Vision Collective

 

May 2007

Dear Supporter

For Theatre Royal Stratford East to flourish it needs your support!

Whether you remember Joan Littlewood’s ‘Oh What Lovely War’ or saw ‘Pied Piper’ last autumn, I am writing to ask you to help us invest in the artists of tomorrow.

Theatre Royal Stratford East’s groundbreaking productions – both today and historically - have earned it an enviable reputation. We pride ourselves in taking risks with our artists and our shows, which means we continue to produce theatre that is raw, edgy and intelligent. As Joan Littlewood used to say, we aim to create the continuous loop between our local communities and the work on our stage, developing new artistic voices over a period of time. Nowhere is this clearer than the relationship of the theatre with the artists of Boy Blue for whom we provided a home to nurture their exceptional skills and talent. They ultimately created ‘Pied Piper’ which won an Olivier Award two months ago.

While ‘Pied Piper’ was authentic to young people on the street, ‘The Big Life’, communicated the hopes, fears and dreams of Caribbean immigrants in 1950’s London. It became the first Black British musical to go to the West End. Of the 140,000 people who visited us last year, 70% of them attended the theatre for the first time. This was also recognised at this year’s Olivier Awards when the theatre was nominated a second award for its ‘powerful season of provocative work, reaching new audiences’.

This all sounds like win, win, win, but to continue our work we need to raise £250,000 each year. Our government funding represents only 40% of the necessary target. This is a critical period for the Theatre Royal as we aspire to create the successors to ‘Pied Piper’, ‘The Big Life’ and the recent smash hit ‘The Harder They Come’ and welcome both newcomers and seasoned theatre-goers through our doors.

We are hoping you will join the “Vision Collective” with a gift of £500. Your donation will have a considerable impact on what happens at the Theatre Royal. We will involve you in every stage of the process: we will invite you to see rehearsals and ‘meet and greet’ the cast and crew; on the first night, you will be invited to the champagne reception with the cast.

I would be pleased to answer any questions you may have. Please contact me at kerry@stratfordeast.com or call me on 0208 279 1108.

I very much hope you will decide to uphold the Theatre Royal Stratford East’s bold approach to new work and new voices. Your gift will go directly towards the development of the creative work and help contribute to a flourishing artistic community.

Yours sincerely

Kerry Michael
Artistic Director and Chief Executive

 

To sign up as a Vision Collective member of Theatre Royal please click here and send the completed form to Kerry Michael, Theatre Royal Stratford East, FREEPOST, (LON 6340), E15 1BN.