26 May Guest Blog | Emma Dennis-Edwards, Actor & Theatremaker
Our new grants and mentoring scheme, KSF Artists of Choice, is open for applications from 1 – 29 May to UK and US artists across the disciplines of dance, theatre, musical theatre, music and film. Over the next few weeks, we will post guest blogs from some of our previous grant winners about how they used and were impacted by their KSF grant.
Name | Emma Dennis Edwards
Project | Upper Cut, The Cut Collective
Year Awarded KSF Grant | 2013
I was awarded a KSF Grant for a Research and Development period and rehearsed reading at the TARA Arts of a play called Upper Cut. The play was conceived by myself and the director (Lotte Wakeham) as we wanted to explore Black political British history from a female perspective, we were able to commission an award winning playwright Juliet Gilkes Romero to write the play. As well as the Research and Development myself Lotte and Juliet used the remainder of the funding to set up our theatre company The Cut Collective. Cut Collective exists to tell the stories of marginalised voices from a female perspective and we aim to create provocative, political work.
The KSF grant helped me personally as it meant I was able to realise my dream of setting up my own theatre company and it also meant I was able to employ professional artists to work on the play. As a direct result of the rehearsed reading we met our producer who approached venues with the draft of Upper Cut that went on to be produced at the Southwark Playhouse.
Upper Cut opened in January this year and went on to have a 3-week run at the Southwark Playhouse; Oberon also published the script. We are hoping to tour the production in 2016 and to continue working on a developing another script.
People should apply for the KSF Artists’ of Choice because as artists we have to keep creating. The award offers an opportunity to really develop and grow as an artist. Without the KSF funding we would not have been able to develop the play to such a high standard working with top theatre practitioners. Unlike other funding grants, you don’t need to be a company, or a charity or have a fully developed business plan. Instead you just need a brilliant idea and the skills and the team to execute the plan.
This is truly an amazing opportunity and has completely changed my career and mind set. Thank you so much for all of your support KSF!
Read more about Upper Cut here