Rise Youth Dance take part in a workshop with Uchenna Dance at Trinity as part of IGNiTE. Photo @ KoLAB Studios.

Arts Council England have awarded a grant to Bristol Dance Futures - a consortia of South West arts organisations and practitioners - to develop the city’s dance offer. The group is working together to grow investment in dance, and includes Mel Scaffold (Theatre Bristol), Rhiannon Jones (Trinity Community Arts), Kieran Swann (Arnolfini), Nic Young (Circomedia), Helen Cole (In Between Time) and independents Laïla Diallo, Katy Noakes and Lauren Scholey.

The partnership is pleased to announce Deborah Baddoo has joined the project as Producer to lead this development and develop Bristol’s regional and national profile as home for dance. Deborah is a performer and choreographer, also artistic director of State of Emergency productions - a performance and production company supporting the development of Black dance, choreography and performing arts nationally and internationally. In 2010 she was awarded an MBE for services to British dance. Talking of her appointment as project lead, Deborah said:

“I am delighted to take up the position of Producer with Bristol Dance Futures and to help to develop the impact of dance in the exciting city of Bristol. As an experienced producer in dance working nationally, but based in the South West, I have been aware of the breadth and quality of dance in Bristol for many years and of all the hard work that has gone before in order to reach the point we are at now. Dance in Bristol is now at a pivotal point and I embrace the challenge of working with Bristol Dance Futures Steering Committee to raise the profile of dance in Bristol and to deliver the exciting Moving Bristol dance programme” Deborah Baddoo

Mel Scaffold, CEO of Theatre Bristol who helped to launch the project said, “It is a joy to announce that we are working with Deborah Baddoo to deliver this exciting project. The city is home to a huge community of talented dancers, along with thousands of people who watch and take part in dance every year. Moving Bristol will build on the passion and commitment of these communities, and the organisations who nurture them, with the aim of creating a city where every body can move and be moved by dance.”

Through a two-year funded project, the partners will work together to develop a wide range of dance activity across Bristol. This will include the announcement of three focused Dance Hubs to support Dance & Health, Young People and Audience. There will also be opportunities for dancers to take on residencies in a range of cross-sector settings in 2020-2022.

Watch this space or get in touch with Deborah Baddoo on: dancefutures@theatrebristol.net for more information

Uchenna Dance deliver a dance workshop at Trinity in 2018. Photo @Khali Ackford

Trinity is pleased to announce that, as part of the Bristol Dance Futures ‘Dance Connect’ programme, five Bristol-based dance practitioners will be funded to undertake year-long residencies in organisations across the city.

The residencies are an opportunity for practitioners, organisations and communities to collaboratively develop a programme of dance activity. Artists will explore and develop ways that dance can be enjoyed and experienced by new and existing audiences and participants across the city.

'It was great to see such high-quality applications and be part of the selection process with a different perspective from the health sector'

Karen Lloyd, Active Ageing Bristol

To ensure a wide range of voices and perspectives helped select the Dance Connect Residencies, the project's Producer Deborah Baddoo invited Karen Lloyd from Active Ageing Bristol and Zannah Chisolm, Artistic Director and CEO Pavilion Dance South West to sit on the selection panels, alongside members of the Dance Futures steering group including independent artist Deepraj Singh.

With the COVID-19 pandemic likely to exacerbate impacts of pre-existing health conditions, two projects will look at the importance of using dance to improve and support good emotional wellbeing and health:

Lerato Dunn will work will work with Southmead Development Trust and Sirona Care to explore how dance can contribute to the physical and emotional health, with the aim to develop a ‘Dance on Prescription’ model that can support vulnerable people.

Rachel James, who leads Dance For Parkinson's at Trinity, will be working with Fresh Arts to create a high-quality dance programme supporting the recovery of elderly and frail patients, designed to help them to get home quicker.

Trinity will be working with both Lerato and Rachel to programme activity in our role as the Arts & Health Dance Hub for the project.

The following collaborations will see artists connecting with new communities strengthening dance participation beyond the city centre:

Penny Caffrey and Helen Wilson will be collaborating with Filwood Community Centre to create a number of different ‘dance happenings’ to promote a positive sense of place within communities.

Katy Noakes will be working with Knowle West Media Centre explore ways to bridge the gap between street and contemporary dance in Bristol.

Dance Connect is an initiative by Bristol Dance Futures - a consortia of Bristol arts organisations and independent artists, that aims to create a vibrant dance ecology across the city, so people of all ages can engage with high-quality dance.

Dance Connect is supported by funding from Arts Council England

Lady Like by Ella Mesma, programmed as part of IGNiTE at Trinity.  Photo @Jessica Bartolini

Bristol Dance Futures are offering £8,000 for four Dance Connect Artist residencies. The residencies will see artists work in collaboration with Bristol based organisations, with the aim to see how dance practise could enrich a working environment and to exchange learning.

Dance Connect is an initiative by Bristol Dance Futures and aims to nurture talent, provide continuing professional development opportunities for dancers, and create a vibrant dance ecology so people of all ages can engage with high quality dance.

The Dance Connect initiative will embed four dance artists in Bristol’s arts, cultural and community organisations for 40 days, over a period of up to 11 months from November 2020

To apply now* please complete the Full Partnership Application form addressing the aims and the assessment criteria below.

(*Please note applications will only be accepted from those who have completed an Expression of Interest form. You can also download the Full Partnership Application form as a PDF here and the Guidelines and Assessment criteria here)

For more info please contact Deborah Baddoo - dancefutures@theatrebristol.net

Dance Connect Aims:

• Raise the profile of dance within individual organisations and more broadly within the cultural sector
• Embed the value of dance and the contribution dance artists can make within and across organisations - strengthen Bristol’s dance ecology and lever more support for dance
• Better equip organisations to work with dance artists
• Create opportunities for critical dialogue between organisations, dance artists and audiences
• Provide opportunities to test, grow and change the practice of individual dance artists, people working within organisations and the wider sector
• Create models of working which can be sustained beyond the period of this initiative

Criteria for Assessment:

• Experience in working within their chosen field of activity
• Imaginative and ambitious nature of the application
• Specificity of ideas
• Potential for impact of the residency
• What difference the residency will make to the artists' and organisations' practice
• Potential for legacy after the residency has ended
• Ideas on how they might share the impact of the Dance Connect residency

Full Partnership Application deadline 5pm 13th November 2020

Roxana Vilk's Lullabies Celebration Day. Photo credit Khali Ackford

The past few years have been a testing time for our industry. Looking to the future, we want to change how we work together in Bristol and the South West — as a small group of venues, we have started thinking about how as a collective we might find moments in the year to link our pathways and programmes for artists, celebrating and sustaining them alongside platforming their work in the places they call home.

Throughout March, join us in exploring what a connected city offer for theatre-makers might look like. Co-delivered by Trinity, Bristol Old Vic, Tobacco Factory Theatres and The Wardrobe Theatre and with input from many others, Connecting the Dots is a joined-up initiative piloting how we can work together to present and cross-promote shows, free workshops, meetups, residencies and open forums for artists and audiences here in the South West.

This is a pilot – a work-in-progress, even. It’s the beginning of an idea pulled together at pace with a want from all of us to build for the future. The initiative will have events that take place in-person and a small digital programme. We want to know what you think of it and to hear your feedback and your ideas for what this could become.

With love, Trinity, Bristol Old Vic, The Wardrobe Theatre & Tobacco Factory Theatres.

Important information

We will gladly book interpreters and/or captioning for any events as needed. If you have booked for an event and require interpretation, captioning, or another access adjustment, please email and we will book it.If possible, please give us at least 5 day’s notice so we can ensure captioners/interpreters are available.

All rooms are wheelchair accessible via lift and have access to accessible and gender neutral toilets.

These workshops are offered for free but if there we have a limited number of stipends available for those that might experience financial barriers to attendance. This could go towards travel, your time, etc. To request one, drop us an - stipends will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis.

Find out more

Head to Bristol Old Vic's website to find out more about the programme of activity by following this link.

We are excited to launch our Spring Theatre and Arts programme at Trinity that offers audiences an exciting exploration of themes around counterculture and alternative lifestyles, queer untold stories, creative play and the power of movement.

The programme kicks off with Igloo on 16 Feb. Igloo is a non-verbal, playful theatrical experience filled with warmth, sensation and gentle exploration, suitable for babes in arms and pre-schoolers aged 0-3 accompanied by their carers. As part of each performance there will be a facilitated play session. The performance is non-verbal, but the play session contains some words. Audience members will also be given an Igloo picture book and other creative ideas to enable families to continue with creative play at home. Igloo is originally a Travelling Light and Bristol Old Vic co-production. Spaces are very limited, click here to sign up.

Later in February, on 23 Feb, we have Kill The Cop Inside Your Head, a theatre piece from spoken word and performance artist Subira Joy, exploring their experiences of being targeted by the police as a Black, queer and trans person in the UK. Combining striking visual imagery with powerful language, this new work examines the impact of the police in our communities and how we internalise their role to repress and suppress ourselves into submission. This is a rescheduled event, originally scheduled for November 2023. Click here to get your tickets.

Full Bloom Festival of dance for and by older people returns to Trinity on 16-17 Mar. Throughout the day, participants can take part in artistic workshops and dance performances including matinee and evening performances showcasing the work of Gerry's Attic Dance Company, a resident dance company who run weekly sessions at The Trinity Centre. Click here to get your tickets.

Closing out our Spring Theatre and Arts season, we have Roadside on 05 April, a solo theatre show inspired by interviews with roadside dwellers across the South West and drawing on the musical history of this new traveller community, from festivals to free parties, to songs around the fire. Click here to get your tickets for Roadside.

Darren Pritchard’s Rent Party was programmed as part of our IGNiTE theatre and dance Spring Season.

Maya Ilogu, aspiring actor and Bristol resident has been blogging about coming along to our IGNiTE performances and workshops this Spring. Read her latest instalment on Darren Pritchard’s Rent Party, that we like to call ‘come dance at Rent Party, even though you’ve not done this type of thing before’.

Over to Maya:

On the 16th March I attended both the workshop and performance of Rent Party. When I arrived I went straight into the main theatre; which was where the workshop was being held.

"As a person of colour living in the UK the show was relatable and they talked about a lot of issues in the UK"

During the workshop I learnt some choreography which I found out was going to be a part of the performance. This is something I didn’t expect to be doing and I don’t have a lot of experience but it was really fun to learn and to be a part of. We learnt the choreography step by step and rehearsed with the performers. The performers were doing it with us and so we had someone to follow if we were unsure of the steps. It was all fun and not taken serious. We had to keep the fact that we are going to be a part of the performance a secret to make it look like a flash mob.

I really liked the choreography - it wasn’t too complicated and was fun to learn and do. we went out to the main entrance just before the show was about to start. The performance began; it was set out like a rent party, party games, music and dancing which meant you couldn’t help but want to join in.

In the show they each told their own story and experiences of growing up in the UK as a person of colour and the issues they had to overcome. We were given play money which we would give to the performer we thought deserved the money at the end.

The show in general was inspiring and gave me motivation to get to where I want to be. Something I really like about the performance was that it was really energetic, fun and everyone could get involve. As a person of colour living in the UK the show was relatable and they talked about a lot of issues in the UK but they didn’t always say them in a serious way which meant they kept to the theme of their performance.

This performance was appealing to everyone and was nothing like I had ever seen before. Before I came to the workshop and performance I didn’t know what to expect other than it was going to have a party vibe and there was going to be music and dance. So I was excited to see what was going to happen.

From a young person’s perspective, who wants to get into acting and performance, it was great to take part in and learn from. I learnt new choreography and gained confidence in performing infront of others. I got a better understanding of different types of performances.

You can read more of Maya's blogs over here.

IGNiTE is supported using public funding by Bristol City Council and by the National Lottery through Arts Council England

Save money with thousands of discounted tickets and offers in the Bristol and Bath 24-hour culture flash sale from 10 am tomorrow (Thursday 17 January).

Windows of Displacement (23 March) explores Issues surrounding migration, home, borders and identity - some of the biggest questions of our time. Photo credit @Ashley Karrell

From music, theatre, art and museum exhibitions to Planetarium shows and theatre classes, there are deals galore. Take a punt on something new, grab a bargain and kick off your year with a barrow-load of amazing culture. This is the 10th edition of the Culture Flash Sale, which this time sees over 20 organisations from across Bristol and Bath offer culture fans amazing discounts and deals to help beat the January blues.

Save 20% on Benjamin Zephaniah (16 May) tickets during the flash sale

Grab yourself 20% off selected IGNiTE and live music shows by using the code: FLASH20 at the check out - there is only a limited number of tickets available at this very special Flash Sale discount so do-not miss out!

TECH N9NE 2 Feb 7:00 PM

Slum Village (LIVE) X Abstract Orchestra 7 Feb 7:00 PM

Fat Blokes – Scottee 20 Feb 7:30 PM

Confessions of a Cockney Temple Dancer - Shane Shambhu Sun 10 March 7:30 PM

Windows of Displacement - Toussaint To Move 23 March 7:30 PM

Benjamin Zephaniah & The Revolutionary Minds Thu 16 May 7:00 PM

Don't forget to use the code FLASH20 at the checkout to get 20% of these selected shows

Other highlights from the sale include 20% off selected tickets at Bristol Old Vic (link will be live at 10am 17 Jan) , discounted tickets to SS Great Britain's Late Nights and 50% of selected gigs at Lakota (use code 50OFF).

Roots of Rumba is coming to Trinity on July the 6th! The Afro-Latin dance festival, curated by fomer IGNiTE artist in resident Ella Mesma features shows that stand for representing the diversity of dances of the African Diaspora.

The line-up includes performances by Sandra Passirani, Latisha Cesar, RJC, Franck Arnaud-Lusbec, Iris de Brito and Myriam Gadri. In “Mine Or Theirs”, Sandra Passirani reflects on her own identity and body as a queer woman of colour. The performance invites the audience to realise how social constructs smother and bend the beauty and sacredness of womanhood.

Franck Arnaud-Lusbec’s “Di-Osmosis” celebrates his Martiniquan roots and how these have shaped and still shape who he is today. Through his performance, he explores how his origins harmoniously blend with his eagerness to discover other cultures to form a perfect osmosis. “Uprooting”, performed by Iris De Brito, is a work in progress centred around the family bonds severed through migration and immigration. The show sheds light on how forced movement creates new identities and trauma that reflect through generations.

Myriam Gadri’s dance piece “The Lost Goddess” depicts the unexpected awakening of the Lady of the River, after a hundred years of ceremonial attempts to break her sleep, Further unexpected events follow and lead two women to eventually discover they are stronger and more in tune with the elements when they coexist.

For further information about the different performances and artists, and to book tickets click here.

All proceeds this time will be donated to the Somerset Eel Recovery Project - a grassroots charity working to protect and bring European eels back to the Somerset Levels. Once plentiful across the Somerset Levels, this migratory fish is now registered as critically endangered throughout its range. Their last event raised just over £400 for Trees For Life and before that raised £1000 for Somerset Wildlands Trust.

If you've never been to a ceilidh before, don't worry. There will be a caller on hand to tell you all the steps. Fancy dress as your favourite native wildlife is non-compulsory but very much encouraged. There will be a prize for the best dressed. However, bear in mind that riotous ceilidh dancing means that you will want to keep layers and extra potentially-eye-gouging-apendages to a minimum. Trainers/ comfortable shoes are highly recommended.

Timings: 
Doors open: 7.00pm
Ceilidh begins: 7.30 pm
Ceilidh ends: 10:30 pm
Venue closes: 11.00 pm

Image: Sould and Cells

We are thrilled to announce our Autumn Theatre and Arts programme, a dynamic exploration of grassroots social justice which celebrates underrepresented voices and shares untold stories from Bristol and beyond.

“This season is an ode to the underrepresented voices and cultures that make up our social fabric, redefining and exploring contemporary arts through the lens of social justice.” Esther Afikiruweh, Combined Arts Producer, Trinity

The series features film screenings, spoken word performances, theatre and dance and kicks off with an immersive audio trail, 'Duppy Hunter: A Local's Guide to St Paul's' on 03 Oct. Audiences are invited to embark on a playful exploration of St. Paul's, assuming the role of Duppy Hunters in pursuit of an elusive spirit hidden amongst the streets and sights of this vibrant neighbourhood. This unique ‘listening experience’ is a collaboration between Trinity and the renowned Tamasha Theatre Company whose work supports both emerging & established Global Majority artists and arts organisations Coney who create playful digital experiences.

On 12 October, we welcome community artists Carlota Matos and Hiba Elhindi, who, in collaboration with the refugee and asylum seeker support charity Borderlands, will host 'Theatre of Migration'. This evening promises engaging panel discussions, screenings, and sharings, delving into the world of participatory theatre and the ethical considerations of creating theatre based on lived experiences, particularly from the perspective of refugees and asylum seekers.

The powerful documentary, 'I am Judah', will be screened on 20 October. The film tells the poignant story of Easton resident Ras Judah, who was unjustly tasered by the police in 2017. Despite a criminal trial, the officer responsible was found not guilty, and in September 2018, she was also cleared of misconduct. "I Am Judah" critically examines this case, giving voice to Judah as a community elder and shedding light on the broader issue of police injustices affecting many others.

Returning to Trinity on 05 November, dance artist Akeim Toussaint Buck and Crystal Zillwood present their performance, 'Souls and Cells'. This mesmerising showcase delves into themes of heritage, ancestry, and moments of inter-connectiveness through the medium of movement, dance, and sound.

As a culmination of the season, we join forces with the Afrika Eye film festival on 17 November for the 17th festival edition. Together, we will present a screening of 'Neptune Frost', the 2022 science fiction romantic musical film co-directed by Saul Williams and Anisia Uzeyman, alongside performances from spoken word artists.

Our Autumn Theatre and Arts programme promises to be a season of thought-provoking and inspiring events, celebrating diversity, social justice, and artistic expression. Join us as we elevate underrepresented voices and share powerful stories that resonate with the many communities who live in Bristol.

About Trinity Presents:

This is part of Trinity Presents - our in-house programme of music and performance, bringing world-class artists and emerging talent to inner-city audiences.

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.

Sound on for this film of Let Us Dance....

Back last year we teamed up with Arnolfini and young female dancers to takeover institutional spaces. Running alongside the ‘Still I Rise’ exhibition, a large scale exhibition that documented women’s experiences and acts of resistance in the last 150 years, Let Us Dance invited young dancers from across the city to take over a space with Flash Mob style dances.

We will be continuing to programme dance activity throughout 2020 as part of the #MovingBristol Dance Hubs project. Keep an eye out on our website for activity you can get involved in, including Dance Classes for Women who have experienced or currently experiencing cancer.

Come journey with us through historical moments from brilliant inventors to visionary artists and experience live music and imaginative storytelling.

Jumping from the past into the boundless possibilities of Afrofuturism.

Let hidden history inspire our future.

This is a free workshop open to children of all ages, walk ups encouraged.

Adventures in Black History is led by Emile Clark in collaboration with Tidal Tales Collective.

This season of in house Theatre and Dance programme - IGNiTE we are talking about and celebrating change- changes in people's rights and changes in people's opinions and identities.

Our IGNiTE programming decisions are made in collaboration with our Programming Forum, who share their thoughts on potential shows. For this season, it was clear from the start that we had a great selection of strong female led companies interested in bringing their work to Trinity. All three shows are well crafted performances that tackle intimate themes, telling personal stories that have a universal reach. Having just celebrated International Women's day we are really quite proud to have Man on the Moon, by Keisha Thompson (March 23) , Ladylike by Ella Mesma (March 24) and The Headwrap diaries by Uchenna Dance (April 13) on the horizon.

Ella Mesma Company's show Ladylike challenges the representation of women, particualy the notion of what it is like to be 'ladylike'. We asked Ella ahead of her March 24 show at Trinity, to tell us a little more about her show and why she created it:

What drove you to make Ladylike?

We all need real life superheros who reflect and inspire us. Seeing someone who you can fit the shoes of just speaks in a different way. I had a dream to make Ladylike, a piece that reflected real women, latin women, black women, mixed women, break-women, superhero women. In the media: the women I was seeing were beautiful, but they were not heroes, they were ‘sidechicks’ without much script, and they weren’t doing the saving but being rescued… I wanted to make a piece where the women were dealing with the real life day to day… but fighting back like warriors!

Who is Ladylike for?

I think Ladylike is for everyone: all women! real women, latin women, black women, mixed women, break-women, superhero women… but also for men too… Last night I dreamt that one of the roles was played by a male friend of mine… and he smashed it! I think the story could equally be applied to men: It is about smashing the patriarchy (which all men should be on board with!)

What are the benefits of making a dance theatre piece?

I think dance theatre is about healing, speaking up, having a voice,… and so I think it is also a cleansing experience… a ritual, both for the performers and those watching

Catch Ladylike by Ella Mesma Company March 23. 7.30pm at The Trinity Centre. For tickets and more, head to IGNiTE's what's on.

Help us secure Trinity's past, present and future

Over 12 weeks children and families from local school Hannah More primary took part Trinity’s ‘Art Club’ project, in partnership with Take A Part. During one session we headed down to Hannah More to chat with the children and families to ask them what they thought of 'Art Club', press play above to hear what they had to say!

"When I was their age, we didn't get the possibility to draw - we couldn't afford it" Baktiar and Asenat's Mum

In total 25 children and families came along to ‘Art Club’. During the sessions they explored different art-forms, such as clay making, model making using with different types of art materials.

The group also went on ‘go see’ visits to arts organisations and museums in the city. This included a trip to see the Grayson Perry exhibition in the Bristol Museum and a visit to the newly established arts organisations 'St Anne’s House' where they met resident artist Rachel Clarke.

‘Art Club’ is a Trinity commission, delivered by Take a Part in partnership with Hannah More Primary and made possible through funding from the Cultural Recovery Fund