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UK Shared Prosperity Fund (SPF) / Creative Futures – MonLife

Creative Futures – MonLife

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Creative Futures – MonLife

Communities and Place

Creative Futures allows time and space to develop creative work and creative practice with young people. It is a collaborative programme that supports local arts activity and importantly gives young people a voice in its development. The programme consists of Bespoke Youth Arts sessions/Interventions and the establishment of a Monmouthshire Youth Theatre.

Email: katherinemcdermidsmith@monmouthshire.gov.uk

Visit Website > CREATIVE FUTURES – Borough Theatre Abergavenny

Summer Showcase

Creative Futures run a series of term-time and holiday workshops for young people aged 11 – 25 years.

‘The Visitors’ performance was the culmination of 4 months work by a group of 11 -19-year-olds from in and around Abergavenny.  The group met once a week, and used personal and shared experiences to form the basis of an original 1 hour devised piece.  The sessions encouraged young people to express their concerns and ideas through theatre and develop narratives that highlight their experiences and convey their perspectives.

Young people were challenged to work together and, given the space and support, open up their imaginations; “I felt like I could really share my ideas and everyone was really understanding” said one performer.  “I was scared I would be judged, but here, I’ve been more confident than ever” said another.

The final performance took place at The Borough Theatre on July 25th 2024, with a great response from an audience made up of friends, family and a huge number of local creative practitioners and organisations.

“The performance was testament to the way the young people had opened up, trusted each other and the facilitators.  It was a big show to take part in, with some of the young people having no previous experience of performing, but they all did magnificently” said Katherine McDermid-Smith, project producer.

The group are currently working on their next piece to be performed in Spring of 2025

To find out more about Shared Prosperity funding in Monmouthshire, visit: UK Shared Prosperity Fund (SPF) – Monmouthshire

These projects are [funded/part-funded] by the UK government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.