Tim
Cornish, Southeast Arts:
' ....Occasionally one comes across something which confirms
one’s missionary belief in the potential of digital arts,
and the Montage show was one such memorable occasion.'
What
we do
Montage Theatre develops professional new
theatre; creates work
for non-experienced performers within our local community
in South East London, and runs 24 weekly acting, singing
and dancing classes for children, young people and adults, from 10 months to
72 years!
Montage’s professional productions experiment
with
relationships between traditional theatre disciplines and
modern technology and
have been performed in London and nationally.
The unique cross-discipline
works are created through the interaction of live performance and
digital scenography, exploring the integration of physical theatre,
live and recorded music,
dance, sound, projected video,
stills and animation. Montage teaches workshops and undertakes
Artists’ Residencies in digital
art and performance in London
and internationally.
Montage’s community acting, singing and dancing
classes began in February 1999 and have
expanded since to take into account
the ever-increasing need for accessible and carefully structured
classes in drama, singing and dance for age groups
from babies
(with their parents!) to pensioners, while maintaining its standard
of excellence in tuition.
Montage’s work with non-experienced
performers exists alongside
and as an extension of our regular community classes
to reach out
through discrete projects to people who may never have considered
their own experience to be important or
themselves to be talented.
We are wholly committed to the celebration of community and communities,
and of the individual, and continue to seek out ways to introduce
new recruits to the transformative power of performance.
Judy Gordon, Artistic Director, is committed to creating work in
a unique understanding and practice, with both experienced and
non-experienced
performers as well as professional artists and technicians together
in a professional environment, so that the development of skills
and artistic vision is reciprocal.
History
Montage’s community acting, singing and dancing classes
were established in 1999 when Judy Gordon, an experienced teacher
and performer, identified a need for classes for children
and adults
who did not want to work towards exams but
valued the structure of a carefully planned curriculum
with
the emphasis on technique.
The acquisition of skills has
a dramatic effect on confidence and
self-esteem, and working in
a group offers opportunities for friendships
based on shared interests. Children’s attitudes to
learning can be transformed and the classes offer a
gateway into the joy of performance.
Every opportunity for the students to perform for
an audience on stages in a variety of professional and community
settings is eagerly seized.
Montage Theatre was established in 1998 and became
Montage Theatre Arts, a company limited by guarantee
and a registered
charity,
in 2004. From one drama class a week, Judy developed the classes
with Lyn Whiston, drama teacher and Associate Director of Education,
to the 24 courses currently
running, plus the summer school. We
open new courses when
we have enough queries, so if we’re
not running a class you or
your child would like to do, do let
us know!
Volunteer assistant placements
Montage Theatre has developed a consistent
and successful volunteer programme where people from the local community
are offered placements
in the classroom assistant scheme, in
the office or as production
assistants.
Voluntary class assistant placements are from one term
to a year
or more in length and can be taken as part of course curriculum
studies such as a degree programme
or simply to gain experience
and confidence in working
with children, young people and adults. They
learn from
the highly experienced teachers they are assisting,
often forming
a close relationship with both students and staff.
As a result, Montage has had a wide variety
of people of all experiences assisting us – from work-experience youngsters,
under-graduates
to graduates and professionals and of all ages
and skills, including
training and professional dancers, youth workers, singers and actors.
Montage works closely with volunteer organisations and
local schools
and colleges in Lewisham and Greenwich, including Lewisham
Volunteering, Goldsmiths MA courses,
Trinity College of Music, Royal Academy of Dancing, Millennium
Volunteers, Dartford Grammar
School and those who contact us having heard of us.
Do you want to get more involved in Montage?
Would you like to donate any time or financial support?
We are
a charity with a small number of staff working part-time hours
and like most organisations like us, and often very pressed
for
time. We welcome any offers of help or assistance and there
are
various ways you can help.
Can you donate:
- your time: you may only have one hour a week,
a few hours
in total to spare or even a desire to become a class
assistant
on a regular basis – we need your help in the
office or in the classes for admin, make-up or delivering leaflets!
- Your money: perhaps you would like to
support a specific event or an age group. Perhaps you work for
a company
that donates money to local charities?
- Your costumes: we can happily recycle
most period clothing
or child’s size costumes, eg. superheroes
or fairies…
- Your equipment: any cameras, phones, office
equipment
or supplies, etc
- Your facilities: this might be a rehearsal
studio or technical facilities
- Recycling: Please give us your outgrown Montage
t-shirts
and black plimsolls – we can sell them on very
cheaply.
All we want to do is to improve the services we can offer
students
and we’d be thrilled if more people wanted to get
involved.
Maybe you have ideas about fundraising? If you wish
to support
or help us in any way, please do call us and we would
be happy
to discuss your ideas.
Our Board and Chairman
Helen Shreeve - Chair and Director
Sheryl Aitcheson – Vice Chair and Director
Paul Crawford - Director
Mem Morrison - Director
Lisa Spirling - Director
for fuller details: 
Our Patron
Debbie Bishop
Sylvestra Le Touzel
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