Contact is an arts organisation in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

, England that focuses on youth leadership.

History

Contact was founded in 1972 by Barry Sheppard (General Manager of what was then Manchester University Theatre) and Hugh Hunt (Professor of Drama), as Manchester Young People's Theatre as part of the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The university owns and operates majo ...

. Following a £5 million investment from

Arts Council England Arts Council England is an arm's length non-departmental public body of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is also a registered charity. It was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three s ...

, Contact was reopened in 1999 as an arts venue for young people. It is funded by Arts Council England, the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities,

Manchester City Council Manchester City Council is the local authority for Manchester, a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. Manchester is the sixth largest city in England by population. Its city council is composed of 96 councillors, three f ...

and the University of Manchester, but it is independently run. Apart from traditional theatre, it now covers dance, music, poetry, spoken word, hip hop and art. Its programme includes touring work and in-house productions, co-productions and collaborations developed with Key Partner Companies and young people. Contact is a registered charity.

Artistic Directors

* Paul Clements (founding artistic director) * John McGrath 1999–2008 * Baba Israel 2009–2012 * Matt Fenton 2013–current

Awards

* Stirling Royal Institute of British Architects Building Of The Year (1999) * Arts Council Breakthrough Award: In Recognition of the Pioneering work achieved with Young People * TMA Eclipse Award for Cultural Diversity * Arts Council England Art04 Outstanding Achievement Award * Arts Council England Art07 Rising Star * TMA Award for Diversity 2013 * Co-operative RESPECT Inclusive Venue of the Year 2013 * Lever Prize Winner 2014

Architecture

Contact's distinctive building was designed by architect Alan Short and Associates as part of the venue's 1999 redesign.

contributed £4.5 million toward the building, with matched funding from English Partnerships and land donated by the University of Manchester. It is located on Devas Street, Chorlton-on-Medlock, near the university's School of Education and Department of Drama. The main 320-seat auditorium (Space 1) was refitted and an 80-seat studio (Space 2) was added in the newly built turret.

Contacting The World

Since 2002, Contact has hosted Contacting The World, a biannual international project which brings together young people from around the world to create new theatre. Twinning companies so they can collaborate, exchange members and share ideas Contacting The World culminates in a Festival Week in July. Contacting The World has featured companies from Malaysia, Trinidad, Nigeria, Rwanda, Palestine, Brazil, Poland, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Jordan, Bangladesh, Syria, Iran, South Africa, New Zealand, The Philippines, Nepal, Zambia, Germany, Turkey, the UK and USA.

References

External links

Contact Theatre official website

Contacting The World
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