News – Page 5 – Andro & Eve

On Live Events

31st August 20201st September 2020 by androandeve

Sister Mary Berry, of drag act, Shesus and the Sisters, wears a hard hat and high vis vest and is squirting an audience member with mist from a bottle looking cheeky.

We are sorry to say we will not be returning to host live, in – person events until Spring 2021 at the earliest. We have taken this decision in light of the ongoing situation with COVID-19 and the need to plan ahead as best we can.

As a queer – led social enterprise, which means we put people before profit, and care of the most vulnerable and marginalised at our heart, we cannot see a scenario in which we can bring properly safe and inclusive events to our community until next year. We know many of you, like us, are struggling with anxiety about returning to any sort of normal, and we recognise that we need to adapt.

We have spoken at length with our partner venues about the measures in place to maintain social distancing, and keep audiences and workers safe. Sadly, the capacities allowed in venues would in no way enable us to cover the costs of producing the events we have become known for. We also have the health and wellbeing of our artists, staff team and volunteers to consider. A Reyt Queer Do and The Kingdom Come are meant to be joyous and cosy events. We would rather wait and bring these events back when it feels much safer to do so. Right now, we couldn’t in good faith, host live events indoors when so many people are still shielding, or taking extra precautions to protect those around them.

A crowd, underneath lots of umbrellas hanging from the ceiling at Theatre Deli Sheffield, some seated and a lot standing click their fingers at the live drag artist on stage. — The crowd at A Reyt Queer Do 3, no social distancing needed back in 2019.

Under lockdown we are proud to have continued to support queer artists, delivering a range of creative activity and developing talent in the North of England. It’s been been wonderful to see new and familiar faces at our online workshops. We will be applying for more funding to continue to adapt our offer during these challenging times.

We know this has been a tough time for so many. We plan both to continue to offer online and remote activity, and take time to develop the organisation. We may start hosting in person workshops in Spring 2021, but we also realise there are many unknowns.

We’ve got plenty plans in the pipeline and will share those with you as soon as we can. If you’d like to support our work you can do so by donating via our website. Your support ensures we can continue to support LGBTQ+ artists in these difficult times.

Our new zine, CENTRE, will be launching in October, so make sure you’ve signed up to our newsletter to be the first to get your hands on a copy and hear about a special online event to mark the occasion.

We can’t wait to return with a bang when it is safe to do so. Till then, we hope you can join us online soon.

With love and solidarity

Andro and Eve x

CENTRE, a new zine!

6th July 20207th July 2020 by androandeve

This summer we’re very aware that many LGBTQ+ people will be missing the annual Pride celebrations, places where communities can come together and feel free, standing up for what matters to them.

We’re also aware that as event organisers, we can’t physically bring people together. That is why we are collaborating with artist Okocha Obasi to create a zine. Obasi is a graphic designer and recent graduate from Leeds Arts University, and the creator of the RACEZINE COLLECTIVE whose aim is to platform creatives of colour. RACEZINE COLLECTIVE has produced projects include a non-profit zine, performance events and infamous club night TONGUE N TEETH.

Through our collaboration we’re launching the new zine ‘Centre’. The hope is that this can act as method to connect folx across the North of England and provide visibility and a voice to our queer community, particularly those often marginalised.

So with that in mind, here’s what you need to know about our latest project!

CENTRE: A new zine

What’s at your centre? What matters most? What are your hopes for the future, and how is this informed by who you are?

CENTRE is about centering untold stories. We want responses from all ages, and all walks of life, but are particularly interesting in hearing and documenting Queer and QTIBPOC stories in the North of England. We’re also keen to hear from LGBTQIA folx identifying as neurodiverse, deaf or disabled.

We’re looking for responses in the form of: Letters, personals stories, personal historical materials, recipes, interviews, art, comics, drawings, prints, paintings, spoken word, intergenerational collaborations, short stories and anything else that you want to share with the world.

To submit something all you need to do is complete our Google form and attach your submission there. If you have any issues using tech, or need extra support, drop us a line and we’ll do our best to help you.

Deadline for applications is midday on Monday 10th August.

We cannot guarantee that all work submitted will make it into the published zine, however we may (with your permission) publish your work on our website instead.

The zine will be published in the Autumn and launched with a special online event. More details to be announced!

We look forward to receiving your work!

Launching our Cabaret College!

14th July 202024th June 2020 by androandeve

Ready to take your act to the next level? Want some space to get inspired and learn new skills? This 8 – week online course is designed to give you the tools to develop material for your own drag or cabaret act, and build your confidence. Award winning actor, writer and drag king LoUis CYfer of Korupt Kabuki, will lead 4 interactive sessions and provide mentoring for participants.

Aimed at emerging drag and cabaret acts looking for a creative challenge, our Cabaret College is about developing talent in the North of England. The course will give some context for the history of cabaret and drag, share a host of creative techniques for generating original material, and prepare participants for live performance in a safe and supportive environment.

It is an ideal follow on for people who have already participated in our previous drag king king workshops. It is also well suited to drag queens or other cabaret acts in need of space to create new material.

Sessions will happen on a fortnightly basis with set tasks to work on in between, to then share with the group. Each participant will receive a small amount of one to one mentoring with LoUis CYfer to assist with and support any challenges participants may need to work through.

By the end of the course each participant will have

A clearer sense of their drag character or cabaret act.
Created their own original material.
Understand how to work an audience.

Places on this course are limited in order to provide the best possible learning experience for participants. It is expected that participants will already have a drag or cabaret character devised. Places will be prioritised for those living in Yorkshire or the North of England. Free bursaries are available to QTIBPOC in order to provide better representation in the UK drag and cabaret scene.

To secure a place on the course, please apply via our simple Google form by 5pm on Thursday 30 July. Successful applicants will be notified the following week.

Please note, this course is about generating original material and performing live. It is expected that participants will use their own voice through speech or song. Fees for the full course are £25 for General. £10 for Low Income. £50 for Solidarity. This pricing is made possible through funding from Arts Council England.

Course Details
WEEK 1 – 19 August
Covering the history of cabaret and drag and its relevance to a modern audience. Looking at your character and how they relate to the audience, covering all the basics to getting started!

WEEK 2 – 2 September
Introducing you to a whole range of techniques to help you generate original material and find the form that suits your own strengths and skills.

WEEK 3 – 16 September
Exploring how to respond to current events / contemporary society and generating material that has something to say. Unlocking your voice and using it to create innovative and entertaining material.

WEEK 4 – 30 September
This final session is all about audience engagement. Learning how to play with the audience and make them part of your set; and even how to manage hecklers!

We look forward to receiving your application! If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch via our contact form.

Updated Sliding Scale Tickets

10th June 202010th June 2020 by androandeve

If you’ve booked for one of our events before, you’ll know we offer tickets on a sliding scale to ensure our events stay as accessible as possible. This is made possible through generous donations from the public when buying tickets, and support we receive from grant funding.

In recognition of the fact that many people’s income levels are changeable at the moment and the fact our events for the next 6 months will be online, we’ve adapted our prices for our upcoming events.

We will have three ticket bands on sale for our upcoming workshops. General, Low Income, and Solidarity. Buying a Solidarity ticket helps contribute to our Pay it Forward ticket fund, ensuring we can continue to provide cheaper and free tickets to those who need them in future. We’re very grateful to those who buy these tickets. You can also add a contribution to this fund when buying tickets.

In recognition of the fact that many who will identify with the ‘Unwaged‘ descriptors *may* be able to afford the ‘Low Income‘ ticket, and to keep things simple, we have just one ‘Low Income‘ option. However, if this price prevents you from being able to attend our workshops, we are offering free bursaries to those in restrictive financial circumstances. Visit the ticket website to find out more.

We are very excited to be back to offering creative opportunities to access queer culture and we look forward to welcoming you to an online event soon!

Staying Queer during COVID-19

28th May 202028th May 2020 by androandeve

We’re happy to announce that we have received Emergency Funding* from Arts Council England to help keep us going and provide a programme of online and remote activity over the next 6 months.

Since cancelling our last event in March owing to COVID-19, we’ve been working hard to adapt to the new climate. We’ve also been trying not to panic at the possibility that the sort of live events we create *may* not be safe to organise until 2021. Our future looked, at best, risky. For that reason we’ve reached out to queer artists in order to generate a programme of activity that will support and uplift our community through these challenging times.

This funding enables us to continue our talent development strand for emerging artists. This will compromise both online workshops for complete beginners led by drag king and musical improv expert, Christian Adore, and a more in depth ‘Cabaret College’ for acts wanting to push their skills and learn how to devise their own material. The latter will be led by actor, writer and drag star Lucy Jane Parkinson, aka Louis CyFer.

A suited drag king with long hair and moustache looks directly into the camera — Christian Adore will lead ‘Drag king workshops’ for beginners

Alongside the talent development, we realise there is a need to connect with and hear the voices of the wider LGBTQ+ community and queer artists. To do this we will be creating a special zine both as a documentation of this strange time and a way to connect that does not rely on digital technology. This project will be led on by Leeds -based artist Okocha Obasi in collaboration with emerging producer Emma Bentley – Fox.

The zine will feature the voices of queer writers and artists alongside work submitted by members of the community who want to share their thoughts / dreams / ideas. We’ll print and distribute and launch with a special online launch party featuring queer performers and DJ set for indoor dancing. Along with this programme the funding will help us redevelop our website, and support staff time to ready the organisation for next steps.

We’re very thankful that we can continue to provide unique opportunities to ‘come together’ through queer culture and look forward to connecting with you all again. We’re also aware, however, that there are many great people and organisations that did not get this funding. It is one of the reasons why we will continue to make our work as accessible as possible and centre those otherwise marginalised.

In the meantime, we have set up a donation form on our website. All donations directly support our work in supporting queer artists and our community. We don’t know when we’ll be able to physically be in the same space again, (though currently we have no plans for physical events until beyond October). Your support ensures that when we can return to physical events, we’ll be back better than ever before.

Want to be the first to find out more about the above projects and opportunities? Sign up to our newsletter now!

Team Andro & Eve x

** Funding received – £10,900.

Welcome to our new Board Members

20th May 2020 by androandeve

We’re delighted to announce the appointment of two new board members. Lola White and Ellie Wyer join Andro and Eve founder and CEO, Katherine Warman, as Directors of the board and have been in post as Directors for nearly 3 months.

They bring to the organisation a robust set of skills and knowledge in HR, finance, partnerships and organisational development in both the private and public sectors.

Katherine Warman CEO of Andro and Eve says ‘I’m delighted that Ellie and Lola are now part of Andro & Eve as they bring a wealth of expertise that will help develop the organisation. At such a challenging time for the culture sector, we are working hard to respond to the situation we find ourselves in, and are planning ways to adapt our delivery model’.

Andro and Eve celebrates 4 years producing events to celebrate queer culture this week, so we’re very pleased to be able to share this news with you. To find out more about our board and team, head here.

Cancelled – The Kingdom Come 6

15th March 2020 by androandeve

It is with deep sadness and heartbreak that we announce the cancellation of The Kingdom Come 6 which was due to take place on Saturday 21 March at Abbeydale Picture House. This event, which would have been our 21^st event, is the first event we have cancelled in our 4-year history. We do this in response to the escalation of the coronavirus and its impact on our wider community.

As a queer-led social enterprise, which means we put people before profit, and care of the most vulnerable and marginalised at our heart, we felt we must take action on this matter. By cancelling this event we can potentially reduce the amount of people contracting coronavirus, limit the impact of the coronavirus on our already strained NHS, and reduce the impact on public health workers.

As a small organisation with a staff team of one person alongside our team of volunteers, we cannot in good conscience put the health of our team, our artists, or wider community at risk. The board of Andro & Eve have consulted with our team and with our contacts in the arts and business community. This collective decision is not one we have taken lightly, or without much heartache.

Much of that pain comes from the fact that we know what the Andro & Eve events mean to our community, as well as to our artists. We send our love and solidarity to those already affected by coronavirus.

Everyone who bought a ticket is of course entitled to a refund, but if you can afford to, we’d ask you to consider your ticket a donation to help support our vision to bring queer arts and culture to South Yorkshire. Cancelling this event puts our financial security as an organisation at risk.

We rely on our big events such as The Kingdom Come to financially support the running of the organisation the rest of the year. Also, we are well aware of the pressures on freelancers at this time, and this will help us ensure that we can reimburse our artists and crew for fees they will lose, and in recognition for all the hard work they have already put into this event.

If anyone would like to support us at this extremely challenging time, you can by heading to Tickets for Good and buying a ticket for The Kingdom Come, before the 21^st March. You can also add a contribution to our Pay it Forward Ticket fund there too. Your donation will be used to ensure we come back stronger and better than ever at a later date.

All those who have bought a ticket for The Kingdom Come will receive a discount on tickets for our next event; we will send a discount code to the email you used to book with, on announcement of the next event. We very much appreciate the support and trust you have placed in us. Details on refunds will also be sent to the email used to book with on Tickets for Good. Alternatively, please email hello@androandeve.com for more information.

We wish to thank our partner venues, Abbeydale Picture House and Theatre Deli Sheffield for their support and guidance in this difficult time. Independent venues and businesses in Sheffield will be at real risk of closure as we move through this health crisis. If you can also donate money towards Theatre Deli Sheffield or Abbeydale Picture House, you can do so via these links.

https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/abbeydalepicturehouse

https://www.gofundme.com/f/theatredelisheffieldheatingfund

Finally, over the coming days we will be sharing resources to support our community. If you have any questions or have seen any useful links or resources, we are happy to promote.

For now, Queercare have some excellent resources available including this Google Form if you are in need of extra support at this time.

With love and solidarity

Team Andro & Eve

New Board Members Wanted

10th December 201922nd November 2019 by androandeve

We are excited to share that we are seeking new people to join the Andro and Eve board.

New board members will be part of an exciting period of growth and development for the company, helping us achieve our vision to celebrate queer culture through memorable events that inspire.

Our directors support the governance of Andro and Eve, contributing their expertise to the organisation’s growth, sustainability and reputation of excellence in the field of queer arts and events. We recognise that each board member will bring a unique set of skills to the role of director, and therefore are offering this opportunity on an individual basis to see if there is a match between your skills and the needs of the company.

This role is offered on an expenses only basis, with the understanding that you are giving your time to grow and develop the work of Andro and Eve. We understand that you may want to get involved for a variety of reasons, and welcome applications from people from a range of sectors, backgrounds or experience levels.

Deadline for applications is 9am Wednesday 8 January. Informal interviews will be held in Sheffield from the 13th January onwards. Full details on the role and how to apply available to download here:

We’re hiring!

4th October 20193rd October 2019 by androandeve

We’re delighted to announce that we’re on the lookout for an enthusiastic Assistant Producer to join the Andro and Eve team. This freelance, fixed term role is offered both as a way for us to grow our capacity, and for someone relatively new to the arts or events industry to gain valuable experience in event production and audience development.

We encourage applications from those with less visibility in the arts and are committed to a policy of equal opportunities which requires that all staff, freelance contractors, volunteers and artists are treated fairly irrespective of their age, race, ethnicity or national origin, gender, sexual orientation or any disability.

Deadline for applications is 10am Friday 25 October. Interviews will be held in Sheffield on Friday 1st November. Full details on the role and how to apply available to download here:

Download: Assistant Producer Job Description

Download: Equality and Diversity Form

New Acts Wanted!

25th September 201926th September 2019 by androandeve

Could you be the next Wesley Dykes? Got a new act you want to debut? Or test out a scratch performance in front of a friendly and supportive audience?

We’re on the look out for new queer performance to fill our open mic slots at our events at Cast in Doncaster on 13 November and Theatre Deli Sheffield on 30 November. We’re committed to developing talent in Yorkshire and hope by offering slots across two nights we’ll be able to programme as much Northern talent as possible.

For A Reyt Queer Do 4: Reyt Northern Edition (13 November) and A Reyt Queer Do: Shine Like a Diamond Edition (30 November) we’re on the lookout for any type / style of queer performance as long as its between 3 – 10 mins long. As well as getting to share your act with our wonderful community you’ll also get £50 to cover any expenses and some photos of your act.

To apply to perform please send the following to hello@androandeve.com

Name of your act
Short description of the act / style of performance
Where you are based
Whether you can perform at either night, or only Sheffield OR Doncaster.
A short bio of your performance experience (don’t worry if you have none, but do tell us why you want to take advantage of this opportunity)
A 3 – minute video of you performing. This could be a link to a video online, or send us a file to download.

We want to support Northern talent and highlight marginalised voices, so if this applies to you, please apply! Deadline for applications midday on 23/10/19. If you have any questions please also drop us a line. All applicants whether successful or not will be informed by 01/11/19.

If you’re planning on attending our DRAG KING WORKSHOP WEEKEND on 9 – 10 November and want to use either of these events as a way to debut the act you plan to create, we also encourage you to apply for a slot!

On Live Events

CENTRE, a new zine!

Launching our Cabaret College!

Updated Sliding Scale Tickets

Staying Queer during COVID-19

Cancelled – The Kingdom Come 6

New Board Members Wanted

We’re hiring!

New Acts Wanted!

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