Comedy school to launch in North Wales
- Comedy teaching facility 'Gwneud, Make, Do' is being established on the North Wales island of Ynys Môn
- Run by comedians Kiri Pritchard-McLean and Katie Gill-Williams, it will run weekly classes for kids and adults
- "North Wales is rich in creativity, and it's going to be a joy to curate a space for that"
Teaching facility 'Gwneud, Make, Do' is to launch on the North Wales island of Ynys Môn, run by comedians Kiri Pritchard-McLean and Katie Gill-Williams.
Opening this month, 'Gwneud, Make, Do' is described as "a brand new creative and inclusive comedy teaching facility that offers a specialised and focused creative space allowing access to professional development and training".
'Gwneud (Welsh for "make" or "do"), Make, Do' was born out of a shared passion to develop and enhance the considerable comedy talent in North Wales, and the school aims to be a place for creativity to be harnessed and for talent to be developed and encouraged.
Kiri Pritchard-McLean (pictured) says: "As a native Gog I know how vital a sense of humour is to our nature and culture. But I also know that as an area and even a country, we have lacked an infrastructure to support such talent. Wales has an issue with talent drain over the border and young creatives in particular end up choosing between doing what they want or living where they want, and 'Gwneud, Make, Do' wants to be part of a movement to change that".
Classes for adults (18 years and over) will run on Tuesday evenings at 6.30-7.30pm, and two classes for children will run on Saturdays; session one for 8-12 year olds will be at 9.30-10.30am, and session two for 12-17 year olds will be at 10.45-11.45am.
Sessions will be led by comedy practitioners and experts in their field who are working in the industry. Specialisms will include stand-up, sketch, improvisation, comedy drama and musical comedy. In addition, 'Gwneud, Make, Do' will develop 'offstage' skills for those who prefer not being on stage; skills such as producing, writing, and directing.
The school has a clear end goal: to enable those seeking employment in the arts to have opportunities closer to home. With the overall aim of meaningful, skilled, long-term employment.
The school will have strong links to Machynlleth Comedy Festival, BBC Wales and S4C, "this means that students don't always have to leave Wales in order to gain industry experience."
The creators add: "'Gwneud, Make, Do' is not just for those who wish to work in the arts, but is a safe space to engage with others in a supportive, nurturing environment. In each class there will be fully subsidised places for people from low-income backgrounds and marginalised groups. Our subsidised places are a way of bridging a gap for those who have felt that the arts isn't available to them; it absolutely is."
Katie Gill-Williams comments: "North Wales is rich in creativity, and it's going to be a joy to curate a space for that. If you've always wondered about comedy, performance, writing or the creative industries, 'Gwneud, Make, Do' is that open door for you."
Those interested in finding out more can join the mailing list on gwneudmakedo.co.uk and/or email info@gwneudmakedo.co.uk
This article is provided for free as part of BCG Pro.
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