TALENTED NEW WRITERS INSPIRED BY SCRIPTWORKS SHARING PROJECT IN DONCASTER

Published 10 May 2022 at 4:17pm

Cast, the Doncaster theatre which opened in 2013 in the town centre, is celebrating securing £38k funding through the South Yorkshire Mayor’s £1m ARG Arts & Culture Fund for an exciting new project.

The funding has been invested in developing a Scriptworks Sharing course, which has encouraged talented local people to enhance their writing skills with a view to taking up scriptwriting on a more professional level.

A number of local people, mainly from Doncaster, took part in the Scriptworks course, delivered by a professional team from Cast, where they were coached in how to create a script, its structure, how to develop impactful beginnings and endings and developing characters and dialogue. They were also treated to a masterclass with a Director and Actors, where they had the chance to see their words brought to life and to discuss how their work comes off the page. The course culminated in a ‘script in hand’ sharing of the work performed by actors to a live audience, which was very well received and provided a real boost to their confidence.

Sarah Clough, Head of Participation at Cast in Doncaster, said: “It was wonderful to see the local writers grow in their knowledge and creativity throughout the process, thanks to the Arts & Culture funding which has enabled us to deliver this programme. Many of the writers said how it has inspired them to take their work to the next level, which could mean developing their scriptwriting into a fulfilling part time or full-time career!”

The next Scriptworks Session takes place on Tuesday 12th April and will focus on writing, directing and the relationship between them, which is led by Elvi Piper.

The funding was also put towards Cast hosting a work experience week for young people, as well as delivering writing workshops in Doncaster College. The theatre also hosted three tours for students from Special Schools in the area.

Part of the funding has also gone towards running a series of Hello Baby sessions at Cast, which is a workshop for babies and their parents or carers. These sessions take place at Cast on Monday mornings during termtime at 10.30am.

Cast, which has partnerships with theatres and artists across the region and country, offers high quality performances, as well as hosting visits from world renowned companies, such as the National Theatre. The theatre also offers opportunities for local and regional artists to research and develop their ideas and help support great new ideas to get off the ground. This includes many different types of activity for all ages across the region to take part in the arts.

For more details visit www.castindoncaster.com