Lowie Trevena volunteers on our Heart & Soul project and while she is not helping out on the project she works for the Girl Guides. We asked her to chat to Maia, who is currently studying creative arts therapy at college and is at Trinity for a placement as part of her course.

As part of our Heart & Soul project we are collecting images, stories and archive material and Maia is going to be collecting stories from young people (18 - 30).

Hi Maia, what do you know about Trinity and have you been here before?

Trinity is a venue that does lots of music events, I have been here a Thali wedding in 2015 and Benjamin Zeph, who was really good.

Tell us more about Benjamin Zeph!

My mate got me a ticket and when I got to the Trinity Centre, half my family and friends were already here. It was fun; there was a great energy and I really enjoyed the spoken word. It was powerful, inspiring and I like to write poetry myself, so it was great. There was a mixed crowd, older and younger. It felt like my community was there; I’m from St Paul’s and I’m Bristol born and raised.

How old are you?

26, I’m going to be 27 soon.

Tell us a bit more about yourself

I write poetry, I draw, and I like read: the last book I read was the House of Games by Chris Johnston but my favourite book is How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff. I like punk, drum and bass and rock music. After finishing school, I did a diploma in Media and I really enjoyed the course, so I then did a two-year Media and Moving Image course, and since then I have been making short films for different organisations.

What are you currently studying? I am studying a degree in creative art therapy, so I’m doing lots of drama, dance and working with children in mental health - it is the use of creative arts in a positive and therapeutic way. I chose it as I have always been a creative person. My house mate suggested this evening course which was a taster of the course I do now and I enjoyed it so much that I gave up my full time job in a coffee shop and started studying. That job felt like groundhog day!

What is important to you?

In myself, I am confident and happy, and I want to use my own abilities to help other people to be free, and in the future I want a job where every day is different. It is important to be happy confident and respectful and to work in cohesion with other people. I love being part of a team and being able to get involved and meet new people.

Why did you choose to volunteer at Trinity?

I started off as I have to do a placement to help support a project that is running as part of my course. I went to a networking event at a hotel in Redcliffe and I met a lady called Sally from Macmillan Cancer, and she put me in touch with Karina [Castro, Projects Manager at Trinity] and then it went from there.

Who do you want to interview?

I am looking to reach out to young people from 18 - 30 to ask them questions such as what their your favourite club night is, their best gig and why people like coming to Trinity. I’ll be asking people to be on camera and I’ll be going to lots of gigs and events to speak to people.

If you would like to share your memories of Trinity or speak to Maia, email: tess@3ca.org.uk or call Trinity 0117 9351200 to speak to a member of the Heritage team.

Help us secure Trinity's past, present and future

The Trinity Centre proved the perfect setting for Mark Lanegan’s Bristol gig as the room filled with fans of the veteran blues rocker. A down-to-earth venue with subtle back lighting for this gig and incredible sound.

The crowd was made up of a lot of serious fans of Lanegan and his various collaborations from Screaming Trees and Queens of the Stone Age to his folkier-toned music with Isobel Campbell. This led to a warm welcome for another collaborator of Lanegan’s, Duke Garwood, who is supporting on this tour.

Gardwood, a talented multi-instrumentalist whose music is the British answer to Lanegan’s distinct brand of Americana. Launching into some newer material made for a slow but steady start to Lanegan’s set, with a mellow but appreciative audience but once he hit Nocturne and Bleeding Muddy Water, things started to pick up with some more animated reactions - slow head-banging, sincere fist-bumping and heartfelt sing-a-longs.

Starting off in his signature sunglasses, Lanegan removed this during the set to reveal his wise, lived-in face; There were times when the impact of his wilder early days was visible, from his limp around the stage and his supping of water - not whisky. That unmistakable baritone voice proved the focal point for most songs, with girlfriend Shelley Brien joining him mid set for a few dynamic numbers.

The chemistry between the pair emanated from the stage and she parted with a loving and lingering kiss for Mr Lanegan. By the time the encore ensued, Lanegan demonstrated his staying power and brilliance as a musician - nailing One Way Street, Bombed and I Am The Wolf.

Words: Laura Williams

Pics: Andy Marsh

When someone’s a seasoned old-timer, been going to gigs and festivals for more years than they care to remember, and they come home saying, “That was the best show I’ve ever seen!” you’d be forgiven for taking it with a pinch of salt.

Peaches, however, took that crown. She blew my socks off. And her own.

The costumes (Dancing vaginas - every show needs them. Who knew?) - or, at times, lack of them! - were eye popping.

The crowd were a sea of ecstatic faces, wowed by Peaches’ utter lack of inhibition which was, of course, infectious.

Strangers became dancing partners as we funked the night away; her growling, encompassing, electro punk sound and attitude forcing us all to let it all go. So we did.

This was a night to remember: one for the grand-kids; one for sweet dreams; a unifying spectacle of a night.

Thank you, Peaches, please keep f**king that pain away.

Would you like to write a review of a Trinity gig? Get in touch to find out more!

Our Mighty Groove came to Trinity as part of IGNiTE, 11th November 2016

“What I love is working with people and bringing their talents to reality”.

IF Vicki Igbokwe ever had any concerns about her cv they soon disappeared in 2012 when she helped to create the opening ceremony at the London Olympic Games that captivated TV audiences around the world.

As one of the mass movement choreographers involved in Danny Boyle’s stunning historical presentation, Vicki worked with 200 men, known behind the scenes as the Warriors – 90 per cent of them volunteers – on the moving Industrial Revolution scene.

“Mass movement was what I’d been doing in my career but 2012 was a thousand times more intense,” said 35-year-old Vicki. “I learned so much about myself and so much about people, and it obviously improved my reputation within the industry, being able to work with so many people under so much pressure”.

All the while Vicki – who went on to work at the Winter Olympics in Russia and the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, both in 2014 – was being taken over by the drive to inspire others through dance, audiences as well as performers.

“I see it all as a question of empowerment, whether that is watching a show or attending one-to-one workshop training. Movement for me is another form of communication to make people freer. What I want to do is spend the next five years developing The Head Wrap Diaries and a second show – Our Mighty Groove – rather than make show after show. I want to work smart, not hard.

“There’s a lot of self-sabotage out there with women asking who they are and where they are going in life. There’s pressure in society on women in all their relationships, at home, at work and with their partners. I want them to go and make the life that they want to live.”

Vicki’s campaigning style clearly comes from her own background. Her barrister father died when she was very young and at 14 she had to be carer for her mother - formerly a Labour councillor in Kensal Green - until she passed away in 2009, and her three younger sisters.

That was also the year she set up Uchenna Dance, which “survived on love” and, in Vicki’s case, on some teaching in colleges and universities. “The company would meet every Sunday for a few hours where we rehearsed in a cold studio, followed by some food in Nando’s to heat ourselves up.

“The people I was working with wanted to be performers – growing from six to 15 - and I wanted to be a choreographer, so it worked for all of us on that level. Now we have six to eight in the company, all working as freelancers who work with Uchenna and me on a project to project basis.”

www.uchennadance.com

Review from Theatre Bristol Writers in Residence: Fraisia Dunn

Nine Lives is a one-man show about asylum seeker Ishmael, played by Lladel Bryant, from Zimbabwe and his struggle to gain asylum in Armley. Bryant does a superb job of bringing the character to life, he is animated and convincingly plays Ishmael, and the characters he comes across, with lightness and ease.

The play explores what happens when Ishmael, who is seeking asylum because he is gay, starts the asylum process in Britain. The production focuses on the loss, creation and slippage of identity when faced with such a situation. How much of himself does Ishmael leave in Zimbabwe, how much does he hang onto and how much does he make himself anew?

This production, with beautiful African music introducing new aspects of the story, is a very honest and human account of this confusing, heart breaking and totally transformational time in Ishmael’s life. The script is excellent, the performance strong and honest and the design is elegant. There are no theatrical fireworks here, but there do not need to be, a simple story of Ishmael’s arrival and the difficulty in the decisions he has to make are powerful enough.

The script is written by Zodwan Nyoni, for Leeds playhouse where she was writer in residence in 2014. One of the effective aspects of Ishmael’s story is that it is entirely individual, prompting audience members to realise that asylum seekers are not a homogenous group in the same situation with the same concerns and problems, but each one is a person with their own very particular set of circumstances. Ishmael has to decide if he tells other African asylum seekers about why he is seeking asylum with the knowledge that he might be persecuted by his own countrymen or keep it quiet so he can seek the comfort of those with a shared background.

The narrative never rests, Ishmael is not allowed to settle, his story has no resolution. This echoes the transient, ever changing and never-resolved state that he is in. While he awaits the government’s decision as to whether Britain can harbour him, he has no firm ground to stand on. This production is very pertinent and has a lightness of touch that allows it to transcend the media coverage of this plight and depict one person’s difficult journey to a new start.

Review from Theatre Bristol Writers in Residence: Bella Fortune

She Called Me Mother is a story of distance. Distance caused by travelling from one continent to another. The distance that secrets create. Distance made by time. Distance between generations. Distance as enforced protection when love is lost to broken trust.

Evangeline is waiting, waiting for a woman, waiting for her black swan. Meanwhile she observes passers by. From her spot at London Bridge station she is only really visible to those who choose to see her. She is asking for money, an interaction and kindness in exchange for a magazine. Evangeline recounts moments in her long life that have led her to this place. Her past is set in Trinidad where she held many roles; she was a wife and, most importantly to the tale, she was a mother. She speaks out to us, explaining her history while the figure of a younger woman casually moves around in background like the ghost of a life lost. The figure is the thought at the front of Evangeline's mind, loitering in her present life, unable or unwilling to be shaken off.

When we finally meet this figure we are not surprised to learn that she is Evangeline's daughter Shirley. Through the Shirley we hear a different side to the tale. The gulf of experience between the two women is evident in their accents, use of language and points of view. Deeper secrets are revealed; alcoholism, abuse, protection and neglect. Could more have been done to prevent a lifetime's worth of damage? Once these buried pains are brought to the surface can a broken relationship be fixed?

When the two women come together their focus on us as an audience ceases. Suddenly they occupy the same space, the same place in time and we, the audience, are redundant. We are no longer listening to a story, we are now witnessing a coming together of a bygone relationship. There is something inharmonious about this jump of focus which is followed by an overly drawn out scene of attempted reconciliation that finds the actors vying for emotional one upmanship. However, She Called Me Mother, overall, feels like something of a breakthrough. As a debut play it more than succeeds in giving voice to traumatic experiences in a palatable fashion. Respect and realism are prioritised where the writing and performances could have easily swayed to sentimentality and the question of blame and accepting accountability is, authentically, never fully resolved. There is no fairy tale ending, no wave of a magic wand. But there is life and, for Shirley at least, the chance to live it.

Review from Theatre Bristol Writers in Residence: Bella Fortune

Stand is the product of conversations. The conversations continued long after leaving the Trinity centre, but in silence; an inner-monologue set to my footsteps, set to snippets of strangers passing conversations. Stand made me consider myself, my actions.

It made me proud of that time I stood up to the racist man in the restaurant in Edinburgh and made me see my Mother’s pleasure in witnessing this in a new, brighter light. Stand made me hope that in the future I will be braver in making positive choices and not stop myself due to fear of an unsuccessful ending. Stand made me miss my younger self- the one who could be so riled up about the wrongs of the world.

Stand made my friend sad when she realised later that these were actors, not the activists, performing the verbatim transcript. Stand impressed me that the quality of performance made her think this.

Stand meant I was sure to find a bin to put my cigarette butt in and to feel guilty for all of the discarded ones that came before it and every dropped one that is sure to come. Stand reminded me that I am only human. Stand made me plump-up with pride for people. It made me deflate with despair in humanity.

Stand made me think of my friend who spends weeks, months living in protest sites; of the arrests, beatings, losses and wins. It made me question why I have been so hesitant to join him.

Stand made me wish I’d ordered the vegetarian quiche instead of this open-top ham sandwich but feel a little more at ease that at least the meat is locally sourced. Stand reassured me that standing-up can come in many forms. Stand is simple. It is sensitively, sometimes joyously performed. Stand made me want to know more, to do more. Stand made me want to be better.

Review from Theatre Bristol Writers in Residence: Bella Fortune

Dear Dance Marathon,

Thank you. I know we only spent a few hours together but I wanted to let you know how wonderful you are. Despite my aching calves and mysterious bruise, I miss you. You were a joy to be with. The friends I made through you might not last a lifetime but, for that one, lovely night, they meant so much. You made a team of two from strangers; we laughed, we tried and held on to each other.

At first I thought you were too good to be true and in a way I was right. Your trickery at first was subtle but once I realised the kindness in your lies I knew I had to forgive you. For some you made them feel inadequate; for others you gave them the courage to shine. And even though we floundered and fell, after knowing you for such a short time we all became champions. Even when our number was up we spurred each other on. Even when you stripped me of my purpose; an indignity which led me to the regrettable act of betraying my sister, still then, I fought on.

I saw so much through you. I witnessed amateurs evolve into experts. I saw kindness morph into competitiveness. I sensed strangers becoming friends and family turn into temporary enemies. You made me race to the finish line, flail in an attempt to regain my status, squish my sweaty body against an unknown other. And even though you may have turned me into a loser, well, I forgive you. You showed me humility; the sigh of relief in letting go of hopes of a trophy and cheering for our new, winning, friends.

So thank you Dance Marathon. Thank you for the fun, thank you for the music. Thank you for the artistry, thank you for the effort; I'm sure you must be tired so please go a take long and well deserved rest.

But know that - If we meet again - I'm on to you. And as I have already proved, I'm not above doing whatever it takes to leave our next night together as your dancing queen.

Love and very, very sweaty hugs,
Your not-so-bitter Loser.

The Misfits Theatre Company and our members have benefited greatly from the relationship we have established with Trinity Community Arts.

Through Trinity providing subsidized hall space for us, we have been able to put on social events for people with learning disabilities over the last 8 years.

It is very hard for someone with a learning disability to have a normal social life. So with Trinity helping us put on full on monthly nightclubs is amazing. We have nearly  200 people dancing the night away at each Rhythm of the Night event and it is getting bigger and better. Join us on the last Thursday of the month and see for yourself...everybody is welcome!

2017 has been the best so far and we are thinking of inviting DJs and musicians with disabilities to perform at these social events, as we did with Plymouth's Funky Llama in 2016.

Trinity has supported these successful nightclubs with staff time, facilities and equipment. This partnership approach has been rewarding for everyone.

We have also seen from their wider community work that Trinity is committed to being a centre for the people of Bristol. Trinity has made a fantastic use of a valuable building and given it a new lease of life.

Tony Holdom, Creative Director, Misfits Theatre Company UK.

We have run our annual hooping event, SWhoop at The Trinity Centre for several years and have enjoyed a great relationship with the staff here. Our work engages the local hoop community as well as the best of talent across the world. It is important to us to show-off our wonderful city in a strong, grassroots ethical organisation. Our Show case event at the end of the weekend features a demonstration of another Trinity community partner, Bristol Samba and is a great success each time. 

We have enjoyed excellent relationships with the staff here, whose flexibility and professional conduct have helped us sustain a strong continuity of delivery.

We have appreciated over the years the terrific improvements made to the infrastructure and to the increased services to the community. The grand opening of the first floor dance/theatre space was a vibrant event and drew a wide cross section of the community, including the Mayor.

We have great pleasure in supporting the work of Trinity.

Drs Stephen Robins & Emma Kerr, SWhoop

This gig really was something for the dedicated Damonite. Tickets sold out in 3 minutes as a fan club only event, and he did not disappoint his core following. Starting with two new tracks - Lonely Press Play and the album title Everyday Robots, Albarn then took his audience through a back catalogue tour of Blur, Gorrilaz, The Good, The Bad and The Queen, as well as the joyous Rock Juice and The Moon Song.

Damon Albarn is a master of smaller, independent, venues. His engaging style and warmth fills even the cosiest of venues, but you never get the feeling his ego or acoustic prowess will extend beyond the walls of this intimate, gothic, Bristol setting. This engagement did however extend into the consciousness of the audience that night, with everyone a riding high on a sense that the former Blur frontman will remember the evening as much as the punters as he blasted out Last Living Souls accompanied by his band, The Heavy Seas.

Next came the dedication of the Gorrilaz’s number Slow Country to Massive Attack which harked back to not only the venues status as the birthplace of the Bristol Sound, but also to alluring atmosphere that has drawn in the aforementioned trip-hop artists and The Prodigy amongst others. Securing these acts is a result of Trinity’s strong musical heritage, and the passion for the intimate, incognito, atmosphere that artists of the calibre of Damon Albarn obviously have.

His crowd pleasing encore involved an 8 strong gospel choir from East London, who supported 2 new songs; Mr Tembo and Heavy Seas of Love. But what got the crowd romping and jumping was a version of Gorillaz’s Clint Eastwood that featured Bristol-based paramedic K*Ners, who when he is not rescuing the sick, rescued the hip-hop sections of the song due to a last minute drop out of Damon’s preferred Snoop Dogg wannabe.

It was refreshing to see Albarn finish on the soporifically sombre - This is a Low, which was both the low note, and the high point, of this particular performance.

Review by John Barker, Trinity Trustee

Image by www.lifelivephotography.com

Thu 20^th March 2014

LA’s Banks ploughs a polished furrow in deeply personal themes delivered as powerful sultry vocals over often fervently moody electronica.

On this UK tour she has been joined by LuckyMe’s resident DJ and darling of Rinse FM and Radio One, Eclair Fifi, here ushering in the audience with a selection that mines the seam where r’n’b meets bleeding edge, post-dubstep production. It’s an at once accessible and thrilling alliance - and the perfect fanfare for a visiting artist that has leant so heavily on the production values of the UK’s taste-making underground.

Taking the stage to sinister scene-setter Before I Ever Met You, backlit and misted in dry ice, the slight American cuts a gothic silhouette as she sashays back and forth from the shadows.

On stage, Banks is flanked by two musicians, one at a drum kit, the other alternating between keys and guitar, augmenting the backing track. There is a synergy at play here, and with a lighting production that perfectly encapsulates the intensity of her sound, the show is at once intimate and powerful.

Following the haunting This Is What It Feels Like Now the more upbeat Change reveals a little of the true vocal power our host can wield. Then just when it seems the whole evening might be trotted out in the same vain she lets rip on Brain.

Perhaps because this is the first night of the tour, from this point we see a more relaxed and confident performance. We are treated to a debut airing and a little more in the way of conversation as the mood gradually lightens through Warm Water towards something of a soulful, even sunny, groove.

The dark and light of ‘Waiting Game’ brings the night full circle before our host announces her last of the evening is to be another 'world premier', a mild disappointment of crude r’n’b-informed pop, perhaps hinting at a more American aesthetic for the forthcoming album.

This would be a shame, for us in the UK at least, as it is through the unapologetic intelligence and atmospherics of her material to date that she stands a greater longevity in hearts and minds over here.

by Mark Edmundson

Low are a glimmer of hope in the sunset of a dying culture. Their two decades of patiently aching songs have provided a constant reference point for integrity, meditative rage and tenderness. Song titles are brief, lyrics are sparsely elusive and profoundly allusive. Spirituality, disquiet, death, and the search for unity pour out of chord shifts, harmonies and melodies - unrecognised or not. Low are a lot more than minimalists. Their gracious performances invite deep involvement and their songs present brilliantly uncomfortable questions and precious few answers.

Tonight in Bristol their sound was deep and loud (especially in "Monkey" from The Great Destroyer). Steve Garrington's bass was almost cruel in its precision and resonance. Alan Sparhawk's guitars roared when they weren't whispering. He was in truculent communion with the universe, expressing his normal laconic wit in wordless gestures and physical moves. "For your boys in Dubai…" was his shrugged opening line, introducing the unsettling "Plastic Cup" from the new album. He is a very handsome man.

Mimi Parker sang her songs and harmonies as beautifully as only she can, repressing something that wasn't being said by giving nothing away. Sixteen songs and two encores were presented – and they were all magnificent. The Trinity audience were reverentially silent (and the last words of the last song "I Hear Goodnight" were whispered – but every bit as audible as the shrugs)

The new album "The Invisible Way" was threaded through some of the best know classics like "Canada" and "Walk Into The Sea". The new songs maintained the high quality and intensity that Low's admirers expect. Trinity's audience were spellbound throughout .

Hibronix, a project of David Blumberg, formerly of Yuck, opened the evening with three big pieces of slurred and slowed Sparklehorse-like drone , supported on two by sidemen Sparhawk and Garrington. ("my backing band", he quipped) . What a very good night it was.

Sam Saunders

In December 2008 Trinity collaborated with The Wonder Club to produce a spectacular site specific promenade theatre performance At Tether's End. The show was inspired by the true story of a local young man William Pullin who tragically stabbed a police man, PC Richard Hill, to death. The show was part of the Bristol Sound Project and featured artwork, set and performances from a large number of young people working alongside professional artists from Bristol.

The show was a resounding success with tickets sold out every one of the six nights the show ran for. It also received a 4/5 star review from Steve Wright in Venue magazine as well as an excellent write up in The British Theatre Guide. Read the reviews here.

After a brief break Trinity are pleased to offer a new theatre training course run by the director of At Tether's End. For more information please visit our home page.

Click here to read more about our current projects.