IT TOOK a lot of courage for Marjorie Ferry to join her local community theatre group.

Dealing with chronic mental health issues, she wasn’t sure if it would be for her.

Fourteen years and 20 productions later (including a trip to perform in Rotterdam at the International Community Arts Festival), she is one of the longest-serving participants of the Citizens Theatre’s Community Collective in the Gorbals.

The Citizens has been such an important part of her life that Marjorie even celebrated her 50th birthday at the venue - and she is very glad she took that first daunting step all those years ago.

“I just happened to be visiting the theatre that day and was invited to join,” she recalls. “I noticed that after each session I felt relaxed and happy. I felt comfortable. It’s a group that encourages and challenges you.”

All kinds of things can bring a community together, and the Evening Times Streets Ahead campaign is keen to showcase and support the projects improving life for Glaswegians all over the city.

Our awardwinning initiative, backed by Glasgow City Council, City Charitable Trust and City Building, puts the incredible men, women and children working hard to improve their local areas for the benefit of all right at its heart. As well as bringing you their stories throughout the year, Streets Ahead celebrates their achievements at an annual awards ceremony in June.

There is funding available too and over the years, we have helped develop and kick-start many projects. Email ann.fotheringham@heraldandtimes.co.uk for a copy of the grant application form.

The Citizens Theatre is celebrating 20 years of community theatre this month. The venue is known internationally for its work in this field and has engaged with hundreds of participants over the last two decades.

Founded in 1999 by Guy Hollands, the theatre’s Learning Associate Director, its first production at the Citizens was Driving Out The Devil, a series of short plays by Bertolt Brecht.

It has gone on to produce 50 community productions, from full-scale plays on the main stage to intimate shows in the circle studio. Participants have also taken part in international festivals in Edinburgh, Sweden and Rotterdam.

As well as sold-out productions with large non-professional casts, the weekly drop-in group, Community Collective, is a central component of the community theatre work and has become a “lifeline” for many of its participants.

Elly Goodman, Community Drama Artist, says: “Community Theatre at the Citizens offers a safe space for people to try new things, meet new people and step out of their comfort zones. We have created a network of individuals who come together to create wonderful performances and make life-long memories.”

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Neil Packham, Community Drama Director, adds: “Participants in our community productions are from all walks of life. We have doctors, teachers, people who work in shops, old people, young people and people who are in recovery or have been referred through the criminal justice system.

“The group means different things to different people – for some it is a lifeline, for others it’s a marker of the end of the week. It’s a supportive group and we tend to laugh a great deal.”

Highlights from the past 20 years include Ice Cream Dreams, in co-production with TAG Theatre Company in 1999 which was the first main stage production; Temptations of Tam in 2012, a co-production with Scottish Opera; A Night to Remember which marked the final performance by the community company before the Citizens Theatre building closed for refurbishment; and On Common Ground, a major participatory event with Debajehmujig Storytellers performed as part of the Glasgow 2014 Cultural Programme.

Noreen Morton, who performed in Ice Cream Dreams, says she hesitated at first before joining the group.

“I was very shy but then I said I’d give it a go,” she explains. “I have never looked back, as it was the best experience of my life. The Citizens is my second home now, and it is my safe house.”

Noreen adds: “It gets better and better every year. I feel more confident and I just don’t want to stop. I’ve been on some journey but it feels like there’s still lots to come.”

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Dominic Hill, Artistic Director, says: “Community theatre has the power to bring us together, to transcend barriers and boundaries and enhance lives. It is at the heart of the Citizens and is intrinsic to our work in the Gorbals.

“The Citizens Learning team delivers a pioneering range of creative participatory projects and world class performance opportunities. I am delighted to be celebrating such a momentous milestone in our history and my hope is that our next 20 years of community theatre activity will be as successful as our first.”

Neil Ritch, Director, National Lottery Community Fund Scotland, said: “National Lottery funding has had a huge impact on communities and on people’s lives for the past 25 years. The Community Collective is a great example of a project using life-changing National Lottery funds to bring people together to discover a new passion, meet new friends and learn new skills.”

Marjorie Ferry, who now volunteers with the Citizens Theatre Learning Team helping to run humour therapy workshops with women at risk of re-offending, sums up how many of the participants feel.

“This group has given me back my dignity,” she says. “It has empowered me to do something that helps others and to feel like I am contributing to society again.”

Is your project Streets Ahead? Tell us about the people in your community who are making a difference – email ann.fotheringham@heraldandtimes.co.uk