A new and urgent fundraising campaign has been launched today by Frantic Assembly in a bid to save Ignition, its groundbreaking talent development programme for young people.

Each year Frantic brings together a diverse and dynamic group of participants, with a focus on ensuring access for those with social, financial, cultural and geographical barriers to the arts. Ignition seeks to unlock undiscovered creative potential and level up the future of British theatre.

The annual programme, which engages over 900 participants across the UK, sees twelve young men and twelve young women selected through taster and trial workshops, who are then invited to London where they spend a week making their own shows with theatre professionals, performed to a public audience. Throughout this period the 24 participants are pushed creatively and physically to understand the process of devising and creating work from scratch. The process is intense, the experience transformational and the effect lasting.

In 2019 alone Ignition worked with over 870 young people and in 2020 before the Covid-19 restrictions were introduced Frantic was about to run its first nationwide Ignition programme for women.

Because arts funding continues to be threatened by the pandemic, the theatre company commissioned Ignition graduate and film maker Michael Lynch to create a short film, featuring fellow Ignition graduates from across the UK, about the vital work and legacy that Ignition has achieved to date.

Artistic director of Frantic Assembly, Scott Graham, said: “Ignition makes a difference; it has and continues to transform lives, open doors and allow young people to reach beyond what they thought they were capable of. It has sparked careers and creativity that are defining our artistic landscape. I could not be more proud of what we achieve together and could not be more convinced that Ignition needs to keep finding those voices.”

The film is now available to watch here.

Donations can be made via the Frantic Assembly website here.