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Will Green
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Will Green
WELCOME
We are delighted to present our new brochure for 2025 and hope that you enjoy having a closer look at the wide-ranging work we do with and for schools, colleges and education providers. At our heart we believe in the power that theatre has to change lives and our ethos is to build meaningful opportunities and experiences for everyone who we interact with.
Last year our education programme reached thousands of young people and adult learning participants. Our original school’s production toured throughout Essex promoting new writing from one of our Mercury Playwrights and tackled numeracy skills within KS2. Our annual Dramafest saw hundreds of talented young people take to the main stage and perform over three nights and our Industry days and schools workshops opened the doors to professional theatre for schools across Essex.
This year you will find just as many chances to get your learners involved. From backstage tours to standing in the spotlight, there really is something for everyone and if you can’t find what you are looking for then please get in touch as we are more than happy to create a bespoke workshop or experience that works for you and your establishment.
All details are correct as of January 2025, but please do check our website for up-to-date information, as we continue to expand and develop our offer. You can also sign up to our Schools Newsletter for automatic news and information direct to your inbox. We are also proud to announce the relaunch of Mercury Teachers Network. Details of how to join MTN can be found in the latter pages of this brochure and we would love for you to join this new and exciting community of teachers and practitioners with its wide-ranging benefits and chances to network and build your skills. We look forward to working with you.
Lisa Warnock Schools Producer
taking.part@mercurytheatre.co.uk
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AnAudienceWith...
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Focus:Literacy
For:Pre-schoolandEYFS
Cost:£150+VAT
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Pamela Raith
by Will Green
PRIMARY
Our offer for Primary aged children is designed to promote a life long love of theatre and the arts. Our friendly and knowledgeable box office team are always happy to advise schools and teachers on booking school trips to one of our family friendly productions and we have an extensive team of experienced creative practitioners ready to deliver a workshop or project designed just for you and your educational setting.
SECONDARY
We are passionate about continuing to promote the magic of theatre as children progress into Secondary education. In addition to the above, we also have an extensive offer to promote a love of learning in a range of subjects, using the performing arts as a powerful tool to develop transferable skills that shape wellrounded learners and young adults. We are also able to deliver workshops and projects focused on performing arts subjects at examination level or around one of our productions. More information can be found in this brochure or by visiting our website.
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Here are some of our most popular workshops. Get in touch to find out more, make a booking or ask a question. Have an idea for a workshop? Let us know. We love a creative challenge!
Shakespeare Workshops
Our playful Shakespeare Workshop is designed to encourage young people to be excited by Shakespeare’s stories.
This lively session will break down some of the barriers around the language and relate it to the universal human condition. We explore insults, heartbreak, deceit, death and disguise as students explore the world and characters from the greatest playwright of all time!
Make sense of these classic plays in a fun, supportive and inclusive environment. Who knows there might also be a wig or two!
Let us know if you are studying a particular text and we can design the workshop to fit this.
Focus: Literacy and Drama
For: KS3 & KS4
Cost: £150+VAT for up to 30 students
Commedia Dell‘arte
Commedia started in 16th Century Venice, but its characters and style are easily recognisable in TV and film today. We offer one-off two hour workshops and 6 week projects, exploring the history of the form, the “commedia family” and their physicality and characteristics. Working with a trained Commedia practitioner, students will develop scenes and practice clowning and slapstick.
Focus: English, Storytelling and Drama
For: KS1 to KS4
Cost: 1 week - £150+VAT for up to 30 students
6 weeks - £610+VAT for up to 30 students
Play in a Day
Become a Playmaker for the day and treat your school to a unique theatre experience based on a story of your choosing.
Led by a Mercury teaching artist, this workshop gives students a first-hand experience of a rehearsal and performance process packed into one fun filled day!
Utilising drama games and activities that introduce your students to tried and tested storytelling techniques, the group will create an entire play, from concept to performance.
Each pupil will get a speaking part as a character or narrator and all participants will be actively involved in the creation of the story.
Play in a day is a workshop and performance opportunity for students from KS1 to KS3 and we are happy to tailor the story to fit you your curriculum needs.
Focus: English, Storytelling and Literacy
For: KS1 to KS3
Cost: £350+VAT for up to 30 students
An Audience With...
Characters in the classroom!
A historical or fictional character will come in and lead a one hour workshop. We are constantly looking to expand this offer, so if there is a character you would like your students to meet, please do get in touch. In the meantime, we currently offer audiences with: Boudica, Emily Wilding Davison (Suffragette), a WW1 Soldier and Charles Dickens.
Focus: English, Storytelling and Literacy
For: KS1 to KS3
Cost: £200+VAT for up to 30 students
£250+VAT for bespoke sessions with a new character
Further and Higher Education
If you teach in a Further or Higher education setting and would like a workshop or theatre experience we invite you to get in touch so that we can discuss your needs in more detail. All of our Secondary school workshops can also be adapted for FE and HE settings.
You may also find our new Mercury Teachers Network a useful way to stay connected with other teachers, practitioners and lecturers as well as accessing press night tickets, pre and post show discussion events and CPD workshops that will directly enrich your own delivery and teaching practice. To find out more please get in touch or click HERE to join.
Work Experience
We are proud to offer work experience placements at the Mercury Theatre as part of our ongoing commitment to supporting and nurturing young people. We are able to offer placements of 1 week to KS4 and 5 learners in full time education. During the week we seek to offer a range of experiences to our placements and give them a taste of what working in a busy theatre is really like. If you are KS5 or above and would like to discuss a longer placement within a certain department to fulfil the requirements of a course or University assignment then please get in touch. Please note; we receive lots of request for work experience placements and can only allocate these on a first come first serve basis. We are also a working theatre and as such, work experience placements are not possible during very busy periods or when the theatre is dark/closed.
To find out more please email; work.experience@mercurytheatre.co.uk
GCSE, BTEC AND A-LEVEL ENRICHMENT
Physical Theatre, KS4 & KS5
Led by an experienced industry artist, this full day physical theatre workshop is designed for GCSE, A Level, IB and BTEC teachers. Focusing on the key elements of physical theatre, teachers are encouraged to engage in contact improvisation, biomechanics, Laban and contemporary exercises.
Exploring these elements will inspire teachers and enable them to facilitate devised physical theatre work for students in performances studies.
Devising Theatre, KS4 & KS5
With a starting point exploring structure, style and staging, this two-hour workshop will provide a rich variety of tools for teachers to use with in the classroom. Working with one of our Mercury teaching artists, you will develop your skills and increase your confidence in devising theatre with your students.
Costs
Tailored session, delivered in school to multiple staff (max 20): £200+VAT Open CPD event at the Mercury Theatre: £30+VAT per teacher
Bespoke Offer
If there is another area of theatre or literacy that your staff would benefit from training in, please contact us to discuss developing a bespoke offer.
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Will Green
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Careers in the Theatre
This half day visit to the theatre gives students the opportunity to hear from a range of creative professionals about their jobs and to be inspired to pursue a future in the creative industries.
This includes a backstage tour of the theatre, a practical workshop and an interactive Q&A with the Mercury team.
Our Industry Day provides a unique insight into careers in the theatre and the wider creative and cultural sector, it’s also a lot of fun!
Focus: Careers/Enrichment
For: KS1 to KS5
Cost: £200+VAT for up to 30 students
CLUBS AND PROJECTS
Designed with you. Delivered for you.
Cant see what you are looking for here? Get in touch and tell us more - we would love to hear from you!
After School Clubs
A 6-12-week project for a class sized group to focus on our of our performing arts topics, including theatre, dance, singing, costume design or podcasting & digital recording
This bespoke series, led by industry professionals, offers participating young people the opportunity to learn new skills, explore creative expression, improve their communication and negotiating skills and work together as a team.
We encourage the development of vocabulary, speaking & listening, presentation skills, all through self-expression and imaginative play. The project culminates in a sharing of ideas or a short performance at school for family and friends.
Our After School clubs can be offered as an ongoing after school club for your students. We can help you address a particular issue in your school or develop something for an end of term sharing on a particular topic or theme.
Ideal for young people who wouldn’t necessarily be able to attend creative provision outside of school.
For: KS1-KS4
Capacity: 30 (we recommend no more than two consecutive year groups in any one club.)
Cost: Varies depending on content, number of weeks etc. Please contact us for more details.
Literacy Through Drama
Bring your set text to life through creative drama!
Our Literacy Through Drama workshop offers a unique and sustained opportunity to bring literature to life for your English students in an exciting and creative way. Through a series of inventive once a week workshops led by a Mercury teaching artist, this workshop introduces students to drama techniques that support literacy skills and encourage creative learning.
Collaborating closely with teachers, our creative programme is designed to embed creative learning throughout the term. Alongside drama and literacy skills pupils will develop their communication, co-operation and confidence, supporting wider learning.
Focus: English and History
For: KS1 to KS4
Cost: 6 weeks - £610+VAT for up to 30 students 12 weeks - £1220+VAT for up to 30 students
Play in a Week
Working with a Mercury teaching artist, this project gives students a first-hand experience of a rehearsal and performance process. Utilising drama games and activities that introduce your students to tried and tested storytelling techniques, the group will create an entire play, from concept to performance.
Each pupil will get a speaking part as a character or narrator and all participants will be actively involved in the creation of the story. We are happy to tailor the story to fit you your curriculum needs.
Focus: Literacy and Drama
For: KS1 to KS4
Cost: Varies depending on content, hours per session etc. Please contact us for more details.
Holiday Clubs
Holiday Clubs will be advertised via our Schools newsletter and don't forget to follow our social media pages to keep up to date with our latest news. We are proud to offer a range of fully inclusive holiday clubs and theatre camps during School holidays. These holiday clubs are sometimes fully funded for children on free school meals. Please check our website or contact us to join the newsletter.
The Mercury Theatre has an inclusive ethos which is embedded within all of our work including our Education work. All of our workshops and practitioners use inclusive principles to ensure a positive and enjoyable experience for all. As a theatre we are proud to have accessible facilities throughout the building. We also work alongside national companies such as StageText and Graeae who help us to make sure our offer is a truly inclusive one.
If you book a workshop, experience, trip or project with us we promise that we will do our best to make sure every aspect of your experience with us is truly inclusive. If you feel we could do better we are more than happy to welcome feedback and keep the conversation going about how we can do better.
SEND Holiday Club
Our regular holiday clubs for children and young people with SEND focus on a theme working with specialist practitioners. Each participant has the chance to earn an Arts Award certificate through taking part in a range of performing arts activities over three days. To find out more email taking.part@mercurytheatre.co.uk
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RELAXED PERFORMANCES
We offer relaxed performances for many of our shows. These include a pre show talk, dimmed lights, reduced sound and an open house to leave if you need to.
If you would like to find out more about one of our shows before you come to the theatre just give our box office a call or pop in and they will be happy to arrange for a social story to be sent straight to your inbox. Alternatively, please email taking.part@mercurytheatre.co.uk to request one.
We also have a general social story for those who would like to find out more about visiting the Mercury in advance and what to expect. Please get in touch to request your copy of you would like one.
You can find more information about our on-site facilities and accessible performances on our website or by clicking HERE.
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Become an Education partner with the Mercury and let us design a year of performing arts activity at a discounted rate!
If you are looking at booking several workshops or projects with us you might be interested in becoming a Mercury Partner School or College. Our Education Partners get a 10% discount when booking 5 or more activities and can also use the Mercury logo on their website for the duration of their partnership. In addition to the above, the lead teacher from any partner institution will also attract a free membership to be part of our Mercury Teachers Network giving them access to even more resources and benefits.
At present we have 2 education partnerships with local schools and colleges as follows;
Colchester Preparatory and High School (A Cognita School)
Lexden Primary School and Unit for Hearing Impaired Pupils
To find out more please get in touch HERE.
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Will Green
by Lucy Taylor
Mercury Teachers Network; Supporting you throughout the year.
20% discount for all CPD workshops.
20% off Industry Day workshops for your school.
Access to exclusive Networking Events.
Members only termly e-newsletter. Invitations to programme launches.
Complimentary tickets to Mercury production press nights.
Cost: £25 per teacher . See website for student teacher rates.
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Production support for Schools
We have a bank of excellent practitioners that includes Industry professionals and trained teachers on hand to help with your next School production. We can help with the following areas;
Dance and movement direction
Acting skills and direction
Musical direction
Vocal work
Technical theatre support
If this sounds like something you might be interested in then please get in touch so that we can put together a support package for you.
Availability; year round/subject to practitioner availability. For; KS3 upwards
Cost; please contact us for further details so we can provide a quote.
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Will Green
USEFUL INFORMATION Resources
Education Packs
Throughout the year we will provide education packs alongside Mercury Productions. These will include detailed character breakdowns, show synopsis, historical relevance, curriculum links and more. With every school booking, you will be provided with a PDF copy of our education pack for free.
If you are not planning to attend a production but would like to purchase a resource pack then please get in touch. Resource packs will be priced according to depth of content and usually ranging between £25-£50+VAT.
Hire our Spaces
We have a fully-accessible rehearsal room, dance studio and creative learning space that can accommodate a large number of activities from dance classes, group rehearsals and workshops. Our 98 seat Studio is an intimate space for small scale school productions, while our 530 seat Theatre is perfect for largescale, end of-term productions.
If you would like to enquire about booking our spaces then please email; hires@mercurytheatre.co.uk
Lisa Warnock, Schools Producer taking.part@mercurytheatre.co.uk 01206 577006 (Ext 228)
Website
mercurytheatre.co.uk/taking-part/education
hires@mercurytheatre.co.uk
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