A place where magic happens

I joined Half Moon’s Creative Learning department in 2012 and it’s been a privilege and joy to support young people at every stage of their creative development. After 11 years it’s time to move on to new adventures, but I wanted to reflect on everything the organisation has achieved in the last decade.

Four months after I started, a major refurbishment of the foyer and office areas began and the entire team decamped to a local nursery school’s portacabin. Being hosted at Old Church Nursery for our office, and Stepney All Saints for our Youth Theatre sessions, made me realise that local schools knew the value of having Half Moon on their doorstep and were willing to help us out in our time of need. That sense of connection has continued and will live on long after I have gone.

Half Moon has committed itself to longer-term engagement with young people, expanding its Youth Theatre provision from five to eight groups that meet on a weekly basis at the theatre, with five additional weekly groups happening in community spaces, bringing Half Moon closer to where people live and go to school.

Focus has been placed on supporting children and families in important periods of change: Creative Play for under 5s in Children and Family Centres; Next Steps for students in Year 6 moving to secondary school and in need of extra support; A trainee programme for school leavers looking to enter the theatre industry bridges the gap between being a participant and a practitioner, helping them find their place in the industry.

Half Moon has longevity in Tower Hamlets; a history of connecting with the community since 1972. It now ensures young people can continue to engage with the company for over ten years if they need that support.

The lasting memory I will take with me as I hang up my Half Moon hat is of all the young people approaching adulthood with a connection to their local theatre; a place which has held them up in the bad times, helped them feel part of something and celebrated them for who they are.

Half Moon is a place where innovative and exciting performances are created and where many artists start and expand their careers. Simply: it’s a place where magic happens.

Beccy Allen is the Arts and Wellbeing Director/Deputy CEO at St Margaret’s House

Find out more at www.stmargaretshouse.org.uk