WHAT'S ON

WTF Thursdays: WTF is a Trade Union?

Do you really know what a trade union is? Come and learn how trade unions work, and how they can help you. Stupid questions encouraged!

Ever wonder what a trade union really does for artists?

Many freelance artists have a lot of misconceptions and misunderstandings about trade unions.

In this session, we’ll break down:

The basics of the trade union movement.
What Equity does to support artists.
How we can build solidarity as a community of artists

Join us for an interactive session with Equity staff and members of the Equity Dance Committee. Share your concerns and get your questions answered.

No question is too simple or too silly—bring your curiosity!

Event details

27 February 2025

7:00 pm - 9:00 pm

Free, booking required

Please note, we are on the second floor, accessed by a staircase only. Regrettably the studios are not wheelchair accessible.

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About the Hosts

Sam Burkett (they/them)

Known for being both highly creative and extremely sweaty, Sam’s work runs the emotional gamut from happy to sad to hungry to gay. Their work has been shown in theatres across the UK and in the US, and their solo show, Crop Tops Make Me Feel Vulnerable, won the Best of Anything Goes Award at the 2018 Houston Fringe Festival.

As a movement director, Sam specialises in working with comedians: helping them to develop their stage presence and physicality and giving them tools to develop new material and engage audiences. Sam also runs movement workshops across London for improvisers, stand ups, and other comedians who want to connect what they say and what they do on stage.

Sam’s been a member of the Equity Dance Committee since 2021.

Instagram: @samburkettdance

About Equity:

Equity is the performing arts and entertainment trade union. It’s made up of 50,000 performers and creative practitioners. We are actors, comedians, dancers, designers, directors, puppeteers, singers, stage managers, variety performers and voice artists. For more than a hundred years we’ve been pushing for better pay, terms, and conditions.

Instagram: @equityuk @equitydance

Accessibility

Please note, we are on the second floor of a warehouse building, accessed by a staircase only. We regret that we cannot currently adequately support wheelchair users and those for whom stairs are a barrier.

We are committed to removing other barriers to access. If you would like to talk to us about your access needs, please contact: frances@chisenhaledancespace.co.uk. Read more about our commitments to anti-ableism as part of our Artist Community Culture Document

About WTF Thursdays

WTF Thursdays is a space creating possibilities for community-building amongst artists. Each evening, CDS hands over the keys to the building for an artist to host an event in the spirit of low-stakes, DIY action. If you would like to host an evening, click here for more info.

WTF Thursdays: WTF is a Trade Union?

Event details

About the Hosts

Accessibility

About WTF Thursdays

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