Are You Having A Night Less Ordinary?

I was excited to discover that the Arts Council were providing free theatre tickets to under 26 year olds through the scheme A Night Less Ordinary. But as someone who eagerly signed up to this scheme, but has not yet taken full advantage of it, I can’t help but wonder whether it is actually working?

The notion of receiving something for nothing is always alluring, especially to an age group as poverty-stricken as under 26’s! But with so many choices of how to wile away the Friday night hours, are young people making the conscious effort to visit their local theatre? The people who seem to be taking advantage of this offer are those who already frequent the theatres on a regular basis. Surely this defeats the object of the free tickets, which are meant to attract young people who do not normally attend the theatre?

In order to develop a new generation of audiences, the perception of theatre needs to change, as well as the price tag. But attempts to do this have proved difficult as one of the marketing volunteers told me, whose offers to attend local schools and talk about the scheme were rebuffed.

So for now, A Night Less Ordinary is supplying theatre enthusiasts with tickets they were happy to pay for anyway. I do plan to take advantage of the offer soon, at some point, next week maybe?

For more information on A Night Less Ordinary, and the venues taking part, visit the website at http://www.anightlessordinary.org.uk/