NEWS: Up 'Ere launch new initiative: The Breakfast Club.

Up ‘Ere Productions launch new initiative 
THE BREAKFAST CLUB

Aiming to #KeepTheatreAlive by bringing artists together online, enabling creatives to keep motivated during lockdown and raise funds for our beloved Northern theatre scene

In four weeks we have facilitated over 40 table reads engaging more than 140 actors, performed our first #WeeklyWatch to a global audience which raised £400+ for Oldham Coliseum, hosted conversations with Roy Alexander Weise MBE (Joint AD Royal Exchange) and Luke Barnes (Playwright & Actor) and have just smashed the £1000 mark to #KeepTheatreAlive up ‘ere.

Up ‘Ere Productions is an up and coming Salford based production company, founded by local born actor, writer and director John O’Neill in early 2019. It works with local artists and champions the unheard voices within the creative community of Greater Manchester. Up ‘Ere has had work commissioned by The Home Office, GMCA (Greater Manchester Combined Authority), BBC, Greater Manchester Police and has several projects in the pipeline, collaborating with other northern arts organisations. The company gives local writers and upcoming artists a platform to allow their voices to be heard, curating quarterly new writing scratch nights at Salford Arts Theatre with January selling out both nights!

During a conversation about lockdown stifling creativity with fellow Salford born actor and creative, Stacey Harcourt (Doctors (BBC), Emmerdale (ITV), Kayleigh’s Love Story), O’Neill created The Breakfast Club. Each day at 11am Up ‘Ere bring together the writer and actors via Zoom to read and discuss the play. O’Neill explains “Each morning we grab a brew and read a new play from the comfort of our own couch. Actors can sign up to join us at The Breakfast Club by filling in a short e-form which can be found on all of our socials. I think it is really important to give everyone an opportunity to get involved with the Club and want to stay away from it feeling competitive, elitist and intimidating. All castings are done blind - we don’t ask for your spotlight or headshots until we offer you a role to read! It’s been really heartwarming to know that our club have enjoyed this approach, allowing actors to read roles they may not have usually been seen for.”

To open it up further #WeeklyWatch was created to allow audiences to engage with the readings. Each Sunday at 4pm a reading is live streamed to a global audience. The first #WeeklyWatch premiered on Sunday 10th May which was ‘Sleeping With The Dead’ by New York based playwright Bob Barnett which was watched live by an audience of 50+ people from both sides of the pond. In no time at all, Salford’s Breakfast Club had gone global. The #WeeklyWatch engages a full creative team including writer, actors, director and technical assistant and is rehearsed via Zoom. These public performances are used to raise money on a pay what you can basis through a Just Giving page with every penny being donated to local theatres and arts organisations. . The second #WeeklyWatch (Singin’ for Engerland by Benjamin Peel) raised over £400 which has been donated to the Oldham Coliseum. Artistic Director of Oldham Coliseum, Christopher Lawson tweeted: “Caught the great Singin’ for Engerland, so glad I did. Brilliantly executed, a huge well done to all involved. A big thank you on behalf of Oldham Coliseum to Up ‘Ere.”

Up ‘Ere have recently released a programme of Q&A’s with industry leading artists and professionals which include; Roy Alexander Weise MBE (Joint Artistic Director Royal Exchange Theatre), Hope Mill Theatre (Joe Houston, Will Whelton and Hannah Ellis-Ryan), Luke Barnes (Writer and Actor), Mary Burch (Industry Minds), 53two (Simon Naylor and Alexandra Maxwell), Jude Christian (Associate Director HOME), James Bierman (CEO & Producer Empie Street Productions), Joi Rouncefield (Agent), Matthew Xia (Director) & Olivier Award Winning Director David Thacker. TheQ&A’s will enable creatives from across the globe to have their questions answered by some of the best that the Northern theatre scene has to offer. These sessions have a suggested minimum donation of £2.50. The company has now raised over £1000 and will continue to endeavour to #KeepTheatreAlive up ‘ere.