New project to help community shape Kirkcaldy’s revamped theatre

Called Relevant: Adam Smith, the initiative will run over the next seven months and will be a mixture of online interaction and face-to-face sessions with regular users of the theatre, people from the wider community and business representatives.

It’s all aimed at making sure the services provided by OnFife at the town’s theatre reflect the needs of the community.

Michelle Sweeney, OnFife’s director of creative development, said: “We want to create a vibrant and creative space at the heart of the community and one that is welcoming and inclusive.

“To help achieve this, we want people’s voices to be heard and Relevant: Adam Smith is a creative consultation project that will work with staff, key stakeholder groups and the wider public to explore the building’s spaces and services.

“It is focused squarely on engaging with people and giving them a platform to have their say about how this much-loved theatre is developed in a way that is relevant to them.

“This in turn will shape our long-term planning and help us make sure the Adam Smith – not just the theatre auditorium but all the spaces in the building – is providing what our community needs and wants.”

The project has its own dedicated website at www.relevantonfife.co.uk, which will carry weekly blogs from guest contributors and regular polls and surveys on a variety of topics relevant to the theatre.

In the new year, there will be a series of workshop-type meetings to work more closely with people and gather more opinions.

“We would love anyone interested in the future of the Adam Smith Theatre to get involved but we also want to hear from people who haven’t used it in the past because it should also be a place that is relevant to them,” said Michelle.

Relevant: Adam Smith is the first of three community engagement projects OnFife will be undertaking in the kingdom after being awarded more than £240,000 from the Creative Scotland Recovery Fund for Cultural Organisations.