Scarborough's Stephen Joseph Theatre Announces New Associate Company – ARCADE

Scarborough's Stephen Joseph Theatre is joining forces with a new community producing company in the latest of an ongoing programme of exciting new creative partnerships.

The long-established theatre will be sharing its skills, experience and expertise with, and learning fresh approaches from, new Scarborough-based Associate Company ARCADE.

ARCADE and the SJT share the outlook that everyone is creative and culture belongs to everyone. Led by Sophie Drury-Bradey and Rach Drew, ARCADE aims to make incredible cultural experiences happen with artists and communities, to support communities to develop creativity and ideas and to collaborate to make community-led change happen using the arts, through creative projects, workshops, shows, festivals and events in Scarborough and across the UK.

Sophie Drury-Bradey says: "We can't wait to work with the SJT to make some extraordinary community-led projects and shows happen.

"We will be asking our local community what they want, and also supporting both local and national artists to work within the town and borough.

"We'll aim to work in partnership - growing ARCADE and the SJT's relationships with other brilliant local organisations, such as Scarborough Museums Trust, CaVCA and others."

The SJT's Artistic Director, Paul Robinson, says: "We're absolutely delighted to welcome ARCADE as the latest of our Associate Companies - they'll bring fresh new perspectives to our busy programme of community work."

The first project that the two organisations are partnering on is Scarborough Stories, which will take place from April 2021 to March 2022, and is for anyone who has a story they want to tell, or is angry or passionate about an issue or challenge in their life or community. It will culminate in a site-specific show in the town centre.

Rach Drew was previously Executive Director of York Mediale, a £1.3m international arts festival and the largest media arts festival in the UK. Prior to this, she managed large-scale light festival Illuminating York. Originally trained as a theatre director, Rach has had a varied career from founding her own youth theatre to collaborating with communities in museums and creating exhibitions for local artists.

Sophie Drury-Bradey was previously Senior Producer at Battersea Arts Centre for eight years. She has 15 years' experience in producing, programming, participation and project management and a strong track record for supporting talent development and the realisation of new and ambitious projects, including the award-winning show Brand New Ancients by Kate Tempest and Broadcast from Biscuitland by Touretteshero for live TV broadcast on BBC4.

ARCADE joins theatre companies Box of Tricks, The Faction and VOXED as an Associate Company of the SJT.

For more information on ARCADE: hello-arcade.com

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