Shakerley teenagers in drama on the estate

A seven month project exploring the lives of young people on the Shakerley estate, in Tyldesley, concluded on Thursday March 20th with a dance and drama performance at Fred Longworth High School.

“State of the Estate – Breaking Barriers” was performed by Laura Bent, Emily Marsden, Caroline Gallagher, Chloe Harper, Toni-Louise Ince, Loretta Flynn, Megan Powell, Natalie Cunliffe and Codie Wadsworth to an audience of family, friends and officers.

“State of the Estate – Breaking Barriers” gave an insight into the lives of the young people of Shakerley and their future hopes and aspirations. The performance showed young people from the area are taking positive action and how they have strong views on how to improve their community. The drama and dance performance focused on different issues including peer pressure, aspirations, negative role models, alcohol, drugs, escapism, stereotyping and the reality of life on the estate.

One particularly interesting scene was a Big Brother-style diary piece about a girl called Loretta. A difficult home life saw her struggling to concentrate at school and she faced a dilemma about whether to go out with her friends and get drunk or whether to prepare for a job interview. The scene concluded with two very different outcomes, showing the pressures many young people on the estate face and how quickly their lives can spiral out of control.

Most of the girls had never performed before, making it a nerve-racking experience for some. As Chloe Harper explained,

“It was scary performing because I didn’t know half the people in the audience. It was a bit terrifying but I enjoyed it.”

The performance was created by the girls and drama worker Andrew Blake, and dance worker Alexis Butterworth during four months of writing and rehearsing at Shakerley Community Centre. It was based on interviews with young people from the “State of the Estate” documentary, directed and filmed last autumn by Rachael Turner and Andrew Blake. 

Emily Marsden said:

“A lot of people have negative views about us but State of the Estate has shown that we’re not all the same. Not everyone is rough and going round beating people up.

“Life for most of us is just a case of having nothing to do and growing up on the estate. What is important is that we continue to have projects like this in Shakerley because it has given us something interesting to do.”

The State of the Estate project was funded by the Local Network Fund and local councillor’s Brighter Borough funding, and was managed by Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust’s Arts & Festivals team in partnership with Wigan Pier Theatre Company, with support from Shakerley Tenants and Residents Association.

Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust Arts Development Officer Samantha Dawson said:

“State of the Estate aimed to challenge viewers, giving an honest and open account of what life is like for young people growing up in Shakerley. This was seen as too stark by some, but it is reality, and there would have been no benefit to hide that. It has certainly raised awareness throughout the borough of the issues young people face on the estate.

“Overall we involved 26 young people throughout this project. The arts were used as a creative consultation method to engage them in a way that could not have been achieved through more formal consultation methods, such as surveys.

“Using dance and drama increased young people’s confidence and self esteem, and the young people themselves freely admit that it has kept them off the streets. Staff at Shakerley Community Centre has also built up better relationships with the young people involved, gaining a lot of respect for their hard work and effort throughout the project.

“This work has also identified a demand for more arts activity in Shakerley, which Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust will explore, and Shakerley Tenants and Residents Association are now planning to set up a youth committee for the estate, so young people can apply for funding and choose what projects they want take part in.

“We have engaged with young people in a really creative way. Officers and practitioners now need to follow up this work and respond to what young people are saying.”