Performing arts schools are more than just an after-school club for young people; it’s a chance to step into the light and get behind the camera. It’s the opportunity to express their creativity and break into the industry they love. However, the spotlight may be looking less and less bright for many young people across the UK, as families are having to pull their children out of their extracurricular activities, due to the cost of living crisis.
PQA (Pauline Quirkie Academy of Performing Arts) was started in 2007 by Pauline and her husband, as they aimed to create a school which would "help people pursue their life dreams, no matter what they may be." Now, 14 years later, they have over 200 academies worldwide. Their schools take on a wide spectrum of children and young people, from ages 4-18, teaching a range of topics from comedy and drama, to musical theatre, to film and television.
Image via PQA
The whole aim of their brand is to help the younger generation express themselves and get their foot in the door in an often competitive industry. However, I could hear the concern in teaching assistant at PQA’s Cheltenham branch, Anya Smith’s voice, as she confessed her fears as their class sizes are beginning to shrink. “Loads of our children have had to drop out due to them not being able to afford it since the rising bill prices. Also, as many do other activities like dance and sport, they’re left having to choose between whether they want to do one extracurricular or the other", she says.
Image via Anya Smith
Anya helps teach across the six classes in the school, previously with around 25 children per group; this number has now gone down by at least 5 people in each class.
According to the Office for National Statistics, inflation has risen by 10.1% in the 12 months leading up to September 2022. In July 2022, one fifth of British households had negative disposable income according to The Asda Income Tracker.
The fees for PQA range from £44 for the younger students, up to £88 per calendar month for the older years, which is a cost many families are struggling to fund with most money needing to go on essentials. Some students get offered scholarships, where they’re able to avoid the fees but this is only for a select few students. According to Anya, "there’s only a certain number of scholarships we can give out. PQA is a big franchise, but we don’t have the money to give it to everyone for free.”
Not only has it added complications for families, but also for staff members as they’ve had to work around their decrease in numbers for their shows. “It’s stressful as we’ve had to recast some of our shows and replace some of the roles, but more than anything it’s just sad for us to see the kids leave.”
Image via @pqabradleystoke on Instagram
Not long after the damaging effects Covid-19 had on the performing arts industry, with box office sales down by 89.3% in the UK, it’s a real worry that the cost of living isn’t going to help its recovery.
Anya shared her fears for the industry's survival in the current situation saying: “The musical theatre industry never really survived after Covid as the government didn’t really do much to support theatres, so they really struggled to start back up.”
Image via @pqabradleystoke on Instagram
With the huge cost of running performing arts companies, she feels they may struggle to keep going.
“Now with the additional cost of living and energy bills rising, obviously theatres have a lot of lighting and backstage tech, I feel like the cost of running it will be very, very expensive. Ticket prices at the moment are already ridiculous so I feel like this industry can’t increase prices more, but I’m not sure where else we could get that money.”
The cost of living is going to affect people up and down the country in more ways than we can think. However, young creatives are often a group more swept under the rug; for an already struggling industry, it’s truly devastating for them to see their students have no choice but to stop following their passion.
Comments