Published on 17/01/23

Music Theatre Wales’s Future Directions Project Receives Anthem’s Atsain Funding

Published on 17/01/23

We are delighted to announce that Music Theatre Wales has received Atsain funding from Anthem Music Fund Wales for 2023 to support our project Future Directions – which invites young people to create their own digital opera, supported by professional artists to develop their creative and collaborative skills.

During the Pilot in 2022, we discovered huge hunger and excitement for this project, especially amongst such an inclusive group of young people who had never been involved in opera making before, using music and story, with action and film, to explore ideas they wanted to share.

“Coming together over one thing and making it happen, I learned so many skills for example, acting, music, editing etc and made many friends.”
MTW Young Person Company Member

In 2022, over two, 3-day residences, at Aberystwyth University in April and Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in August, linked by a series of creative Zoom sessions and sharing ideas on Slack, the young people created their own digital opera: devising the story, composing and performing the music, writing the text and co-creating the film, including participating in lighting and editing. They had a story they all wanted to tell – about how easy it is not to notice the world around us and to miss how we can all make a difference. And here at MTW, we have a made a pledge: to be inspired and influenced by their work and by them as creative individuals, helping us re-imagine opera. The film will be released as part of MTW’s creative work very soon, so watch this space!

In 2023 with Atsain funding, we’ll be working with a new group of young people and a new team of facilitating artists to create our next Young Company Digital Opera and we hope to continue to develop relationships with our 2022 cohort who have been invited to be part of an MTW advisory panel for Future Directions.

“It has been truly inspiring seeing our first Young Company come together and create something really special and original, which has a profound message for all of us. Re-discovering opera as storytelling in music that can speak to anyone has been quite simply a joy! I can’t wait for the 2023 Young Company to get going.”
Michael McCarthy, Artistic Director

“Feeling a part of a family, making strong friendships with people I had never met before and getting to experience something completely different and amazing.”
MTW Young Person Company Member

“I enjoyed it all!! I’ve found that FD has given me a chance to find my music.”
MTW Young Person Company Member