For the love of theatre - a conversation with the founder of non-profit organisation Acrylic Theatre Support
Written by Eleni Beaumont for Our Sustainable Future
Photo via the Acrylic Theatre Support Instagram @Acrylic_theatre_support
It’s Friday at noon and a call to a new friend halfway around the world in Hangzhou, China, is a welcome change from my usual quarantine existence. Like many of us, Yifei Ma has used her time in lockdown playing video games, reading, and even picking up a new language. However, we find ourselves discussing something more dynamic and unique - Yifei’s time spent setting up a not-for-profit organisation, Acrylic Theatre Support, to help struggling actors and theatre companies impacted by Covid-19.
‘We started planning the initiative around two months ago,’ she begins. ‘I was talking to my friend from school in England (Yifei’s spent the last two years studying in Cheltenham, a spa town about 100 miles west of London) and was distressed by how many people in theatre and the arts are losing their jobs. Whenever I searched for theatre companies, I heard about their threat of closing due to lack of funding during this time. I wanted to do something to help, though I knew as a student this was going to be a challenge.’
But Yifei clearly believes in the power of youth and the ability of generation Z to make change. ‘I’m aware that unless you're directly involved with theatre and the arts you might think there is not an obvious need to donate to their cause - especially with everything that is happening in the world at the moment.’ However, Yifei knows the importance and value theatre can bring to people’s lives, including but beyond the joy of live storytelling. Across the UK we’ve watched, in recent years, theatre engaging, involving and supporting communities in new ways: tackling racism, promoting diversity, supporting learning in schools and colleges, and bringing together people facing loneliness or living with dementia. Consequently, there are serious concerns about what the fallout will be for those communities if theatres disappear.
Yifei felt the power of theatre first-hand. ‘I used to study in an international school - however it was difficult to make friends because of all the different language barriers,’ she explains. She decided to join the backstage crew at the school’s theatre programme, working on productions such as My Fair Lady and Arabian Nights. ‘I found the environment so welcoming,’ She hasn’t looked back since and is now set to embark on a degree in design for theatre at one of the UK’s leading drama schools, London University’s Royal Central School for Speech and Drama.
With Acrylic Theatre Support, Yifei is aiming to help the industry she plans to go into. ‘I wanted to create a space where people could donate easily but also feel like they are getting something in return. One of the main goals is to reach a wider audience, instead of just relying on people already working in the arts.’ This is where the Acrylic Theatre Supports workshops come in. ‘If you donate to, say, National Theatre, screenshot the receipt and send it to us, our organisation offers entry into one of our small, informal workshops which teach skills - from language learning to music to acting - led by colleagues in the industry.’ Two of their first workshops in acting are already underway, led by creatives Saul Thelwell and Adwitha Arumugam.
From where I am sitting in the UK and with the headlines we’re reading surrounding theatres in crisis, the idea seems rather genius, and has potential to see engagement with the arts increase during Covid-19, and to do it’s bit for the fight to prevent theatre closures. Click here to visit their Instagram and find out more about how you can get involved.