Annual Review 2023/24
New Adventures delights, inspires and nurtures people of all ages and backgrounds through dance. It has been another remarkable year for the company, reaching ambitious targets and astonishing audiences all over the UK and beyond. In 2023-24, we have staged three large-scale productions: Sleeping Beauty, Romeo and Juliet and Edward Scissorhands. We finished our major tour of Sleeping Beauty around the UK in May, including a week at the Carré Theatre in Amsterdam to round the tour off beautifully. The summer saw a revival of our dazzling production of Romeo and Juliet. Created in 2019, the production is now part of the New Adventures repertoire alongside the very best of Bourne’s world-renowned dance theatre productions, and this revival continued the legacy of investing in young talent of the future. The show toured for over a year, taking in many UK cities before heading overseas on our first major international tour since the pandemic, visiting Los Angeles and Paris before a nine-city Asian tour. As if that were not enough to keep us busy, the autumn saw a revival of New Adventures’ production of Edward Scissorhands, based on the classic Tim Burton movie and featuring the hauntingly beautiful music of Danny Elfman and Terry Davies. This witty, bittersweet story of an incomplete boy left alone in a strange new world resonated with more people than ever before on our extensive UK tour, and having filmed the production, it will go on to entertain audiences in cinemas and on TV.
New Adventures also continues to nurture the next generation of dancers through our talent development programmes. Our flagship programme for 12–19-year-olds, Cygnet School, which takes place at the Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury, welcomed a new cohort of students and continues to flourish; and a particular highlight has been expanding our programme for pre-vocational dancers, Swan School, to meet a need in young aspiring dancers aged 16-18.
Doorstep Duets surprised and delighted people from Farnham to Norwich with performances in libraries, care homes, hospices and a host of other unusual places, bringing world-class dance to communities who could not access it otherwise. Take Part visited schools around the country, and we held our now regular sensory adapted performance at Sadler’s Wells.
From school pupils to pensioners, this year has seen us strive to bring the widest range of people joy, connection, creativity and wonder through New Adventures’ work, both on stage and off.
Executive Summary
401,990 audiences attended 397 live performances
Over 50 weeks touring 3 productions in the UK and internationally
100 dancers employed on tour
1,643,736 people engaged with our work online through REEL Adventures
Over 6,000 participants and audiences engaged across 303 Take Part activity sessions
24,345 people saw cinema screenings of 3 different productions worldwide
A message from our Chair
As we reflect on the past twelve months in the New Adventures journey, I am reminded of a profound quote by the writer Joyce Carol Oates:
‘I believe that art is the highest expression of the human spirit. I believe that we yearn to transcend the merely finite and ephemeral; to participate in something mysterious and communal called ‘culture.’
It is culture of the highest quality that Sir Matthew Bourne and New Adventures constantly seek to produce. Work that is always culturally relevant and accessible to all – work that builds communities of dance lovers, those curious to discover something new, and those that need persuading that art and culture is for them. The aim has always been to create work that transcends ‘the finite and ephemeral,’ and deliver art that is ground-breaking and timeless.
With several outstanding productions and impressive audience engagement, this year marked another period of growth and transformation for the company. It has indeed been an extraordinary one of pushing boundaries and striving to achieve audacious goals, but this has also been coupled with a devastating blow to the company, which was felt throughout the wider arts community.
In March, this year we lost a beautiful and hugely significant member of the team. Our outstanding Executive Director Imogen Kinchin lost her battle with cancer at the age of 44. Imogen was a force of nature; a hugely respected leader whose tenacity, empathy, creativity and sense of humour was inspirational and exemplary. Her impact on New Adventures as an innovative and mightily successful touring company is immeasurable and we extend huge credit to this powerhouse of a woman for steering the company and ensuring that every criteria of its NPO status was met or exceeded. Our heart goes out to her family and friends and her memory remains with us forever.
Imogen’s diagnosis and subsequent decline shook the company, and huge credit must go out to the whole team who were resilient through their grief. Special acknowledgement must be assigned to Jennie Green who was phenomenal stepping up and covering Executive Director duties. Jennie’s longstanding relationship with the company and respect by them all has been a huge advantage, and we are proud to now have her permanently in post as Deputy Managing Director.
For nearly four decades New Adventures has made a major contribution to the popularity of dance in Britain and this year we have proudly toured three impressive productions from the repertoire that have attracted enthusiastic audiences at home and abroad as well as critical acclaim.
Sleeping Beauty played to nearly 35,000 people in the UK and Europe. Romeo and Juliet was a testament to the company’s commitment to nurturing new talent with 60% of the dancers coming through our development programmes.
After a nine-year hiatus, Edward Scissorhands was revived for a UK tour, again showcasing a significant percentage of dancers from our talent development programmes and attracting much praise from national press. The Observer describing the show as ‘Stunning!’ with four- and five-star reviews from other major publications.
New Adventures’ commitment to discovering and nurturing new talent remains ongoing and has also been acknowledged in the national press. However, this commitment to development opportunities extends to the wider ‘family’ of freelancers and industry professionals as well as aspiring dancers addressing the challenges faced by the industry post-pandemic and investing in the wider cultural ecosystem.
I am confident that the entire Board will agree that the dedication of our artistic team, the hard work of our administrative staff and the unwavering support of our audiences and patrons cannot be taken for granted. I am delighted to confirm that we have expanded our Board of Trustees, to strengthen its skillset to support the formidable work being done.
Ever mindful of our Arts Council National Portfolio status we are forever future facing and determined to retain our position as one of Britain’s biggest dance exports while ensuring that all our work is inclusive and representative of all sectors of society. We will continue and strengthen our commitment to the environment and our organisational resilience. This takes effort and strategic planning. To support these audacious goals the formation of sub committees has proved effective.
From finance, equity, diversity and inclusion, to sustainability, fundraising, building and connecting with audiences: each group consistently brings new, innovative ideas and shared insights to the table that have proved invaluable. This has led to a company firing on all cylinders and transforming at a rapid pace. Impressive for this relatively small company with big dreams.
In this digital age we have connected with dance audiences beyond theatre spaces and arts venues. Sleeping Beauty was broadcast on the BBC on Christmas Day, Sky Arts New Zealand broadcast The Red Shoes and Swan Lake and five of our productions had worldwide cinema screenings. The team, not resting on their laurels is consistently exploring new ways to expand our reach through digital channels, broadcasting and performances in non- traditional spaces.
I hope I have not made this sound easy. The challenges have been real and, with an erratic economy, will no doubt persist. This extensive report will further expand on an ever-growing list of achievements.
Looking ahead, we are excited about the opportunities on the horizon. We will continue to foster a vibrant, inclusive environment in our office, on stages and in communities. We plan to further our outreach efforts, continue our innovative programmes and nurture both seasoned and emerging performers.
All that is left for me to do is thank every single individual that has contributed in their own unique way to a successful year. Let us continue to spread joy and contribute to that mysterious and communal experience called culture.
Brenda Emmanus OBE
Chair of the Board of Trustees, New Adventures.
On Stage
In 2023/24, we toured across the UK for a cumulative total of 47 weeks with 3 productions.
Sleeping Beauty Remount, UK and International Tour
‘Clever Clever Storytelling’ – Independent
Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty continued into 2023/24.
This large-scale tour finished at four venues (Theatre Royal Norwich, Festival Theatre Edinburgh, Theatre Royal Newcastle, Royal Theater Carré Amsterdam) over a period of four weeks.
- 40+ performances
- 34,599+ audiences in the UK and Europe
- 29 dancers
- 19 offstage workers and crew
Romeo and Juliet Remount, UK Tour and International Tour
‘A seismic youthquake. A Romeo and Juliet for the millennial generation’ – The Stage
After dazzling audiences when it was first staged in 2019, Romeo and Juliet now joins the New Adventures repertoire alongside the very best of Bourne’s world renowned dance theatre productions, touring for 17 weeks at 13 venues.
- 128 performances
- 123,044 audiences nationwide.
- 35 dancers
- 19 offstage workers and crew
- 1,072 weeks of employment across the tour
- Over 60% of the dancers came through one of our talent development programmes.
The show received average ratings of 91% for ‘Captivation’ and 90% for ‘Enjoyment’ from audiences at Curve Theatre, Leicester, 334 of whom responded to the post-show survey sent using Arts Council England’s Impact and Insight Toolkit.
As well as a UK tour, the production embarked on an international tour in January 2024. The show toured to 2 venues (Ahmanson Theater, LA and Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris) over a period of 7 weeks, delivering 53 performances and reaching 60,692 audiences both UK and abroad.
Edward Scissorhands Remount, UK Tour
‘Stunning! The wonders keep coming in Bourne’s magical version of the Tim Burton classic.’ – The Observer
Edward Scissorhands returned to UK theatres for the first time in nine years in November 2023, touring for 19 weeks to 12 venues.
- 138 performances
- 181,180 audiences
- 36 dancers
- 35 offstage workers and crew
- 800 weeks of employment across the tour
- Over 50% of the dancers came through one of our talent development programmes.
The show received average ratings of 93% for ‘Captivation’ and 94% for ‘Enjoyment’ from audiences at Alhambra Theatre, Bradford, 326 of whom responded to the post-show survey sent using Arts Council England’s Impact and Insight Toolkit.
Digital
New Adventures continues its commitment to increasing the reach of our shows through broadcasts, cinema, digital downloads, and online collaborations. We continue to create innovative digital content that provides engaging insights into the unique world of New Adventures on and off stage and experiment with new ways of communicating that reflect our company ethos and ambition.
We have increased the ways in which audiences can watch our shows online through continued partnerships with broadcasters and other content providers to allow audiences to stream our productions on demand.
BBC
Our latest production to broadcast wasSleeping Beauty and had 320,000 viewers on BBC (including streams through BBC iPlayer). Nutcracker! continued to be available as a stream on BBC iPlayer and had 470,000 viewers.
Other Broadcasts & Online Streaming
Working alongside multiple international partners (broadcast networks and online platforms), six productions were broadcast and/or streamed outside of the UK (The Car Man, The Red Shoes, Cinderella, Nutcracker!, Romeo and Juliet, Swan Lake) in 24 countries. We estimate 58,542 viewers across the world.
In total, we estimate 848,542 views of New Adventures productions via broadcast or streaming.
Cinema Screenings
6,758 people in the UK saw Sleeping Beauty at the cinema. 17,316 people in the UK saw Swan Lake at the cinema. 271 people in the UK saw The Red Shoes at the cinema.
In total, 24,345 people across the world saw a Matthew Bourne production at the cinema.
Online Engagement
On our digital platforms, we focus on giving audiences an opportunity to connect with the joy, wonder and creativity of New Adventures wherever they are in the world. We have introduced a three-pillar strategy, communicating our what, our why and our how across social platforms.
Our strategy puts the audience first (rather than the platform), places dance at the forefront and prioritises quality over quantity. We have increased time spent on community management to nurture our relationship with loyal fans and make stronger connections with audiences and future talent.
In 2023-2024, we have had net audience growth of 17,167* and have increased our reach by 60.3% (26,155,024 impressions). On our core platforms (Facebook and Instagram), we posted 645 times, 25,667 people shared our posts, 58,969 posts were saved, we received 19,631 comments and 135,489 post link clicks. That is a total of 239,756 meaningful engagements with New Adventures.
Romeo and Juliet content has been particularly engaging. Content has combined aesthetically and musically striking footage with headlines that connect with audiences emotionally around universally resonant themes.
In 2023-2024 we moved sales messaging below the opening copy hook, recognising that organic social content is rarely effective as a sales tool. We will be moving away from promotional wording on posts when our objective for the post is emotional engagement, promotional messaging will be used more strategically when it is most likely to have impact.
*We expect this to be higher as Instagram data has only been collected since October 2023.
Talent Development
New Adventures continues to commit to discovering and nurturing raw and emerging talent across the UK and continues to develop New Adventures company members’ careers both on and off stage. We provide on-going development opportunities for freelancers, industry professionals and aspiring dancers.
Emerging Artist Programme
In 2023-24, New Adventures launched our fourth Emerging Artist placement, designed to support and develop dancers through their final year of training via mentoring and residency opportunities, leading to a paid training contract on an upcoming production.
Xavier Andriambolanoro Sotiya has taken part in two Swan Schools in 2023 and made his professional debut in Edward Scissorhands.
Throughout the programme, Xavier Andriambolanoro Sotiya was mentored by New Adventures Resident Artist and principal dancer Glenn Graham as well as receiving sports psychology sessions and other physical coaching from our dance artists.
‘Being a mentor is not just about imparting knowledge; it's about igniting a spark within someone, empowering them to embrace their potential, and watching them soar to heights they never thought possible. Mentoring our emerging artist has been a privilege and an honour, seeing them develop and grow into the artist they are today. I’m very much looking forward to following their journey and seeing them unlock their artistry.’- Resident Artist
‘My time on the emerging artist program was extremely inspirational and educational I’ve learnt so much and things that I may have never learnt. To anyone who is blessed to have this opportunity, you should learn to become a sponge, take every single golden piece of information and knowledge and use it in your everyday career.’ - Emerging Artist 2023-24
Our two previous 2022-23 Emerging Artists were performing in Romeo and Juliet and Edward Scissorhands in 2023.
Cygnet School
In residence at The Marlowe, Canterbury, our pre-vocational training programme for young people, Cygnet School, launched in July 2021 to provide a much-needed pathway between New Adventures’ existing participation work and Talent Development opportunities.
This year’s Cygnet’s School cohort comprised of 13 young people aged 12-19, each passionate about dance, developing new skills and exploring dance as a professional pathway. The programme is fully subsidised for all the participants ensuring that there are no barriers to access.
Over the course of 12 months this group came together for monthly weekend classes, exploring the unique aspects of New Adventures’ work, style, and training, led by New Adventures’ dance artists.
The Cygnets spent the year developing their technique, musicality, and group cohesion within each monthly session. They got the opportunity to go behind the scenes and were led on a backstage tour at both the Mercury and Marlowe Theatre. As well as gaining knowledge of theatre practices, they have explored different dance styles with a commercial dance workshop from Laines Theatre Arts and somatic practice from a master's student at Canterbury Christ Church University.
The participants also saw the New Adventures professional company perform on stage at the Marlowe and gained insight into the inner workings of theatres and the dance industry, learning about different career pathways in the arts.
The 13 Cygnets stayed at Canterbury Christ Church University for a week in July for their summer residency, developing a Sleeping Beauty piece throughout the week, which they performed to friends and family at The Marlowe.
The New Adventures team teaching and working with the young people includes Resident Dance Artist Glenn Graham, Dance Artists and Overture alumni, the New Adventures’ talent development programme aimed at dance teachers and community dance artists.
We have continued working with Professor Angela Pickard from Canterbury Christ Church University to evaluate the programme.
This Talent Development programme received average ratings of 98% for ‘Insight’ and 96% for ‘Achievement’ from participants via the survey sent using Arts Council England’s Impact and Insight Toolkit. 100% of them said they would participate again, 78% said they experienced joy, and they described their experience with the following three words – inspiring, fun and amazing.
‘Cygnet School is a unique, fully subsidised, pre-vocational dance programme for young, adolescent dancers. Community and belonging are at the heart of the programme’s provision, where each dancer is valued, supported and challenged, as an individual and a creative, as well as nurtured as a member of the whole Cygnet School. The Cygnet School team utilise their experience as professional dance artists with New Adventures and apply enabling pedagogy (the choices of methods of teaching and learning), to develop a studio environment where the cygnets experience joy, connection and creativity, and are motivated to achieve high quality artistic outcomes. The Cygnet School is making a difference to the lives of these young people inside and outside of the studio - it is opening doors to new worlds of creative possibilities and adventures.’- Cygnet School Evaluation Report
Overture
Our ninth year of the Overture programme consisted of a mix of residential and online professional development opportunities across 2023-24 for dance artists and dance teachers from a variety of genres who have been working in community or education settings for fewer than five years. The artists are chosen for their diverse range of work and experience within the community dance sector across England.
Facilitated by our Take Part Creative Director and an external facilitator, the dance artists participate in two residential weekends at the New Adventures base in Farnham Maltings, Surrey over an eight-month period, alongside digital sessions, and a visit to the current New Adventures production on tour.
Each residential consists of practical workshops, discussions, and skill-sharing as well as inspirational guest teachers from a variety of industry backgrounds. With workshops in areas such as personal development, coaching and networking, New Adventures aims to provide the cohort with a range of skills to support them in reaching the next level of their careers as community dance artists.
‘Overture has been an anchor to guide creative development and given me confidence and ownership over my creative voice.’ – Overture participant
Pro-Class
Pro Class took place two times at Trinity Laban in May 2023 and January 2024, with over 332 dancers taking part in sessions over the course of one week. These three-hour sessions consisted of technique class followed by exploring repertoire from a New Adventures production or looking at the creative process and methodology of the work. The open sessions were open to any dancers in training and graduates, and the invited sessions were held for selected dancers from conservatories and Swan School to continue their development and stay connected.
This Talent Development programme received average ratings of 94% for ‘Insight’ and 92% for ‘Achievement’ from 44 participants that took part in the survey sent using Arts Council England’s Impact and Insight Toolkit. 97% of them said they would participate again, 97% said they experienced joy, and they described their experience with the following three words – inspiring, fun and challenging.
‘An amazing chance to delve into the style and artistry behind New Adventures shows in a low-pressure supportive environment.’- Pro-Class Participant
Swan School
Twice in 2023, once in April at East London Dance and again in August at Central School of Ballet, 56 dancers were invited to take part in two four-day intensives that gave them an exclusive insight into the working practices and repertoire of New Adventures. In addition to this, we trialled our first ever Swan School 2, an opportunity tailored towards young aspiring dancers between the ages of 16-18, who are still refining their craft. This opportunity focuses on enhancing their artistry while allowing space for personal development, creativity and exploring the work of New Adventures.
Identified through our Conservatoire programme, attending shows and annual auditions, dancers are invited to Swan School because we are interested in their development and preparation for the industry. The dancers are given exclusive insight into the working practices of New Adventures and take part in panelled discussions and workshops with invited industry professionals. This residency is designed to broaden the dancers’ industry knowledge and provide them with a range of skills to support them as they embark on their artistic journeys.
The intensive culminates in a sharing to the senior members of New Adventures’ artistic team.
So far 32 previous Swan School alumni have gone on to perform with the company in various productions.
An Autumn Adventure
Over three days, 30 graduates and undergraduates of vocational dance training courses were introduced to our repertoire and invited to explore New Adventures’ trademark creative processes. The days are made up of class, repertoire, and creative tasks with emphasis on areas unique to the company which could include duet work, storytelling through movement and character work. This year also included sessions on pilates, professional working practice, an ‘Optimising Your Performance’ dance psychology workshop and an audition workshop.
This Talent Development programme received average ratings of 97% for ‘Insight’ and 97% for ‘Artistic Skills’ from 29 participants that took part in the survey sent using Arts Council England’s Impact and Insight Toolkit. 100% of them said they would participate again, 96% said they experienced joy, and they described their experience with the following three words – inspiring, fun and insightful.
‘This experience has inspired me to keep pushing myself expressively and provided me with time and space to develop physically, creatively and as a professional in the dance industry.’– An Autumn Adventure Participant
Spring Forward
Through professional guidance and bursaries, Spring Forward supports company members both on stage and offstage to learn new skills, access training, personal development or spend time in research and development for choreographic projects.
Spring Forward offers bursaries up to a maximum of £2,000 and in 2023 we had a total number of 11 successful applications. The support and training are being undertaken in a variety of different areas of the sector including:
- Acting Courses / Workshops / Masterclass
- Developing a Creative Project / Research & Development
- Floristry
- Management and Leadership Course
- Plastering Course
- Postgraduate Psychology Conversion MSC
- Professional Development as a Choreographer and Artistic Director
- Sports Therapy / Personal Training Courses
- Theatre Producing Course
‘The benefits of the Spring Forward Bursary have extended far beyond funding for my project. The support from the New Adventures team throughout the process has been incredibly valuable and has contributed greatly to my development as a creative artist.’ – Spring Forward Recipient
Company Support and Dancer Rehab
In May and October 2023, the Romeo and Juliet and Edward Scissorhands companies took part in a fitness and training week that was scheduled prior to the rehearsal period. The week included morning company class, with afternoon sessions focusing on a curated training programme that included: Safeguarding, Disability Equality, Unconscious Bias, Allyship & Anti-Racism, Trans and Non-Binary Allyship and Managing Stress and Anxiety training.
Members of both companies benefitted from sessions from a sports psychologist to assist with rehab after injuries and from both management and peer-to-peer support during long absences.
Masterclass
In July, August and December 2023, our open access 1-day Masterclasses, focused on Romeo and Juliet and Edward Scissorhands took place at Curve Theatre, Leicester, The Place and Sadler’s Wells. At each masterclass’ 30 participants had the opportunity to experience the rehearsal day of a New Adventures company dancer. The day was spent working through company class, learning repertoire and creative tasks, and culminating in watching the evening performance of the production.
For the Romeo and Juliet masterclass we received average ratings of 98% for ‘Insight’ and 89% for ‘Artistic Skills’ from 8 participants that took part in the survey sent using Arts Council England’s Impact and Insight Toolkit. 100% of them said they would participate again, 88% said they experienced joy, and they described their experience with the following three words – inspiring, fun and powerful.
For the Edward Scissorhands masterclass we received average ratings of 79% for ‘Insight’ and 81% for ‘Artistic Skills’ from 5 participants that took part in the survey sent using Arts Council England’s Impact and Insight Toolkit. 80% of them said they would participate again, 100% said they experienced joy, and they described their experience with the following three words – inspiring, fun and educational.
‘The workshop exceeded my expectations, and the environment was really friendly and comfortable to be in.’ – Romeo and Juliet Masterclass Participant
‘I learnt a lot about New Adventures and the focus on storytelling. I really enjoyed hearing more about the company’s history too.’ – Edward Scissorhands Masterclass Participant
Conservatoires
We work closely with dance schools and conservatoires to help nurture, develop, and support the next generation of talent. This work includes workshops, mock auditions, residencies, career talks and Q&As. In 2023-24, our Dance Artists delivered 17 workshops (previous year 10) and worked with young people from 14 places (previous year 15) including Performer’s College, London Contemporary Dance School, Elmhurst Ballet School, LIPA, Urdang Academy, The Dang, Royal Ballet School, Italia Conti, Royal Academy of Dance, The BRIT School, Tring, Central School of Ballet, Rambert School of Ballet & Contemporary and Northern School of Contemporary Dance.
‘It was a brilliant day! The teachers were fantastic, and I really enjoyed myself and found it helpful in terms of my next step into the industry.’ Conservatoire Participant
During 2023-24, 2,680 people took part in 147 Talent Development sessions.
Schools and Young People
New Adventures continues to commit to delivering creatively ambitious and inclusive projects in our signature dance-theatre style, working with a range of partners such as schools and colleges, local authorities, and cultural institutions.
Young People
We have continued to produce a bespoke Digital Resource Pack for all our productions. Demystifying how we create movement material and delving into our repertoire, the resource packs are full of exercises and activities adapted for a Primary School level, GCSE, A Level & BTEC students and those with a general level of dance experience.
Schools
In collaboration with Culture Box Surrey: DanceVenturers
DanceVenturers is a creative residency where we offer an immersive, task-based adventure across curriculum areas including history, science, and literacy. At Phillip Southcote School a Secondary SEND, it was led by two of our New Adventures dance artists. Each week students explored a different world through quest-based creative tasks, movement and play.
Students co-created their own story, building their own narrative using props, costume and characters encountered in the different worlds. The students shaped their story into episodes that were filmed and edited and presented back to the group as part of a final sharing.
‘It's been amazing to see the students grow in their confidence, their bravery, to see the kindness that they've worked with between each other as well has been incredible. The respect that they've shown us and all the things that we have brought in and each other, and their courage to just have a go, which is really supported by the school, it has been an amazing environment to work in.’ - Practitioner
‘The cross-curricular nature of the sessions is definitely a bonus and provides an exciting theme to effectively engage the pupils. Today they completed tasks based around ancient Egypt using movement to complete fun and collaborative tasks such as building a pyramid. They thoroughly enjoyed this task, and all the pupils took part equally, which was lovely to see’ - Teacher
Workshops
We continue to deliver workshops across the UK in schools and colleges. We tailor workshops to suit Early Years through to Key Stages 1 —5 and in addition deliver interactive careers presentations, CPD sessions and tech tasters in several of our placemaking venues.
In total, 19 residencies and workshops took place, where we explored and shared repertoire from Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, The Midnight Bell and Nutcracker!
Our relationships with our Placemaking Venues have been instrumental in the delivery of the schools tour this year, and it has been noted by the creative learning departments that we are working with that our offer is hugely beneficial in helping the venues build relationships with their local educational establishments.
Partner schools included: Barton Manor, Bradford College, Bristol Met Academy, Canterbury Academy, Carshalton High School, City College, City of Norwich School, Halesowen College, Hampton Primary School, Hedley College, Highworth Grammar School, Jane Austen Academy, King Edward School, Knights Templar School, Marlowe Performing Arts Academy, Mile Cross Primary, Newcastle College, Northern Counties School, Oasis Academy, Oasis Lords Hill School, Plympton Academy, Richard Taunton’s College, Roger Ascham Primary Schools, St Ivo Academy, Stratford-upon-Avon College, Tavistock College, Testwood School and Valley Park School
During 2023-24, 978 people took part in 39 Schools sessions many of whom had not previously attended a dance session or been to see a dance show at the theatre.
On average, participants on the Sleeping Beauty Schools Tour rated the programme 90% for ‘Enjoyment’, 82% for ‘Motivation’ and 82% for ‘Creativity’. This was in response to the post-project survey sent using Arts Council England’s Impact and Insight Toolkit.
‘The teacher was absolutely inspirational. I have been to many dance classes in the past, but this felt so different. I really connected with the music and the dance and felt comfortable to express myself.’ – Workshop Participant
Communities
In collaboration with Farnham Maltings: Next Adventures
We continued to deliver our regular monthly dance session for over 55s, hosting monthly workshops in Farnham. In an inclusive and encouraging environment, the participants learn repertoire and are led through creative and improvisational tasks. The sessions are led by dance artist Emily Piercy.
‘I love the mixture of technique, rep and creativity. It’s a good level of challenge, getting my body to move again, challenging memory with the exercises, freeing my mind to be creative. A fabulous step for into retirement that I didn’t think I could take.’ – Next Adventures Participant
During 2023-24, 274 people took part in 15 Next Adventure sessions.
Doorstep Duets
Doorstep Duets was originally created in 2021 by New Adventures and Farnham Maltings as a response to social isolation. The aim of the project is to bring dance directly into the community, providing joy, escapism and connection and make dance more accessible to everyone.
In 2023, we created a new short piece for the Doorstep Duets tour: Back to Us by New Adventures’ Resident Artist, Glenn Graham. The creation of this piece was overseen by New Adventures Associate Artistic Director, Etta Murfitt, and New Adventures Take Part Creative Director, Kerry Biggin.
In association with Farnham Maltings, we worked with several venues and arts organisations across the southeast of England to bring the pieces to their local communities, including Farnham Maltings, DanceEast Ashford Council, Kent County Council, Canterbury Council, Marlowe Theatre, Dance Woking, Future Foundry, Dover Town Council, Port of Dover, Surrey Libraries, Sussex Dance Network, Mercury Theatre and Dance Network Association.
The production offered free opportunities for people to enjoy world-class performance in their local neighbourhood, on their street, in local parks and through community-based organisations.
‘Fun, enthusiastic, great storytelling and well worth watching. Well done to everyone involved!’ – Doorstep Duets Audience Member
During 2023-24, 156 people took part in 4,000 Communities sessions. There were 74 Doorstep Duets performances, seen by 6,642 people.
Edward Scissorhands Response Piece
In partnership with Farnham Maltings and Surrey Libraries, we worked with 9 LGBTQ+ adult participants in Woking and Farnham for 2 weeks to create a 25-minute performance based on the themes in Edward Scissorhands and how they relate to the lived experience of the participants. The 2 New Adventures dance artists and all staff working on the project were from the LGBTQ+ community, creating a safe space for people to connect and create. The project culminated in 200 people watching the 3 performances which took place in Farnham Maltings, Woking Library and Buzz Theatre, Woking in February.
Comments from the audience:
‘That was absolutely amazing. I love libraries and I love dance, so this is perfection. Inclusivity, community, culture, creativity and dance – what’s not to love’.
‘The performance brought me tearful joy. Beautifully staged and choreographed, amazing dancers whose movement was authentic and touching’.
Audiences
New Adventures continues its commitment to working collaboratively with our large number of presenting venues to maintain our strong and loyal audience base and attract and develop new audiences. We continue to develop and find new ways to expand our reach through digital, broadcasting and performances in non-traditional spaces.
- 1 sensory adapted performance
- 11 BSL interpreted post-show events
- 28 audio described performances with touch tours
- 840 free tickets
In January 2024, New Adventures produced its third Sensory Adapted Performance (SAP) performance, this time of Edward Scissorhands. A Sensory Adapted Performance is an extension of a Relaxed Performance, creating a less formal and more supportive theatre environment and including some modifications to the show. SAPs are suitable for those who may be on the autism spectrum, have sensory sensitivities, epilepsy, learning disabilities and/or difficulties, experience neurodiversity, and anyone that might benefit from a more supportive environment.
There were 298 total bookers, with 107 attending for first time (36%). 25 total bookers also attended the Sleeping Beauty SAP (8%) in January of 2023.
Throughout all our productions, we offered 28 Audio Described performances and touch tours with a 50% increase in take up, advertised via a dedicated Access page on our website and that of partner venues. A Visual Guide and Sensory Introduction film of Edward Scissorhands were made available for anyone who would benefit from familiarising themselves with what to expect before attending a performance.
We continued to work with presenting venues to allocate 30 free audience development tickets at each venue, specifically ring-fenced for targeted groups including those who have not previously attended the theatre, young people, as well as participants in our engagement projects. 11 post-show events offered the general audience unique insight into the making of the show, with all these events being BSL interpreted and over 3,000 people attending.
‘I cannot thank you enough!!!! Also, massive props to Sadler’s, it is the most accessible venue I have ever been in, and the sensory adapted performance was amazing, well thought and beautiful’ Edward Scissorhands Sensory Adapted Performance Audience Member
Green Adventures
Green Adventures, the company’s environmental sustainability strand, was launched in July 2018. Since then, we have been making changes across all areas of the company and engaging with our venue partners and audiences around sustainability. New Adventures is committed to continuing this learning and the achievements it is making both internally and externally with tour venues. We continue to foster the sharing of ideas and innovation with our partner venues and the wider industry.
A team of Green Adventures representatives, drawn from a variety of roles from across New Adventures, meet quarterly to drive our continued commitment to embedding environmental best practice in our productions, touring, Take Part work, operations and office.
Company dancer and freelance Environmental Sustainability Manager, Andrew Ashton, continued his role throughout the tour of Edward Scissorhands tour whilst also performing in the production. He connected with all our partner venues around sustainability initiatives, our Green Rider and encouraged the company on tour to adopt environmentally friendly thinking both on stage and off in line with The Theatre Green Book.
We continued to provide advice and guidance to other UK based arts organisations, sharing our learning to date, as part of our Sector Leadership role around sustainable touring. We look forward to building on our achievements and setting new actions for the future optimising our unique position to guide and support tour venues, partners, and our freelance workforce.
EDI (Equity, Diversity & Inclusion)
New Adventures is committed to ensuring all our work, on and off stage, is inclusive and representative of contemporary England. We continue to create an environment which provides equality of opportunity and support for everyone to do their best work and reach their full potential.
One of our core company values is family and we have a long-held and shared commitment to supporting, developing, and investing in all members of the New Adventures company and everyone involved with our work in whatever capacity: performers, creatives, crew, staff, dance artists, audiences, participants, trustees, students and partners. We are committed to doing more by listening, learning, and delivering on making the changes we want to see in the world we live and work in.
This year we have continued to work with our sector support partners to help us achieve these aims, including Creative Access, Tonic, PiPA (Parents and Carers in the Performing Arts) and Stage Sight. Our freelancers, staff team and Trustees are actively engaged in Equity, Inclusion and Anti-Racism work. Anyone joining New Adventures is expected to support and promote our Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion policy.
Prior to both the Romeo and Juliet and Edward Scissorhands tour, the company took part in Safeguarding, Unconscious Bias, Allyship & Anti-Racism, Trans and Non-Binary Allyship and Disability Awareness training. Dance artists and members of the New Adventures office team also took part in this training, plus training in Neurodiversity.
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion is a standing item on the agenda of all Board meetings and Kenneth Olumuyiwa Tharp CBE was the EDI Trustee lead. During 2023-24 the board was 22% global majority, 66% female including chair and 22% LGBTQIA+. We continue to strive to represent society on stage and we are proud of our recruitment and annual auditions process, which include regular non-binary sessions for auditions.
Subsidised or free places are offered on all our talent development projects and we continue to review the level at which these are offered. Our Overture programme is fully subsidised for participants, with additional support offered as required to support caring or access needs.
In 2023-24 we have focused on identifying with the following protected and non-protected characteristics: race, gender, sexual orientation and differing socio-economic backgrounds.
We have also:
- Provided opportunities for people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities to participate in high quality dance experiences.
- Worked to increase the diversity of the workforce, on stage and off stage, to be as reflective of the diversity of contemporary British society as possible.
- Supported raw and emerging talent, specifically targeting under-represented groups within the creative industries, alongside strengthening, and developing our EDI work to ensure long term inclusion and change: new programmes include the Emerging Artist programme and Cygnet School.
- Collaborated with conservatoires, CAT schemes and the wider dance community to support emerging diverse talent and break down the barriers that may prevent a career in dance.
- Invested our resources to make our onstage work more accessible e.g., through regular and high-quality audio described performances and our Sensory Adapted Performance.
- Made our Take Part work more accessible and inclusive.
- Supported those with caring responsibilities to enable them to work for the company and participate in our projects.
- Toured Doorstep Duets across the Southeast to accessible locations, care homes, assisted living, community spaces and doorsteps to ensure that high quality performance can be accessed by everyone.
Our EDI working group continued to meet quarterly and provided a rolling training programme on a range of EDI topics for those working on the shows, delivering Take Part activity and the wider New Adventures family. This group now also includes Access, and we have ensured the Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Access Trustee Lead is enabled to be effective in driving this work forward.
Finance and Governance
Income
- 82% income from our productions of Sleeping Beauty, Romeo and Juliet and Edward Scissorhands and other charitable activity (including our offstage work encompassing Talent Development, Young People and Communities and REEL Adventures)
- 10% grant and donation income from Arts Council England and other funders and supporters
- 8% was received through the Theatre Tax Relief scheme
Expenditure
- 87% spent on developing, producing, and touring our shows
- 8% spent on Talent Development, Young People and Communities and REEL Adventures projects and activities
- 5% spent on support costs
Organisational Resilience and Staffing
- 90 freelancers
- 15 staff team
- 7 trustees
- 3 patrons
New Adventures is committed to continuing to strengthen our organisational resilience to enable our small team to deliver an extensive programme of performances and projects efficiently with maximum impact.
The company continued to provide training and professional development opportunities for staff, dancers and the wider New Adventures freelance workforce. The mental health and wellbeing of our workforce is supported via access to an Employee Assistance Programme, which provides a 24/7 confidential support resource and access to free counselling.
New Adventures is a significant employer of artists and arts professionals. We are committed to ensuring that we pay in-line with, or better than, recognised codes of practice and union agreements. We will never ask people to work for free for us. Any training undertaken will either be paid or form part of an education / professional development programme. Any roles and responsibilities requested from our freelancers beyond those for which they are contracted will be recognised and paid. We are open to flexible working and job shares as appropriate and continue to develop and review our policies in this area.
We place huge value on our staff and freelancers and recognise the importance of professional development. Our training budget accounts for first aid and safeguarding training as well as professional and personal development opportunities from coaching and fundraising to digital and marketing. We invest in all our staff and offer dancer development days to our company dancers and dance artists. As part of our EDI commitment, we deliver mandatory EDI/anti-racism training to everyone on joining the company or starting a new contract. All staff and freelancers working for New Adventures will be required to undertake this training on a regular basis alongside our compulsory Safeguarding training.
Funders
During 2023-24, our work was made possible by the following funders:
Arts Council England, The Dorfman Foundation, The Backstage Trust, The Noel Coward Foundation, The Band Trust, The Weatherall Foundation, The Head Family, The Theatre Development Trust and The Mackintosh Foundation.
Our Corporate partners were: Edwardian Hotels London, Fortnum & Mason, Buccellati London and BCLP
Partners
Organisations:
Farnham Maltings, Surrey County Council, Theatre Royal Plymouth, Birmingham Hippodrome, The Mayflower, Newcastle Theatre Royal, Woking Library, Buzz Theatre, Dance Woking, Mercury Theatre Colchester, Dance Network Association, DanceEast, Ashford Council, Kent County Council, Canterbury Council, Future Foundry Dover, Dover Town Council, Port of Dover, Surrey Libraries, Sussex Dance Network, Sadler’s Wells, Marlowe Theatre, LIPA, Trinity Laban, Rambert, Royal Ballet School, Elmhurst Ballet School, Performers College, Tring Park School for Performing Arts, The Place, bbodance Central School of Ballet, Danceworks, Urdang Academy, Italia Conti, Royal Academy of Dance, BRIT School, Churchill Theatre, Northern School of Contemporary Dance, BBC, Trafalgar, Illuminations, EMG, RawPR, Creative Access, Tonic, PiPA, Stage Sight, Global Butterflies, Joanna Nicolas, Applause for Thought, Talking Theatre, Canterbury Christ Church University, Curve Leicester, Magic Me.
Venues:
Sadler’s Wells, Curve Leicester, Plymouth Theatre Royal, The Lowry, Bristol Hippodrome, Birmingham Hippodrome, Milton Keynes Theatre, Liverpool Empire, The Marlowe, Wales Millennium Centre, The Mayflower, Newcastle Theatre Royal, Nottingham Theatre Royal, New Victoria Theatre Woking, The Alhambra, Norwich Theatre Royal, Festival Theatre Edinburgh, Swan Theatre High Wycombe, King’s Theatre Glasgow, Lyceum Theatre Sheffield, Churchill Theatre, Wolverhampton Grand, His Majesty’s Theatre Aberdeen.