Creative arts college students band together to form first ever cross university Jsoc
Lights, camera, community action for Italia Conti, Rose Bruford and East 15 drama schools
Forty two students drawn from creative art universities across the UK have taken the spotlight into their own hands to form the first ever ‘Artistic Industry JSoc’.
Creative arts hubs like RADA, Rose Bruford, Central, Guildhall, Italia Conti, Bird and Mountview have only a handful of Jewish students in each year.
Seizing the initiative, Amelia Kay (Italia Conti, BA Musical Theatre), Nicole Petar (Rose Bruford, BA Stage Management) and Emily Grossman (East 15 drama school, BA Acting and Physical Theatre), decided to take action to ensure they had a Jewish home away from home.
Through the power of social media, they discovered dozens of other Jewish students across the myriad of smaller colleges that make up the creative arts’ educational community.
Amelia Kay, president of Artistic Industry JSoc, said: “For years Jewish performing arts and creative students at non-traditional institutions have not had access to a JSoc. We as a trio, felt it was time for a change. We missed the tight knit community that we grew up in and in light of the last couple years wanted to create a safe space for Jewish creative students to meet, socialise and network.”
Nicole Petar, vice president of operations said: “We felt it was about time that Jewish students at drama schools had a community to lean on. Often there are less than a handful of Jewish students at performing arts colleges which can on occasion be quite lonely, especially since October 7.”
Emily Grossman, vice president of marketing said: “Through the events that we will organise, we hope that this community can help creative Jewish students meet like-minded people and help to combat the feelings of loneliness that lots of Jewish students feel when there isn’t a Jewish community at their institution.”
A spokesperson for the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) told Jewish News: “Drama schools are vibrant spaces for creativity, but for Jewish students, they can sometimes feel isolating, especially during times of heightened antisemitism. When I was a student at drama school, I could only hope for a community that understood the unique challenges of being Jewish in the arts. The establishment of the Artistic Industry JSoc is a significant step forward, and UJS is committed to supporting its growth and the needs of Jewish students across the theatre and arts community.”
- The first event will be a welcome picnic at Regents Park. For more information, including contact details for the JSoc, please get in touch with UJS or click here.
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