Our Delivery Report
Funded on 21 June 2022 | Delivered on 24 July 2022
£11,188
RAISED
52
BACKERS
38
DAYS TO FUND
BIGGEST PLEDGE
£8,000
From Westminster City Council
88
people have visited this project!
15 rehearsals delivered
26 Elders engaged
10 July 2022
The Glass Flower Society was featured at the Leros magazine for Brazilians living the UK
Leros MagazineA group of 60+ share with the audience their feelings and perceptions about life, death and love.
Church Street Library donated £500
16 Community events created
2 Gigs created
25 July 2022
The Glass Flower Society by Dende Collective
The Reviews HubThe Dende Elders is intended as a tool for participants, creating the opportunity to socialise and, most importantly, to have fun. Classic drama games, such as ‘pass the invisible object’ and ‘dance how you feel’ are employed to create a space of physical freedom and silliness. The participants are unafraid to take dramatic risks, and to make performative decisions off the cuff.
More about our impact
The environment
The project was not planned to have a impact in the environment. However, most costumes, part of the set and prop items were recycles from previous projects we did or borrowed from other theatre companies and theatres since it is part of the Dende ethos to recycle as much as possible. All furniture on stage were borrowed from The Cockpit stock. The main set material were pages of old books which were on sale at the Church Street Library.
The local economy
We bought food from the local shops to feed the group and we hired the The Cockpit which is the local theatre.
Volunteering, jobs & education
We had one volunteer for this project who has been suffering from mental health issues due to a recent traumatic experience and whose participation in the project had a positive impact towards her recovery.
Arts, culture & heritage
The Dende Elders have been working in the Church Street area since 2018 and during this time we performed only once in the local theatre in 2018. This project allowed us to return to the Cockpit for a second time. The elders absolutely love being on stage and every time they do it they want more. The audience's response was also phenomenal and very encouraging. We had good audience numbers considering the short time we had to put the show together and promote it. Age UK representatives came to see to the show and want to support us in 2023. There is both a demand and absence of performance projects by the 60+, which the Dende Elders project meets.
Activity, health and leisure
Theatre is a holistic team activity. All sessions/ rehearsals included a warm up session and games to generate fun and socialisation which are trademarks of the work we do with this age group. Drama requires focus, and memorising lines and physical structures which are challenging for this age group, thus beneficial for participants 60+. We are proud of creating ethical work that stretches and challenges each participant without stressing them, since the work is based on differentiation to suit to each person's circumstances and skills. Our work offers physical and mental activity which foster good mental health and well-being. There were always breaks during the sessions with refreshments and/ or food which offered great time to socialise outside the drama work. Making a show is extremely empowering especially after the show has been received positively as The Glass Flower Society was.
