Negotiating Theatrical Legacies and Imagining Futures (Warwick Sponsored Panel)

Friday 29 August, 3.30pm-4.30pm

Room: Oculus 1.05

For this final panel, industry experts reflect on how their organisations' past is the key to unlocking their future, and consider how past events, activities, leadership and missions help to draw the map that guides them forward.

Chair: Natalie Diddams

SPEAKERS

James Yarker (Stan's Cafe)

A four minute long show in Belgrade, a 1,500 page 400-year-old book, 7,000 golden dominoes, clocks, rice and the future of plastic all lead to a heart transplant. James Yarker explains how, in the entwined world of Stan’s Cafe, future shows, no matter how bold, are always in dialogue with the company’s past.

James co-founded Stan’s Cafe in 1991, since when he as directed all its major productions, written text when required and toured around the world. He regularly works with students from age 7 upward and has devised three shows with Theatre and Performance Studies students at the University of Warwick. He co-authored Devising Theatre With Stan’s Cafe (Bloomsbury Methuen) and is an Honorary Senior Research Fellow at University of Birmingham.

Corey Campbell (Creative Director, Belgrade Theatre)

The Belgrade Theatre in Coventry is recognised as the birthplace of the Theatre in Education (TIE) movement in the UK and this year marks its 60 anniversary. Corey Campbell will discuss how this history has aided the development of a new vision for how a theatre should operate in 2025, with a focus on co-creation and community.

Adaya Henry (Artistic Direction, Women & Theatre)

Adaya Henry is the Artistic Director of Women & Theatre, she took over from founder Janice Connolly in 2023 in the company's 40th anniversary year. She'll speak on her and the team's approach of upholding the 40 year long legacy of the company through centering authenticity and highlighting the lives and stories of ordinary people.