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Dateline: 2nd November, 2011
Unicorn Announces the Joanna David Award A new award has just been announced named after the actress Joanna David. The Joanna David Award will be given to a young adult who has proven his or her dedication to theatre but is in need of further support to achieve his or her artistic ambitions and professional development. It will be awarded annually and linked to a specific production at the Unicorn Theatre. The recipient of the award will have the opportunity to work with a professional mentor on a full-scale Unicorn production, in order to be able to take his or her creative aspiration one step further by testing it in a professional context and building a CV. The Unicorn Theatre is the UK's leading theatre for young audiences, now established in its modern purpose built theatre with two auditoria near Tower Bridge where it presents plays by the resident and visiting companies which are aimed at young audiences, from three years olds to late teens. It traces its history back to 1947 when Caryl Jenner set up the Mobile Theatre using a former civil defence van to transport productions around the country taking plays into schools and to children in isolated communities. Over the years and under various names its work expanded and in 1960 Caryl Jenner launched an appeal for £500,000 to create an English Theatre for Children with a permanent theatre building in London. From 1967-1999 the company was based at the Arts Theatre and it was not until 2005, a quarter century after her death, that Caryl Jenner's dream was finally realized and Joanna David, a well-known theatre and television actress with a career spanning forty years, has been centrally involved in the development of the Unicorn for over twenty years and, in announcing the award, the Unicorn declares " her enthusiasm is infectious and her capacity for hard work breath-taking. She encourages everyone she meets and inspires all of us to go further. It is fitting that these same qualities are reflected in the successful candidate who wins the Joanna David Award. " The theatre's new Artistic Director, Purni Morell, and the Executive Director, Anneliese Davidsen, see the Joanna David Award as furthering its commitment to providing young people with the opportunity to become part of the vibrant theatrical heritage of London and the UK. The Unicorn Theatre sets out to create pathways for young people as spectators, drama practitioners and theatre-makers and to developing new audiences. It has a subsidised ticket scheme, ten per cent of audience members attend the theatre for free. As well as producing work specifically for young audiences, the theatre also has an active youth theatre, youth board and Young Company that nurtures artists of tomorrow. To celebrate the Joanna David Award and the new artistic leadership of Purni Morell and Anneliese Davidsen, the Unicorn's Patron, HRH the Duchess of Cornwall, will be hosting a reception at Clarence House for friends of the Unicorn Theatre on Wednesday 16th November when the first winner of the award will be announced. Howard Loxton
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