RSC TO RUN MARATHON FOR STITCH IN TIME
A team of Royal Shakespeare Company staff, headed by Executive Director Catherine Mallyon, are limbering up to help the Stitch In Time campaign by taking part in this year’s Stratford Half Marathon.
The Running Wardrobe team, made up of 11 staff from different RSC departments, will take to the streets of Stratford to raise £10,000 towards the campaign, which supports the restoration and redevelopment of the Costume Workshop.
Catherine Mallyon said: “Costume-making is central to everything we do at the RSC and is shared with audiences all year round on our stages, and through live broadcasts straight into cinemas and schools. Taking part in the Stratford Marathon and Half Marathon to aid our Stitch In Time campaign is a chance to show how dedicated the whole RSC is to our Costume Workshop project.
“The new Costume Workshop will safeguard the future of costume making in Stratford, enable visitors to experience the heritage of our workshop for themselves for the first time and establish apprenticeships to train the next generation of costume makers. The project will transform our out-dated buildings revolutionising the working conditions and increasing employment opportunities."
The RSC, a registered charity, makes thousands of costume items each year in its Stratford-upon-Avon based workshop. Once a production ends, most costumes are placed into the Company’s Costume Store and are re-used by future production designers and are available to hire. Some key items go into in the RSC’s Museum Collection and appear in exhibitions in the RSC’s theatres and around the world.
Stitch In Time is now closing in on its fundraising target, with £250,000 left to raise. Thousands of people from around the world have already supported the project including contributions from the local Stratford community, major philanthropists, trusts and foundations and businesses. The redevelopment will:
- Create improved facilities for costume making
- Care for the RSC’s heritage Grade II listed buildings, including the 1887 Scene Dock, which will become a new entrance to the RSC’s offices
- Create more space to enable new training and apprenticeship opportunities to secure the future of costume making in Stratford-upon-Avon
- Enable visitors to experience the heritage of our world-class costume workshop for themselves through tours, digital experiences and education, participation and outreach opportunities
Patrick Stewart, RSC Associate Artist, said of our Costume Workshop: “The people there gave you often a greater sense of the character that you would be playing when you saw the wonderful costumes that had been designed, and the fabrics that were being used, and the way the whole thing was constructed to identify and personalise a character.”
To support Catherine and the Running Wardrobe team, visit their JustGiving page: https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/stitchintime
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For further information, please contact Emily.Magdij@rsc.org.uk or 07920 541729.
Notes to the Editor
COATS - Official Thread Supplier to the RSC
The restoration and redevelopment of the Costume Workshop is supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, and The Government’s Local Growth Fund through the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership, with additional support from the Garfield Weston Foundation, Lydia and Manfred Gorvy, The Foyle Foundation, The Bernard Sunley Charitable Foundation and other generous supporters.
About Royal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company creates theatre at its best, made in Stratford-upon-Avon and shared around the world. We produce an inspirational artistic programme each year, setting Shakespeare in context, alongside the work of his contemporaries and today’s writers.
Everyone at the RSC - from actors to armourers, musicians to technicians - plays a part in creating the world you see on stage. All our productions begin life at our Stratford workshops and theatres and we bring them to the widest possible audience through our touring, residencies, live broadcasts and online activity. So wherever you experience the RSC, you experience work made in Shakespeare’s home town.
We have trained generations of the very best theatre makers and we continue to nurture the talent of the future. We encourage everyone to enjoy a lifelong relationship with Shakespeare and live theatre. We reach 530,000 children and young people annually through our education work, transforming their experiences in the classroom, in performance and online. Registered charity no. 212481 www.rsc.org.uk