The 2021 Drama Festivals Conference will take place on Saturday 24 July at the Albany Theatre, Coventry preceded by an informal evening drinks reception on Friday 23 July.

The Conference theme is ‘Inclusion & Diversity in UK Amateur Theatre’. This event will be held alongside the final weekend of the NDFA British All Winners Festival.

A Flyer for the event is HERE. We hope that LTG Members will publicise this in their theatre’s Newsletters etc. The conference fee is £35, and tickets must be pre-ordered. Speakers and contributors include:

• Alexander Mushore, a former Midlands amateur-actor-turned-RSC-professional;
• Professor Anne-marie Greene, Professor of Work, Employment and Diversity at Leicester University and Artistic Director of LTG Member, the Criterion Theatre, Coventry.
• Rebekah Fortune, chair of AETF and Artistic Director of TACT, IMPACT and the Two Rivers special needs Theatre Company
• Penny Amis, Chair of the Side By Side access theatre group and Vice-Chair of the Lighthorne Festival
• Sara Evans, Artistic Director of the Side By Side Theatre Company;
• Ian Wainwright, RSC Producer and former producer of the RSC’s Open Stages outreach to amateur theatre.

After the informal drinks reception on the Friday, delegates will watch the All-Winners show in the Albany Theatre, Coventry.

Anne Gilmour