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Get Involved

Are you an aspiring musician, singer, film-maker, theatre director or performer, aged between 16 and 24 and living in Wales?

Are you interested in collaborating with other creative young people and professionals to make a new digital opera?

Can you join us for two residential stays, Aberystwyth (during the school Easter holiday) and Cardiff (during the school summer holiday)?

Thanks to Arts Council Wales and Anthem Music Fund Wales, Music Theatre Wales is inviting 12 young people to work with music, theatre and film professionals, to push the boundaries of opera and create a new digital opera.

For us, opera is simply Storytelling in Music

We are inviting you to come and create your own story in your own music and present it as a short film on our website

FUTURE DIRECTIONS is a young people’s programme with a difference, where young people will work in collaboration with professional Music-Creators, learning from and inspiring each other to explore what opera and music theatre mean for themselves and their communities.

Music Theatre Wales working in partnership with Hijinx has brought together Theatre Maker and Dramaturg Jain Boon, Music Maker Mari Mathias, Singer Llio Evans and Film maker Gavin Porter to work together with the young participants to create a new and original story in music that draws on the ideas of the participants. Together we will create a Digital Opera.

Future Directions is Music Theatre Wales Young Company, an annual project that sits at the core of the company’s main activity. The project is delivered in partnership with Hijinx Theatre.

Details:

  • - 4, 5 & 6 April 2023: 3-day Residency, Aberystwyth Arts Centre*
    What is opera? What does music theatre mean to you? Theatre and music workshops will explore ideas and stories, and start developing the themes of a new opera
  • - May – July: Monthly online meetings
    will provide the Young Company to continue to connect and develop ideas, supported by our team of music, theatre and film makers.
  • - 14, 15 & 16 August 2023: 3-day Residency, University South Wales Residency, Atrium, Cardiff
    Workshops with theatre, music and film professionals to stage and film the opera, which will be professionally edited following the residency, and shared online with MTW’s online audience.

Future Directions is a project that celebrates inclusion and diversity and warmly welcome participants from all backgrounds. Please let us know if you need access support.

*Participants will be responsible for their own transport to and from the residencies (bursaries are available to support the cost of this). All accommodation and meals will be provided.

If you have any questions about the project please get in touch!
Åsa Malmsten, General Manager, Music Theatre Wales: asa@musictheatre.wales / 02920 3535741

Deadline for applications: 27 March 2023 at midday.

FUTURE DIRECTIONS

The things that go unnoticed

We are proud to present the first Digital Opera - The Things That Go Unnoticed – created by the Music Theatre Wales Young Company during 2022.

We did it! The first Future Directions project activity has now been completed, and our Young Company have had a fantastic and creative time – and so have we!

“It’s been so much fun…let’s all stay in contact and do this again!!!”

MTW Young Person Company Member

“A meeting point of challenge and creativity…and a ton of laughing…what more do you need!?”

MTW Young Person Company Member

In the coming weeks we will be sharing the new digital opera that has been created by the Young company in collaboration with four professional artists. But right from the start we were clear that this was all about participation and creativity, developing new skills, new ways of working and new friends. Devising a story that came from the group and developing it into a operatic work. On a project like this, the journey to the end point is just as important as the result, so we thought we would share this with you now.

“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

We started by giving a taster of what the project was all about by visiting schools and young people’s groups with a workshop exploring how to tell stories in music. We also partnered with Hijinx – one of Europe’s leading inclusive theatre companies, creating performances with learning disabled and/or autistic artists, and with Mess Up The Mess – a young people’s theatre project in Ammanford.

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 have created their own story: devising its dramatic representation, creating the visual language, creating, inspiring and performing in the music, and co-creating the filming. They have 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. This is the basis of Future Directions.

“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

Congratulations to MTW’s first Young Company. We know you had the most fantastic time, making new friends and exploring new ways of working and thinking. Thank you!

Music Theatre Wales will be running a Future Directions programme every year, so if you want to join in and work with us on making new opera – and making opera new – then please contact us.

Creative facilitators 2022

And a big thank you to our funders and partners, old and new:

  • Aberystwyth University
  • Anthem
  • Arts Council Wales
  • Big Moose Coffee Co.
  • Foyle Foundation
  • Hijinx Theatre
  • Mess Up The Mess Theatre Company
  • Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama
  • Ty Cerdd
  • Tysul Youth