30 years of bridging cultural divides have kept TARA busy.
Under the TARA umbrella sprung up Arts Beat which works at involving young people from all sorts of backgrounds in dramatic arts.
Pauline Nakirya an Arts Beat Coordinator said: “Arts Beat aims to get young people interested in theatre.”
The 23-year-old born in Entebbe, Uganda, got involved in Arts Beat last year and has now been put forward for the Wandsworth Young Volunteer of the Year award.
She talked enthusiastically about the company and its ethos of drawing together people of all different cultural backgrounds and ethnicities.
“You meet different people and really build up your confidence.”
At its out set TARA was an Indian company and, according to Ms Nakirya: “It originally adapted Asian plays and put British works, particularly Shakespeare, in an Asian context.”
The emphasis on Shakespeare has become something of a trademark of the company. Last year one of the big projects was a production of the Tempest. Ms Nakirya said: “Shakespeare is a good way for us to understand drama and performance. Shakespeare was a great dramatist.”
Coming up this week Arts Beat are performing an abbreviated version of Macbeth.
They are also running a workshop for school children which started touring schools last week called Bully Richard, based on Richard III. It aims at making Shakespeare more accessible for young people.
Macbeth at the Tara Studio, Earlsfield at 7:30 November 20
