Newsletter 2020 Supporting the Children of Actors

SUMMER Newsletter 2020 Supporting the children of actors

ACT’s A.G.M. Chair’s message is provisionally booked for It’s bothered me for a while that we trustees Friday 20 November 11 a.m. don’t have much contact with the people who help so much to keep ACT going, so I’m RADA Studio Theatre very glad of this chance to introduce myself. 16 Chenies Street, WC1E 7EX I’m an actor mostly, with some writing on the ••• side. A parent, too, of two daughters who are The trustees will decide in September whether now 25 and 23 and both starting out (and to go ahead or postpone until the Spring. stalling, of course, just now) on their own ACT’s constitution allows up to 15 months acting careers. I’m married to the actress and between AGMs, which gives us a latest date of writer, Amelia Bullmore. So, despite not coming from an arty or theatrical 20 February 2021. If you are a member and background, I’m now fairly steeped in the acting world. interested in standing for election as a Trustee, My own upbringing was in a family struggling with unemployment and please get in touch for more information. addiction in inadequate rented accommodation and I can testify to the transforming power of the arts in our lives, whether or not we make a career of them. @ActorsChildren I first got involved with ACT ten years ago when Peter Forbes, then a trustee, now a greatly-missed ex-chair, asked me to run the London Marathon for If any actor-parent is struggling please get the charity. Peter and I had met on the hit National Theatre of Scotland in touch with @ActorsChildren they really are show Black Watch, and he knew I was a runner. I’m very glad he asked wonderful x because I loved running the marathon – I highly recommend it, by the way, and ACT can get you a place – and sometime later he asked if I’d consider becoming a trustee. I’d never thought about how charities are run, or that I Would really recommend looking into this might do my bit, and the experience has been an education and a privilege if you need it! ACT supported me and my family (though painful at times). throughout my educational years, they are beyond wonderful. Plus run by some of the loveliest and Peter’s time as chair elapsed at the end of last year. I was asked to take most understanding people you could imagine. over, and here we are in these strangest of times. Robert and Lydia have provided seamless support for ACT’s families, and the trustees have adapted quickly to ACT’s (temporarily, we hope) altered role. On your behalf, we’ve ensured ACT has remained a steadfast and understanding friend to This is an extraordinary organisation! Helped beneficiaries old and new. We don’t know what’s next, be we’ll do our best us in the past. Kind, non-judgemental and a belief that Actors have a right to do their jobs and their to ensure ACT stays responsive and responsible. children be supported. Thank you for your support in the past and, please, in the future. Good Health,

Actor-Parent pals I can’t recommend ACT Paul Higgins enough. They have helped us out not just with the money side of things, but they have a wonderful way with the words that make the scary times feel We trustees would love to find out more about the members of ACT. How a little more manageable. did you get involved with ACT? What can we do to improve ACT? Could we have social events and activities for members? Do get in touch with ideas.

Thank you to the truly wonderful @ ActorsChildren. They have been supporting me for years and at the moment are making things so Follow ACT on Twitter @ActorsChildren ♥ much easier and helping to ease my anxieties. I ACT’s Trustees are Rakie Ayola, Helen Black MBE, Peter Forbes, Caroline Harker, ACT. Paul Higgins, Nicola Horton, Lloyd Hutchinson, Philip Large, Ann Queensberry, Sakuntala Ramanee, Joy Richardson, Lucy Robinson & Malcolm Sinclair. ACT’s emergency Advice and support ACT’s distinctive stance has been positive Lockdown has been complicated for some funding throughout. Working from home for separated families, and a great stress for several months, Lydia Hodges (head of families who also care for a relative with Thanks to donations from members family support) has kept families up to dementia. ACT Twitter feed has signposted and supporters ACT has been able date with the changing rules – particularly resources to protect actor-parents’ mental to pay crisis grants to families every for education, special needs support, and health: a growing concern as the impact month, in addition to specialist access to services. ACT has welcomed of the industry’s closure becomes clear, support for children where this has many new families during the crisis, and a past job translates into months of been able to continue. including mothers who have given birth in emptiness. hospital during these scary months. We were honoured to receive So many of the actor-parents have £25,000 from the Noel Coward Almost all support for children been as resourceful as ever – perhaps Foundation, reminding us of the with additional needs has stopped. the essential requirement for all actors continuing importance of Sir Noel’s Several families depend on specialist who are parents! From delivery jobs, to supermarket shelf-stacking, actors have 22 years at the helm of ACT. physiotherapy and speech therapy for their children, and worry whether this gap scoured their locality for new income. ACT is very grateful to the “Acting will impact their development. ACT has Several have established channels online for Others” umbrella group of been able to fund therapies the moment to show new monologues and works charities, which has awarded ACT they resume. featuring actors cohabiting in lockdown. Actor-parents have also been a great £40,000 from its social media Lydia has also found and shared many fundraising income. success on supermarket checkouts and in online resources for parents in lockdown, many voluntary jobs. The excellent Equity Charitable Trust including creative activities and core curriculum support. She has helped Families continually contact Lydia to generously awarded ACT £35,000 families through the extraordinary process celebrate success – whether a small from its Arts Council England of exam grading, including how to get milestone or a major event – and this funding for actors. calculated grades if you have home- underlines ACT’s emphasis on the positive. schooled your child.

On the Socials It has been very humbling to work as about the charity as a whole that were freelance Social Media Manager for ACT especially humbling and the number during the lockdown. It is always moving of actor-parents who stepped forward to see the warmth of feeling towards the on social media openly sharing their charity expressed on Twitter in comments, experience of ACT. feedback and supportive retweets, but Mufrida Hayes, for example, commented: during this period the necessity of ACT has “This is an extraordinary organisation! been so acutely felt and communicated. Helped us in the past. Kind, non- In March and April we saw a significant judgemental and a belief that actors have Action in the crisis increase in people visiting our Twitter page a right to do their jobs and their children Before the markets fell, ACT drew down - at one stage this was more than double, be supported.” When thanked by us she £150,000 from capital, on top of our with the number of people mentioning went on to say: “I mean every word. One regular £40,000 monthly drawdown and us also up by 150%. Whenever we have of my daughters’ lives was transformed by in addition to investment income. The mentioned the £300 monthly Corona- you all.” trustees’ Zoom meeting in July agreed crisis grants this has also had a big Matthew Woodyatt shared one of our unanimously that ACT must continue impact, with our most recent tweet so tweets with his own words attached in a to support our community of actors’ far receiving 20,994 “impressions” (the comment: “These people are amazing and families. We are likely to drawdown a number of times the tweet pops up in have provided the only financial help I’ve further £250,000 in the coming weeks users’ Timelines). got during this lockdown. Without them to cover more crisis grants. This is the In anticipation of this and urged on by things would be a hell of a lot worse than rainiest day in our history – a greater families, we also increased our output they are.” challenge than ACT faced in two of positive Twitter content, thinking world wars. We are very grateful our The entertainment industry is incredibly of additional ways that we could help investment manager, Sarasin, for their tough at the best of times and especially followers feel connected – not only as defensive and effective stance. hard for parents, but in this period of part of the ACT family online, but also as extreme financial uncertainty and with suddenly home-schooling parents. ACT the future of theatre under threat, your signposted and shared free activities, continued support for ACT is making a ideas and resources, with everything significant difference and this has been so from virtual comic book drawing lessons ACT Crisis Fund clearly evident on Twitter. to Scottish ceilidh dancing tutorials! We If you are one of the lucky few publicised free online family events, and Thank you from a very humbled Social with income, please support actors’ gave links to support available beyond Media Manager. families at this appalling time. ACT’s reach and expertise. Sarah Winter www.actorschildren.org/support-us The positive feedback we received has been wonderful, but it was the comments of course obviously had the advantage accommodate safety requirements and here. Creatives are often against this but I the change of season. Companies are From the Trustees suspect from now on agreement to allow currently exploring the idea of 'production theatre work to be professionally filmed bubbles' which would result in cast and will be non-negotiable. Some companies crew living together for the duration of It seems like another like the Sherman Theatre in Cardiff and the shoot and possibly 2 weeks before. No life ago that my two National Theatre of Wales with no usable trips home, so not great news for parents daughters, my husband archive, recognised the opportunity and carers. With the continuing dramas and I were doing Joe and commissioned new monologues or now back on set it'll be interesting to learn Wicks work-outs every remounted existing ones. Actors were exactly what the challenges of socially morning, rehearsing Tik then hired to rehearse and record in the distanced filming are. comfort of their own home, garden or Tok dances every afternoon and watching We're all aware that tough decisions even car. The first of these contracts went Netflix every evening. Yet that was the have had to be made but the temporary out just four weeks after Lockdown began. strange reality of our Lockdown, as if we changes to the Commercial Theatre More online monologues are following were playing the role of a family living on Agreement (CTA) will be hugely with a progression to conversational plays a boat miles out at sea. challenging for actors, particularly the which will be interesting (as any of you parents and carers amongst us. It will As Lockdown loosens, the Arts world who've tried to record a self-tape whilst be a really tight balancing act between contemplates how much of the trying to keep your family quiet and out of commercial theatre being viable and government’s ‘better late than never’ bail the room will appreciate). out each organisation will get and whether actors being treated fairly, but at present the terms ‘socially distanced’ and ‘profit Smaller companies like The Kiln and The actors look set to lose out. Bush in London put their energy into margin’ can ever seriously appear in the It seems some unscrupulous agents have continuing their community programmes same business model. Every week we hear used Lockdown as an excuse to hold onto online and occasionally bringing their more sad and disturbing news about jobs their clients’ fees for an illegally long time. creative families together via mammoth at risk due to theatre redundancy plans. If you've found this to be the case please Zoom conferences. These have been a contact Equity. Your agent is legally obliged Initially theatre's dazed and confused forum for explaining the situation, sharing to forward fees to you within 10 days. response to Lockdown was to continue constructive ideas for post-Lockdown posting scheduled press releases about theatre, and for tears. It'll be interesting to Finally, thank you Robert for asking me national tours being mounted and award- see which companies have engaged with to write this little Lockdown roundup and winning actors going into the West End. their freelance collaborators in this way for steering ACT so brilliantly through Once the reality kicked in that no tickets and which have not. this storm. Thank you too, Lydia, for could be sold and much of what had your wisdom and for sparing me some Meanwhile Equity has been in talks with been sold would need to be refunded, of your time, arming Adam and I with managers to get all artists on existing companies sprang into action and began the knowledge to secure our daughter’s TV contracts a payment of £105 a week turning to online streaming as a way of Education Plan. It’s a privilege to be part of plus an offer of twice their engagement staying in the public consciousness and the ACT crew. raising cash via viewer donations. Theatres fee. Productions that were ready to shoot who film their productions as a matter pre-Lockdown have rewritten scripts to Rakie Ayola (ACT trustee)

As I write this I’m as a gardener until (hopefully) acting I got involved with looking over my beautiful resumes. ACT when it was TACT. allotment which has been Alister Cameron was a I am honoured to be part of ACT and my sanity and sanctuary great friend of mine and am humbled by the generosity of its during this time. I am so he knew we were in a donors. It is a literal lifeline for families lucky and feel desperately financial mess and that and with Robert and Lydia at the helm sad for those of us who have no outdoor our son Luke was pursuing a career in whose knowledge and dedication space to escape to. My Danish granny badminton and was competing across knows no bounds it feels like we are all taught me how to grow veg and died the country and attempting to get his part of one big, beautiful loving family. recently at the age of 104! She is always ranking up worldwide. TACT enabled Luke whispering in my ear telling me where and This crisis will pass and we actors to compete across the country and get his when to plant. are known for our resilience and ranking up worldwide. Eventually he got determination. As Oscar Wilde put it, his first England cap playing a world series However, home life has been less “I regard the theatre as the greatest of in Peru: without TACT this would not have peaceful. I have two teenage boys who all art forms, the most immediate way been possible. need exercising! Home schooling has in which a human being can share with been a challenge to say the least and So I found ACT as an actor-parent in need! another the sense of what it is to be a for the sake of everyone’s emotional I know what wonders ACT can do and how human being.” well-being I’ve taken a backseat. This it lifts a family’s spirit so I am honoured to strategy seemed to be working as I Connie Hyde (ACT trustee) be involved helping in any way I can. received an email from school declaring Buffy Davis (ACT trustee) “OUTSTANDING WORK”… unfortunately it was the other meaning of outstanding! But, joking aside, I do worry about what impact this will have on their future. My elder son takes GCSEs next year and it seems the gap between the haves and the have-nots will be irretrievably widened. My husband is not an actor and thankfully still has a job. I am trying to find work As I write this we are we’re not glittering away. I know no one 9, or it could 11, weeks wants to see a miserable Jester or a into lockdown. I know depressed Mickey Mouse in Disneyland, it’s Wednesday because having a fag behind the shed. No one’s I had our ACT Trustees’ very interested in the ‘tears of clowns.’ It monthly zoom meeting worries me that while we’re not around, yesterday. doing our thing, we might be forgotten for a bit too long. We will be missed, We’re both actors and our two girls and we will emerge in some form, but aged 19 and 24, are a student and a meanwhile what will we all get up to, set designer. Along with a lot of people, and how on earth will we make our each of our work worlds has suddenly living? stopped spinning. We’ve been pouring our creativity into every corner of the Theatre has the ability to boost the Another successful house- the small garden is blooming, nation’s spirits: we need it. I hope we year we’ve got to know the birds and the frogs, will be hugely funded, and that we will we’ve painted things, darned anything emerge stronger and more accessible In the year to 31 March 2020, ACT has and everything, cleared the shed to make than ever. funded 584 children and young people, a workspace - rather wishful thinking- from 390 families, with a total of £738,626. I have loved being a Trustee of ACT and we’ve tried to get fitter, but mainly (We’ve grown since last year’s 492 young during this time, and receiving fantastic got fatter. All the while I think we’ve people in 354 families, totalling £726,445.) Friday emails of feedback from the been thinking long and hard about our Thank you for all your support and for families. Keep well everyone. I’m off to life choices, and how we’re going to be helping us reach actors’ families: it really is walk the dog again- she’s a rescue collie improved versions of ourselves when we working. and has never been happier, her flock is surface. But it’s tricky, because we can’t gathered! The biggest area of support was activities begin to imagine what our work future and clubs (£219,000) where parents looks like. Caroline Harker (ACT trustee) struggle to provide continuity for their Working in the Theatre, we’re always children while following actors’ precarious in and out of work, but there’s always careers. The second largest area was been the comforting flicker of our Agents childcare (£142,000) where ACT’s innovative looking out for us, and the whirr of the I will never forget grants have given children stability and Industry ticking along. And hope! Work’s the reassurance security while enabling parents to take not only been about earning, its been and warmth from acting work in unsocial hours and at short about being part of society, practising Robert Ashby when notice. ACT also helped actors on tour travel the thing we do, and on a family level I applied as an ACT home more often to see their families and bringing energy and fun into the house. beneficiary 15 years not miss special events in their children’s In increasingly conventional times we ago. It was a challenging time, and he lives. lead unconventional lives, our earnings was completely non-judgmental, and Other large areas of funding include state are sporadic but we have regular financial genuinely interested in the children. school costs (trips, lunches, uniform) and deadlines, and no compassionate bank Support with uniform and music lessons specialist assessment, therapy and support manager to chat to these days. It’s a high made such a difference. for children with additional needs. wire juggling act, and we hold our breath I feel humbled, and so lucky to now be a lot. ACT catches so many families who a trustee, and over the last eighteen lose their footing... thank goodness. months I have been learning from the I’ve recently realised how much our other lovely, experienced trustees. Industry means to me. I’ve acted for 30 I’ve been amazed at Lydia, who works years, I went into the family business, I tirelessly with families, and is a mine suppose. I’ve taken it a bit for granted, of information. I can see that I’ve so well, who could have foreseen this -but much more to learn, but the team has now it’s under threat, I really care about encouraged me to recognise the unique it, it’s survival, its people, it’s buildings, it’s perspective of being an ex-beneficiary. tradition and its future. I have yet to meet (or zoom) with you, Actors are often written off in the media our members! It would be valuable to as rich luvvies who chose showing off hear your thoughts on this very special as a career. We can be seen as overly charity and our future. expressive types who tinker around on the edge of society with silken voices and Sakuntala Ramanee (ACT trustee) enormous egos. The truth is very different. I hope that Society and Government is open hearted towards the downsides of theatre and theatre people now that

Please get in touch: [email protected] Just wanted to say a huge thanks. ACT have 020 7636 7868 | @actorschildren been so amazingly helpful to a huge number of