Careers In Theatre

Susan Elkin Pays a Visit to Half Moon Theatre to Learn How They Are Enthusing Pupils to Look at Possible Careers in the Theatre.

Half Moon Young People’s Theatre in Limehouse has been quietly providing productions and training for children and young people since 1972. That’s 44 years and yet there are still people who don’t seem to think beyond Unicorn and Polka theatres when it comes to dedicated venues for children in London.

Housed in a former town hall in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets – and recently refurbished so that it looks as smart and businesslike as it is – Half Moon Theatre is a very busy place. There are, for example 38 performances by 15 different companies in the thirteen weeks from this month to April. The building includes a fine studio-style performance space and, since the refurbishment, lots of workshops and teaching spaces especially in the “undercroft” or basement.

I was there recently to sit in on part of the company’s annual project: Careers in Theatre. Yes, we need to make enthusiastic teenagers aware that there are lots of jobs in theatre apart from performing on stage and this is Half Moon’s contribution to an aspect of careers education which gets nothing like enough attention.