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  1. Coffee Break: Louisa Reid

    Coffee Break: Louisa Reid  

    Louisa Reid, a secondary English teacher, is the author of the YA verse novels Gloves Off, nominated for the Carnegie Medal, and Wrecked, which was selected for both the Read for Empathy collection and National Poetry Day. Louisa Reid’s latest YA verse novel Activist is available now published by Guppy Books. Susan Elkin spoke to her. Your […]

  2. Driving Force

    Driving Force  

    Jacqui O’Hanlon, 56, is Royal Shakespeare Company’s Director of Learning and National Partnerships. Susan Elkin spoke to her for Ink Pellet. Jacqui O’Hanlon is a petite powerhouse of passion for Shakespeare and everything his writing can do – it enhances every other aspect of life. Most enlightened teachers know a child who has suddenly blossomed […]

  3. Poetry Powerhouse

    Poetry Powerhouse  

    Allie Esiri has been described as a “poetry powerhouse”. Susan Elkin met her to talk about her work. “People like poetry” says Allie Esiri whose anthologies have cornered 20% of the entire UK poetry market. “They hear a poem, say, at a wedding or funeral, and are moved so they want more. And I think […]

  4. Opening Doors

    Opening Doors  

    Scott Graham, Artistic Director of the Ignition programme from Frantic Assembly, gives an insight as to how they are attracting and engaging new participants. Some 15 years ago we ran a workshop for professional performers where we hired a nightclub for two days to make work inspired by the site. We invited people to apply […]

  5. Arrows and Traps

    Arrows and Traps  

    Ross McGregor, 38, is the founder of Arrows and Traps theatre company. His recent plays have been about Holst, Payne and Persephone. Susan Elkin met him. How did you get into drama? I’ve stammered since I was 4. When I was about 14 and a pupil at an all-boys’ boarding school in Hertfordshire, which wasn’t […]

  6. Inspiring Future Theatre

    Inspiring Future Theatre  

    Inspiring the Future of Theatre is a joint initiative by Society of London Theatre (SOLT), UK Theatre and charity Education & Employers, launched to nurture new generations of theatre-makers and audiences from school age, connecting schools with their local theatres. What is Inspiring the Future of Theatre? Theatre and the performing arts are part of […]

  7. A Hidden Gem

    A Hidden Gem  

    Graham Hooper made a long-awaited trip to Compton Verney in Warwickshire to discover a venue full of promise and perfect for school visits. Compton Verney is a good two-hour drive from home, and today in the lashing rain I find myself hoping that it’s going to be worth it. It’s a venue that I’ve been […]

  8. Pause for thought… Panto

    Pause for thought… Panto  

    Susan Elkin, a stalwart of hundreds of pantos, implores you to continue introducing live performance to your cohorts through this quintessentially British institution. As we embark on the season of mists, mellow fruitfulness and new pencils my thoughts turn to pantomime. Oh yes they do… I’ll say that before anyone else does and get it […]

  9. Theatre Review – The Pirate, the Princess and the Platypus – Polka Theatre

    Theatre Review – The Pirate, the Princess and the Platypus – Polka Theatre  

    Written and directed by Potted Panto/Potted Potter duo, Daniel Clarkson and Richard Hurst, The Pirate the Princess and the Platypus is a witty, song-strewn send up of fairy tale conventions with a feminist twist – complete with a frog puppet demanding to be kissed. A Princess (Teegan Hurley – strong) does not need to sit […]

  10. Book Review – Undercurrent

    Book Review  – Undercurrent  

    By Barney Norris Published by Doubleday  The “undercurrent” of Barney Norris’s title is both actual and metaphorical. The novel opens at a wedding where Ed meets Amy, who claims that he rescued her from drowning when they were both children. Moreover, it’s a novel about the “secret currents which align our lives” as Ed gradually […]