Up to 95 publicly-funded theatres across England are to offer free tickets to young adults as part of a £2.5m government-funded scheme.
From next year until 2011, the theatres will offer free tickets - at least one day each week - to 18 to 26-year-olds on a first-come, first-served basis.
Theatres including London's National Theatre and the Birmingham Rep will be eligible to apply for the scheme.
I think this is an excellent scheme. The National Theatre had a £10 ticket scheme but these mainly go to people who're already theatre goers. They're getting their normally expensive tickets at a discounted price.
Encouraging young people to see lots of different kinds of theatre can only be a good thing. It'd be great if they could give tickets for theatre companies like Frantic Assembly, Forced Entertainment, Shared Experience, Filter and Improbable Theatre- these groups produce awesome theatre that doesn't get seen enough! It's also great that the scheme isn't just for London, the regional theatres are hothouses for excellent theatre.
