Join a local group or connect with local artists – ideas & inspiration

Join a local group or connect with local artists

Enjoy the work of local artists remotely, or take part in some online taster sessions – you might like it enough to keep on attending in person when venues are re-opened!

(Updated 4th March 2021) 

1. On Friday 5th March The University of Northampton English department is hosting a free one-day conference with the aim of celebrating women writers from working-class backgrounds writing in the period 1920-2020.  Local writer Paula Boulton will be talking about her book Women Of Steel at 2.20pm.
2. Thursday art classes are back and online at Rooftop Arts Centre with artist Fanoulla Georgiou. Join the Friends of Rooftop Arts Cente facebook group for more details.
3. Check out The Bardic Basement‘s first podcast featuring local talent William Milligan, Chuck The Poet, Sandra Riley and Mitchell Taylor. Join their facebook group to stay in the loop.
4. Run Your Tongue is back online on 14th March with spoken word, poetry and music. Open mic slots are available.
5. Screen Northants are running FREE online film-making workshops to get you started if you are thinking of entering one of their 48hr Film Challenges. The winners will go through to the Winner of Winners category at Northampton Film Festival in May 2021.
6. Royal & Derngate have bursary places available to watch children’s theatre and take part in some fabulous online weekly workshops to have fun and learn creative skills. Available for Where The Lost Socks Go for 7-10 years, as well as Clown School for 11-13 year olds.
7. Sign up for the online NN8 Writers Zoom sessions with writer Lucy Anderson and join the new NN8 Writers facebook group.
8. Join Stevie Way Art Group on Zoom for weekly online sessions on Monday evenings where you can craft and chat to likeminded people.
9. After a successful first event, Creative  KHL in Corby will be hosting another online Cross-Pollination Poetry Night on Monday 15th March. Book for Zoom details by emailing George at khlbiglocal2012@gmail.com
10. Follow The Green Room,  who go live on facebook on Friday nights around 8pm and you can expect familiar artists as well as artists from all around the world. They are introducing an Open Mic section to The Green Room this Friday from 7.30pm,
11. Watch We Are Family, a 15 minute film about what family mean, with a soundtrack by local musicians, made with Pecho Mama and The Core at Corby Cube.
12. Cinnamon Arts Group have launched a project to brighten up winter in Wellingborough with a community collage! Find out more about getting involved & sign up to get a free arts pack delivered to you at home in Wellingborough.
13. Join the Artful Dodgers, a new group led by Artist Carole Miles where you can enjoy 12 weeks of free online fun creative sessions. This project is run in collaboration with Teamwork Trust, and is for Northamptonshire people experiencing poor mental health, or who are caring for someone who is.
14. Northamptonshire-based Poet and Writer Tré Ventour has lots of new online Can You Poet dates in the diary for 2021.
15. Rooftop Arts Centre have a new exhibition online from 1st February until 14th March, called To Portray or To Portrait.
16. Corby folks! Join Josh Macrow, our resident master puppeteer, as he takes you through everything you need to create your own shadow puppets and marionettes to tell enchanting stories in these FREE weekly online sessions.
17. Follow our Associate Artists The Eloquent Fold, aka Phiona Richards and Carole Miles – two local visual artists who share lots of ideas for making and often have project opportunities coming up. Have a look and see what their group have been doing in their Material Memories project.
18. Connect with others interested in local history at Northamptonshire Heritage Forum.
19. GLJ Theatre have issued an invitation to Wellingborough people to design a brick for their Yellow Brick Road as part of a new community production A Trip To Oz, a project supported by our Cultivate programme.
20. Writing East Midlands have released new dates for their 2021 online sessions for young people. Led by local writer Karen Rust, sessions are free, fun and very welcoming. Young people who take part have appeared in films, have taken part in region-wide writing competitions, have been published, and are often invited to take part in other local creative writing projects.
21. Are you aged 12 – 25? Join the  Wellingborough Young Producers and create real change in your community with Warts and All Theatre. You’ll develop your creativity, confidence and leadership skills through these brilliant free weekly online sessions. Warts And All Theatre are also looking for young people in Wellingborough to help develop a new youth voice project called #SpeakYourTruth – a project supported by our Cultivate programme.
22. GLJ Theatre in partnership with One Wellingborough Plus are offering local community groups a FREE games and theatre workshop. They’re looking for church groups, knitting crews, football clubs etc to get involved. Email glj@glamishall.org.uk to enquire about a session.
23. The Core at Corby Cube have made their Saturday SPARKS drama sessions this term FREE for children aged 5 – 11 who have not taken part before. For more info, email getinvolved@thecorecorby.com to enquire.
24. Corby Amateur Theatrical Society are always looking for new members, however they have just postponed their summer production of Legally Blonde for another year, and will be concentrating on Family Panto again later in 2021.
25. Wellingborough Cooperative Amateur Dramatic Society (WCADS) have started holding weekly virtual play readings, quizzes and social get-togethers – join them online for some theatre and to make new friends.
26. Corby Photographic Club have a full Zoom programme until the end of May 2021 and guests are always welcome.
27. Lets Connect – Saheli Sakhi Milan is a digital social group for Asian Women in Northamptonshire. There are lots of creative activities on offer as well as being a platform to share interests, socialise and share information.
28. Join the Northamptonshire Urban Sketchers if you like drawing outside.
29. Visit The Rooftop Arts Centre for details of their latest exhibitions and activities – whether in person or online.
30. Northants Music and Performing Arts Trust centres are still not able to meet in person, but they have a new initiative – NMPATVC Virtual Centre. Just like their regular centres, you don’t need any experience to join in, and there is something for everyone who enjoys Music and the Performing Arts to participate in, and is available throughout Northants, including Wellingborough and Corby.
31. Navigate to Fermynwoods Contemporary Art to gain inspiration from their online programme of free art activities and creative prompts for all ages.
32. Join a local creative writing group usually based at Johnny’s Happy Place in Kettering and hosted online by Performance Poet Kezzabelle Ambler. Simply join the Weaving Words facebook group  and you’ll get session reminders and instructions of how to join their meetings on Zoom.
33. Sing your heart out with Lisa Matthewman and the Big About Singing Corby Community Choir – they usually meet weekly in Corby but for now you can join them in live sessions on facebook.
34. If you’re self-isolating and can’t get out into nature, try grounding yourself by listening to a beautiful dawn chorus birdsong recorded in Glapthorn wood by local musician, instrument maker and wildlife recordist Nick Penny.
35. Deep Roots Tall Trees Choir and Dance Theatre have been busy over lockdown, and they are always looking for new members if you want to join in the fun.

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