Time for Respair

What is Time for Respair?

The COVID-19 pandemic turned everything we thought we knew on its head. We saw the loss of work, projects, companies and venues, and also the loss of people, of loved ones, of dreams. For some, the very idea of returning to the career they had before the lockdown felt impossible.

Starting in May 2020, we hosted a series of free online Open Space conversations under the banner of “Time for Respair”. We wanted to create spaces to acknowledge the loss and the grief that many of us felt and support those who needed supporting. Discussions that looked beyond the short-term crisis in order to support new, better ways of working.

We didn’t know what to call these forums, so settled on Susie Dent’s Word of the Day: “respair”. An old word now fallen out of usage, meaning recovery from despair – to respair is to have fresh hope.

So we invited the performing arts community to gather with us, to respair. To dream about and design the kind of sector that could emerge from this pandemic.

What happened?

Act 1

We held our first events on 22, 27, 29 May and 2 June 2020 in partnership with Battersea Arts Centre. These conversations were about dreaming: what kind of world – and what kind of theatre sector – do we want to emerge from this crisis?

These events completely sold out and enabled over 500 participants from across the UK to come together, including producers, artists, makers, puppeteers, artistic directors, performers, administrators, technicians, designers, marketeers, writers, directors and more.

What became clear very quickly was that the benefit of hosting the events online meant that people from all over the UK could join together in a national conversation, generating new connections and sense of community and camaraderie at a vital moment.

Captioning and BSL interpretation were made available for all events, generously supported by Arts Council England and Battersea Arts Centre. We would also like to extend a huge thank you to Hannah Quigley and Laura Goulden (as well as our fantastic teams of BSL interpreters and captioners) who worked with us to ensure that the events were as accessible as possible for Deaf, disabled and neurodivergent participants.

“My one word in response to this afternoon is (it’s not a word but) ‘unbleak’. I came into this feeling quite bleak and I don’t feel bleak any more so that’s good! Thanks!”

— Time for Respair participant

Act 2 (and beyond…?)

After these initial gatherings, we held a series of smaller events that focused on specific areas of work with different sector partners in opera, dance, design and outdoor arts. These conversations aimed to delve deeper into and build on the ideas and themes that emerged in the Act 1 Time for Respair events.

All the reports from each event are available to read and download (see above). We are continuing our Open Space Online work through our Devoted and Disgruntled programme.

Reports from Time for Respair events:

How can we build the future of theatre together?
Act 1, 20 May 2020. Pilot event, co-hosted with Theatre Bristol.

A conversation about theatre & the future
Act 1, 22 May 2020. Co-hosted with Battersea Arts Centre.

A conversation about theatre & the future
Act 1, 27 May 2020. Co-hosted with Battersea Arts Centre.

A conversation about theatre & the future
Act 1, 29 May 2020. Co-hosted with Battersea Arts Centre.

A conversation about theatre & the future
Act 1, 2 June 2020. Co-hosted with Battersea Arts Centre.

What can and should Opera be and how might we build it together?
Act 2, 7 July 2020. Co-hosted with Royal Opera House.

Is this actually a great time to make some changes in Dance?
Act 2, 25 September 2020. Co-hosted with Dance Umbrella and People Dancing.

How can we change the world of design for the better?
Act 2, 5 November 2020. Co-hosted with SceneChange.

Outdoor Arts 2020: How do artists & producers working outdoors plan for this rapidly changing world and its future?
Act 2, 20 November 2020. Co-hosted with 101 Outdoor Arts.