Lauren Heath-Jones | Planet Attractions | 15 Mar 2021
Actor Benedict Cumberbatch has shared his career ‘turning point’ as part of a new campaign for the Theatre Artists Fund (TAF).
Known globally for roles such as Marvel’s Doctor Strange and the BBC’s Sherlock Holmes, Cumberbatch first cut his teeth in the theatre, playing characters such as Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and, famously, both Dr Frankenstein and the Monster - a dual role he shared with fellow actor Johnny Lee Miller - in the National Theatre’s 2011 production of Frankenstein.
Struggling artists
Set up by acclaimed theatre director Sam Mendes, the TAF is aimed at theatre professionals in need of urgent financial support due to the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The fund offers an emergency £1,000 (€1,166, US$1,390) grant to support theatre workers across the UK who have found themselves without work during the pandemic.
“Our ambition for the fund is to provide short-term relief to hundreds of theatre workers and freelancers across the UK, and particularly those from underrepresented groups disproportionately affected by the crisis,” said a spokesperson for the TAF.
Other famous faces backing the scheme include director Sophie Hunter, actor and writer Michaela Coel, and actors Ian McKellen, Dame Harriet Walter, Elaine Paige, Colin Firth, Imelda Staunton, Tom Hiddleston, Maxine Peake, Luke Thompson and Jason Manford.
Applications close at 12pm BST on March 30, for more information go to www.theatreartists.fund
Actor Benedict Cumberbatch has shared his career ‘turning point’ as part of a new campaign for the Theatre Artists Fund (TAF).
Known globally for roles such as Marvel’s Doctor Strange and the BBC’s Sherlock Holmes, Cumberbatch first cut his teeth in the theatre, playing characters such as Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and, famously, both Dr Frankenstein and the Monster - a dual role he shared with fellow actor Johnny Lee Miller - in the National Theatre’s 2011 production of Frankenstein.
Struggling artists
Set up by acclaimed theatre director Sam Mendes, the TAF is aimed at theatre professionals in need of urgent financial support due to the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The fund offers an emergency £1,000 (€1,166, US$1,390) grant to support theatre workers across the UK who have found themselves without work during the pandemic.
“Our ambition for the fund is to provide short-term relief to hundreds of theatre workers and freelancers across the UK, and particularly those from underrepresented groups disproportionately affected by the crisis,” said a spokesperson for the TAF.
Other famous faces backing the scheme include director Sophie Hunter, actor and writer Michaela Coel, and actors Ian McKellen, Dame Harriet Walter, Elaine Paige, Colin Firth, Imelda Staunton, Tom Hiddleston, Maxine Peake, Luke Thompson and Jason Manford.
Applications close at 12pm BST on March 30, for more information go to www.theatreartists.fund
