Dan King has been announced as our new Executive Director. He will join founder and Artistic Director Nancy Hirst in leading Icon.
Daniel previously worked at international dance house Sadler’s Wells leading the marketing for their Producing and Touring department, National Youth Dance Company and Breakin’ Convention.
Before that, he was interim Executive Director at Camden People’s Theatre, and between 2015-18 ran a marketing and communications project management business with clients including Roundhouse, Donmar Warehouse, Dance to Health, Battersea Arts Centre, Soho …

“We too can repair our cracks with gold and glow again. Crazed by life and more beautiful than before” – Scott Hastie

Kintsugi is the Japanese art form of repairing something broken with liquid gold. This is done because it is believed that in highlighting the objects flaws it showcases its history and in turn it makes the object more beautiful than it ever was before.
After almost a year of confusion and uncertainty, although living in a digital age, as humans …

Who would have thought that I’d be entering my final year of Drama school, during a global pandemic? This is the year of dissertations, making decisions and enjoying the last year of University before stepping out into the real world. However this year, there is also the big issue of a Pandemic, wearing a mask 24/7 and having Zoom lectures whilst still in your pyjamas.
Despite successfully completing an online Community project with a village in South Africa as part of …

Meet Lily, Lead Facilitator Theatre31

As a young child I was known to do, what we called, ‘the bum show’ after my evening bath. This is my earliest memory of performing and such mature behaviour has been thematic of my life ever since! Had I not developed this silliness through involvement with the arts since being that little two-year-old terror, I imagine my life would be very, VERY different…
From attending youth theatres and dance classes, to joining my Nan’s …

Meet James, Lead Facilitator Theatre31
 
Theatre is a way life!
Throughout breakups, personal losses, battles with my own mental health and all the other things life has thrown at me whilst growing up, theatre has always been the constant safe space.
I believe wholeheartedly that being involved with drama, performance and cultural activities is essential to a young person’s development. Being involved with the arts taught me to be confident but not cocky; to be passionate, punctual, and perceptive. It has given me …

Posted by Will, aged 14, about his work experience day with us in rehearsals for our project ‘Cuckoo’, exploring county lines drugs dealing

In the United Kingdom, the most commonly sought out treatment for drug addiction is centred around heroin, a shocking 42% of all cases, which is nearly the same for cannabis, cocaine and amphetamine users combined (a respective 25, 15, and 2 percent each). Despite this, the number of overall heroin users and overdoses from heroin has dramatically increased …

When I heard about the upcoming work experience at my school, I wasn’t too sure what I wanted to do. I want to become an actor so I was very keen to go a theatre company or somewhere linked to theatre or film and movies. I also didn’t want to travel too far either to get there. Truth be told my Mum did help me with trying to find different companies as i found finding somewhere harder than I’d hoped. …

I had no rhyme or reason to believe Icon Theatre were different from any other theatre company present in the Medway Area. Situated in the not-so-cosy area next to the Chatham high street, I was introduced to the warm and inviting persona of Amy Riley and her Youth Theatre group at the Brook theatre (a building at which, until that point, I had never even heard of) and the idea of being part of a collective company.

“£1 pound …

For the Easter half-term I had been given the opportunity to work with  Amy with ICON Theatre’s Play in a Week.  Having previously worked with ICON Youth Theatre I was excited to work on a new project with some familiar faces as well as some that were new. Play in a week consisted of two, three hour workshops working with two groups of young performers aged 7-11 and  12-16.

Having been a part of Play in a Week I can …

Cabbage Island was a local history project that explored the history and area of Luton. This resulted in a touring exhibition which started at the All Saint’s Community Centre, then went to Chatham library, before eventually finishing at Luton library, and proved to be very popular. I was fortunate enough to volunteer on this project. I helped out with researching and putting the exhibition together, before attending the exhibition events and talking to local people who came to see it.

Before …

Hello! Welcome to our very first ICON Theatre blog post. This is where you can find out about all the new things we are doing, meet members of the team and the ICON Theatre community, as well as stay updated on all the exciting stuff our Youth Theatre and Pulse Project members are getting up to.

We want to get more people taking part and experiencing
theatre in Medway, whether that’s through performing, writing, telling your
story or just going to see something …