Get Ben to The Globe

My name is Ben Evans and I am a Year 13 student from Ōtautahi Christchurch. In October last year I was selected to represent New Zealand in London as a member of SGCNZ YSC 2024 (Shakespeare Globe Centre New Zealand Young Shakespeare Company)

I initially competed in the SGCNZ University of Otago Sheilah Winn Shakespeare Festival and was one of only 48 from almost 4000 secondary students selected to take part in the National Shakespeare Schools Production. From NSSP, I was then lucky enough to be chosen with 23 others to join SGCNZ's Young Shakespeare Company for 2024. In July this year the company will travel to London for a 3 week course specifically designed by Globe Education in association with SGCNZ.

Going on this trip is the opportunity of a lifetime for me. As well as the chance to perform on the Globe stage itself, the course involves training and working with some of London's leading theatre practitioners through a number of lessons and workshops. As an actor and a fan of Shakespeare, this opportunity is an honour and a dream come true. The knowledge and skills I will gain from this amazing trip will be immeasurable and I believe the experience will be of huge benefit to me as I look ahead in the next few years to pursuing a career in the performing arts.

To cover all costs of this trip each member of the company must raise $11,500. This includes NZ and International travel and taxes, insurance, course fees, accommodation, meals, theatre tickets and incidental expenses. I have been working, busking, and saving hard over the summer to go towards the costs of the trip, however, I will still need to do some significant fundraising to raise the full amount required.

Since this is an all-or-nothing art crowdfunding platform, I've set a target of $3,000 here in the hope that this is achievable. This would help me significantly and any support is greatly appreciated. Many thanks to everyone for all your support and encouragement so far.