will celebrate the resilience  and determination of theatre makers. It aims to highlight the fact that, although many of us have not  worked for 12 months and counting, we want to get back to making theatre at the earliest  opportunity. Our hope is that together we can collectively change the landscape for the better.” 

As an organisation, AAPTLE are supporting and campaigning on a range of issues affecting the  theatre and live entertainment workforce and the industry more widely. Current areas of focus  include Covid-19, Brexit, diversity and inclusion, sustainability, education and outreach, unions and  lobbying, and the future of freelancers. The latter was the focus of The Alliance’s previously Back to  Work campaign, in which it issued an open letter asking for a commitment from producers and  theatre companies to maintain pre-Covid rates for freelancers upon the return to work.