{"id":40940,"date":"2017-12-11T11:22:06","date_gmt":"2017-12-11T11:22:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jomec.co.uk\/altcardiff\/?p=40940"},"modified":"2017-12-11T11:22:06","modified_gmt":"2017-12-11T11:22:06","slug":"depth-theatres-reclaimed-stories","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/altcardiff\/2017\/12\/11\/depth-theatres-reclaimed-stories\/","title":{"rendered":"In depth: Theatre\u2019s reclaimed stories"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cWorking class\u201d and \u201ctheatre\u201d aren\u2019t often paired. But are artists able to break through the class ceiling and create work that reflects them?<\/b><\/h2>\n
\"steelworker

On set Sam Coombes paces, going over his lines. He has only ever been in pantomimes put on by his local rugby club, and this is his first professional gig. But he isn\u2019t behind a velvet curtain clutching a skull, and there are no exclamations of \u201cAlas, poor Yorick!\u201d here. <\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s September, and an empty warehouse on the site of the old Byass tin works has been transformed to resemble steelworks. Sam\u2019s costume of blue overalls is almost identical to what he wears daily\u2014he\u2019s a steelworker, 29, from Taibach. \u201cIt really felt like I was in work,\u201d he laughs, when recalling the set. \u201cDamp, cold, smelly, dirty, with a healthy population of rats!\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

The play was We’re Still Here, a production by the Common Wealth Theatre and National Theatre Wales. Performed in Newport, it told the story of the Save Our Steel Campaign of 2015-16. <\/span><\/p>\n

Working class culture, voices, identities, lives: all were celebrated in the production.<\/span><\/p>\n

In South Wales and beyond, working class people are not only sharing their experiences of the arts, but are increasingly able to shape that world into something more familiar thanks to companies like Common Wealth Theatre. The company aims to show that ordinariness is beautiful and<\/span>\u00a0to elevate working class culture into the realm of art.<\/span><\/p>\n

But this can only happen if working class people are able to get involved. <\/span><\/p>\n

Platforms slowly emerge<\/b><\/p>\n

Rhiannon White, 33, hails from St. Mellons, a large council estate, and co-founded Common Wealth Theatre. The company unofficially started in 2008 when the current team had just left university and were squatting in \u201clarge, empty buildings,\u201d penniless and creating theatre for \u201cpeople who don\u2019t usually think it is for them.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

They were fearless, Rhiannon says, and the Cardiff and Bradford based company was formally launched in 2011. Our Glass House went on to win the <\/span>Special Commendation Award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2013.<\/span><\/p>\n

She has recently published a report<\/a> which is the culmination of research into working class participation and representation in the arts. <\/span><\/p>\n

Class: The Elephant in the Room not only focuses on getting into the arts, but the way we need to address what comes to mind when we think of \u201cthe arts.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n