Wander into Leicester’s Curve theatre and you might think gravity is playing tricks on you. “You’ll just be walking along and see someone spinning on their head,” says Jim who frequently encounters breakdancers practising in the foyer. “Whenever I walk past, they say, ‘Do you want a go?’” He shakes his head. “I pull a muscle just looking at them!”
Jim, 64, has been volunteering at Curve for four years, checking tickets, giving directions and helping people to their seats. “The show starts as soon as they walk in the door,” he says warmly. “I know that just by having a smile, you can make somebody’s day.” Around the country, theatres are brightened and bolstered by volunteers like him, a too-often uncelebrated group of individuals who offer up time, effort and energy for free.
