10 May 2017
Outskirts brings many aspects of the Platform programme and community together for a festival day
Outskirts brings many aspects of the Platform programme and community together for a festival day
For Platform, 2023 ends with audiences of all ages enjoying our production of Cinderella by Lewis Hetherington. With almost every seat sold, the show has been great fun to make and produce and we hope everyone that joined us has enjoyed themselves.
The year started with Ellie Harrison’s unique take on public transport, collaborating with the Glasgow Roller Girls to produce Bus Regulation: The Musical. Along the way we hosted a celebration of Easterhouse singer/songwriter Denny Oliver, an award-winning exhibition of portrait photography from Coulson + Tennant and two multi-artform festivals celebrating new and original work - Made in Easterhouse including Ashanti Harris’ stunning Carnival of Overlapping Histories and People Dancing, an intergenerational celebration of social dancing from Thursday Night Drama led by Eoin McKenzie and Carmen Berbel Lapaz.
Details on recent activity at Platform can be found here, in our Annual Report. Capturing what we delivered between April 2022 and March 2023, the report includes some of the highlights and key milestones in another extraordinary year. The document is a summary of our full Trustees Annual Report + Accounts which can be found here.
Standout figures include the 410 artists supported, 8,605 meals distributed through the Children’s Holiday Food and Activity Programme and just under six thousand people attending our outdoor festivals in Alexandra Park and The Bridge during the summer.
We also welcomed the return of live music to the venue with a series of gigs including Free Love’s epic sound bath in April, acts from the OK Pal label performing in and around The Brolly, Maria Gondek’s amazing sculpture and the all-day takeover event led by Lost Map in September.
All that we have achieved would not have been possible without financial and operational support from the likes of Glasgow Life, Glasgow City Council, Creative Scotland, Glasgow Council for the Voluntary Sector, Glasgow Kelvin College and the Blairtummock and Rogerfield partnership. This support has enabled our charity not just to survive but grow and develop over the last year and we’re deeply thankful for the continued support and encouragement each has shown us.
Looking ahead to 2024, there is lots to look forward to as we get ready to welcome new and original performances including Tortoise in a Nutshell’s epic Ragnarock, Frozen Light’s Bar at the Edge of Time and The Show for Young Men to the venue. We will have a full programme of visual art events and activities including exhibitions celebrating new work created by Project Ability artists and powerful photography from Sarah Booker who worked with seventeen families to document the loss of loved ones in prison, detention centres and other state-run institutions as part of SoulsINQUEST.
Working closely with Pavillion, the Blairtummock and Rogerfield Partnership, Creative Carbon Scotland and Sniffer, we look forward to contributing to the Creative Climate Futures project designed to draft a strategy for climate adaptation in Easterhouse.
Our Taking Part programme featuring weekly workshops in music, performance and visual art – open to all ages and a range of access needs also returns from January 22nd and places are available to book on our website and offered on a ‘Pay What You Like’ basis. The programme includes Play Café – our weekly creative offer for children aged 0-5 and their adults, our community choir Platform Singers, and Clack & Yak – an informal social for all those interested in knitting, sewing and embroidering over a cuppa or three!
It remains a privilege to lead the hardworking and dedicated staff team here at Platform and send my thanks to all those – volunteers, freelance artists, core staff, sessional café bar workers and many others – that have contributed to Platform and the communities we serve during 2023.
And finally a huge thank you to everyone of you that has visited us during the year, whether it be buying a ticket to a show, joining us for a Full House Friday or getting stuck into one of our workshops, thank you for your continued support – happy holidays and look forward to seeing you in 2024!
Matt Addicott - Artistic Director - Platform
Image - Amy Kennedy as Bucks Fizz in Cinderella by Lewis Hetherington - photograph by Euan Robertson
