You Can Take Me Home Toni - AHRC-funded Impact Acceleration Account Study

This impact study aims to investigate the performance project You Can Take Me Home Toni. Delivery of impact activity will allow researchers David Tufnell and Becki Harper, as well as the project creative team, to understand who the project is impacting and how. This will include research activity with project collaborators, participants, and audiences.

Specifically, the study will identify what elements of the performance are communicating and engaging audiences, and whether the costumes are supporting the building of empathy and self-reflection in audience members.

The 2nd stage of impact activity will firstly focus on the impact of the work on new UK fringe audiences. During these events, the team will explore whether the work has similar impacts to the initial audiences. Secondly, it will focus on developing workshop content and approaches to delivery that will have an increased impact on the participants and wider community.

This research will allow the gathering of data to fully evaluate whether the project is hitting its aims and objectives. This activity will therefore inform future creative work, which in turn will improve the quality and impact of future performances and engagement activities, and hence improve the experiences and lives of all those engaged in future projects. The 2nd stage will conclude with a sandpit event for other Tees Valley performance makers and researchers to share the impact findings and best practice.

This activity is particularly important to the team. The Tees Valley is an historically deprived area that will greatly benefit from cultural investment and opportunities. As a predominantly Tees Valley based creative team, it is important we give back to the local region in ways that will help people thrive. This includes contribution towards the professional artist community in Teesside. By making work in the region, utilising local talent, and sharing skills we can organically cultivate the vital infrastructure needed to support both ourselves and others. This will also improve the quality of local artist practice and cultural activities, which will encourage new artists to stay and contribute to the Tees Valley arts and culture community.