Exploring group social activities undertaken by young people in London’s East End.
Inspired by their consultations with older people, our four oldest Youth Theatre members spent five months unearthing and celebrating the group recreational, social and community activities for children and young people that took place in London’s East End during the 1950s, 60s and 70s. They then used this stimulus to create four new shows inspired by what they had discovered.
Led by young people, this hands-on intergenerational research project was informed by the impact of post-war regeneration, housing challenges, poverty and changing communities in the Tower Hamlets area. It has also been an insightful opportunity to highlight the elders’ memories, document their activities and contextualise this activity for contemporary communities.
For quick access to information about the Youth Theatre shows, click the links below. Alternatively, read on to discover more.
ECLIPSE YOUTH THEATRE – The Bomb Site Playground
EQUINOX YOUTH THEATRE – A Stroll Down Memory Brick Lane
Thanks to an award from the Heritage Lottery Fund Young Roots programme, Playful Heritage enabled us to work with young people to connect with older generations, allowing them to discover activities that they have both shared and changes in society; consequently bridging the generational divide.
It was fascinating hearing elders from our local community talking about the group games and activities they took part in when they were younger; and wonderful to see the young people so engaged in their stories – particularly when they realised they sometimes took part in the same activities, just decades apart! It was been a real privilege to meet so many lovely people from across the decades and hear a diverse range of personal memories.
This project was delivered in partnership with Tower Hamlets Local History Library and Archives.
A short video about Playful Heritage, featuring extracts from our four Youth Theatre productions and interviews with everyone involved, including local elders, the young people taking part, Youth Theatre tutors and the Director of Half Moon.
“I turned up at a tiny fleapit cinema, The Standard (Goldsmiths Row, off Hackney Road), to see the original version of The Fly. I was clearly under 16 – the film had an X-certificate – but that didn’t prevent the manager from selling me a ticket. However, a condition was attached: I first had to go across the road and buy him a lightbulb to replace one that had blown in the ticket booth. When I finally shuffled into the pitch-black auditorium, I made a deafening crunching sound, the auditorium floor was carpeted in peanut shells!”
Michael Freeman, local elder
“I belonged to the Brady Club in Hanbury Street and went two to three times a week. I did a lot of clay making and we put on plays, did first aid, or simply read books. There were a lot of activities and I learnt how to write poetry at the creative writing club. There was a sense of belonging. The Brady Club was a safe place to come to after school for a couple of hours. Memories were made here and lifelong friendships.”
Martine Kaufman, local elder
“Across the road was a Jewish settlement club, which we just called ‘the Jewish Club’. They used to do singing, dancing and acting and put on shows in the hall. It was a great place to make friends; I’m still friends with some of my childhood pals and am friends with most of the local kids on Facebook. I remember playing the lead in Cinderella and The Wizard of Oz. What l loved was next to the stage there was a huge board with the words to the Hatikvah, the national anthem of Israel. Before each show we would all sing the Hatikvah and ‘God Save the Queen’. I had no idea what we were singing, but used to join in. In the interval, we would always have buttered bagels and orange juice. When you got older, you could join the operatic society who put on big musicals at an outside theatre. I remember doing Carousel and The King and I.”
Debra Baker, Local elder
“Every Sunday morning, Dad would take me on the 649 trolleybus from Tottenham to Shoreditch Church and we would walk to Brick Lane for the Club Row market, where I would buy film soundtrack LPs and comic books, while Dad would buy rollmops pickled herring and large pickled cucumbers floating in enormous wooden barrels. This was a Kosher grocers store opposite what is now The Bagel Bake.”
Michael Freeman, local elder
“I go to football and swimming – clubs are important so that you get to build your confidence, and make new friends.”
Sonny, Youth Theatre member
“All my longstanding friends are from my dance group – we’ve been friends since we were two. It’s important to have an active aspect outside of school.”
Keira, Youth Theatre member
“When I was young we used to play a game called Run Out. The idea was that one person ran out, then we all ran out and they had to find us. Just after the war London was full of bomb sites and old warehouses, so we used that as our playground. Opposite where I lived was Colonial Wharf, where there was a big opening where you could jump onto the jetty. One day I ran and jumped, but I jumped too short and instead of going through the window and onto the jetty, l fell straight down about 15 feet and luckily landed on some sugar sacks. There were loads of them down there and that broke my fall. I wasn’t frightened. It was just another day, playing out.”
Roy Leader, local elder
“There were no cars or traffic so we played in the streets – ball games, skipping, rounders, as well as making up our own games. There were little corner shops where you could buy sweets for a penny. You never got pocket money; my mum would just give me a penny now and then to get some sweets.”
Maisie Waller, local elder
“You left school at 15, you had no choice in them days you had to get a job… We all had different jobs, we were never out of work… I had a job at a shirt factory once, ‘till I was married, I wasn’t very good at it though… I sewed the collars on upside down… I got the sack and then I moved to another job and I got the sack from that one!… But that’s was it was like back then. You walked out of a job on Friday and into another by Monday… And you’d do anything that came along”
Quotes from Pamela Hill, June McDonald and Maureen Plant, local elders
“There were so many cinemas. Between Tottenham, where I lived, and Dalston there were twenty cinemas. Twenty! And none of them were expensive. So you wouldn’t pay more than 20 pence, or the equivalent of 20 pence, to go and see a film.”
Michael Freeman, local elder
Roy Leader talks to members of Lunar Youth Theatre about his memories of growing up in London’s East End.
June McDonald talks to members of Lunar Youth Theatre about her memories of growing up in London’s East End.
June McDonald talks to members of Lunar Youth Theatre about her memories of growing up in London’s East End.
Roy Leader talks to members of Eclipse Youth Theatre about his memories of growing up in London’s East End.
Thursday 5 July 2018, 6.30pm and Saturday 7 July 2018, 3pm
For inspiration for their Playful Heritage performance Eclipse Youth Theatre, one of Half Moon’s inclusive groups for young people, focused on family life, clubs, the Brady Club and street activities.
Lead Tutor: Simon Batchelor
Support Tutor: Amy Costello
Access: Daniel Mariño
Youth Theatre members:
Alice, Arella, Cal, Danny, Eleni, Elizabeth, Eva, Harper, Juliet, Katarina, Khadija, Laila, Liyanah, Lottie, Maria, Mariam, Mia, Miles, Peyton, Radhika, Rebecca, Sophie, Umida, Valerie, William, Winta and Zakaria
The Bomb Site Playground
Friday 6 July 2018, 6.30pm and Saturday 7 July 2018, 12pm
For inspiration for their Playful Heritage performance Equinox Youth Theatre, one of Half Moon’s inclusive groups for young people aged 8-11, focused on day trips to the seaside, Scouts and Brownies, punks and the Brick Lane Market.
Lead Tutor: Madeleine Graham
Support Tutor: Amari Harris
Access: Amy Costello and Daniel Mariño
Youth Theatre members:
Arianna, Arran, Arsema, Aurora, Ava A, Ava R, Bezawit, Daisy, Dora, Douglas, Ehan, Isabella, Isla, Jack, Jessica, Laura, Liliana, Maelyn, Malachi, Maria-Luiza, Marianne, Nesrine, Sofia, Suleyman, Zainab, Zahid, Zak and Zoe
A Stroll Down Memory Brick Lane
Thursday 5 July 2018, 8pm and Saturday 7 July 2018, 4.30pm
For inspiration for their Playful Heritage performance Lunar Youth Theatre, one of Half Moon’s inclusive groups for young people aged 11-18, focused on youth employment, dance halls, demolishing pubs and club venues to build high-rise flats, and rock and roll.
Lead Tutor: Simon Batchelor
Support Tutor: Amy Costello
Youth Theatre members:
Abdellah, Aldo, Alexia-Pyrrha, Amber, Anan, Annie, Avantika, Bethan, Brodie, Deborah, Denis, Ella, Freya, Ilyas, Inesse, Isabel, Jessica, Jolina, Kiera, Leela, Lola-Grace, Malachi, Maria, Maya, Nayla, Nicole, Noussaiba, Safiya, Shamil, Sonny B, Sonny M and Yusaf
Down the Olde Rub-A-Dub
Friday 6 July 2018, 8pm and Saturday 7 July 2018, 1.30pm
For inspiration for their Playful Heritage performance Solar Youth Theatre, Half Moon’s specialist group for disabled teenagers, focused on cinema – particularly sci-fi and horror films, fashion, celebrities and popular food.
Lead Tutor: Sam Adams
Support Tutor: Madeleine Graham
Access: May-Rose Davenport, Amari Harris, Amy Holmes, Daniel Mariño, Charlene Skyers and Rosie Vincent
Youth Theatre members:
Anthony, Dami, Dana, Desmond, Dexter, Jamie, Nicholas, Owen, Ruby, Saira, Soheli, Tahera and Younes
Rock Around The Clock
We couldn’t have done it without you all.
Have you got a memory you’d like to share? Or perhaps you have a programme or poster from one of our shows that we're currently missing? Then we want to hear from you! The website is a living archive and we will continue to add information as it comes to light.
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