We’re excited to share our Autumn/Winter programme of events which focuses on building Crawley’s creative talents. This includes a brand-new paid Skills Exchange Programme for ten locals as part of The Creative Village. There will also be open workshops and events for local residents, along with more creative opportunities such as the Saturday Sessions and Come With Us strands from Creative Playground.
The Creative Village is Creative Crawley’s newest programme – helping to put Crawley on the cultural map. Supporting local creatives at the beginning of their artistic careers and established practitioners with their professional development, the programme will create space for showcasing work and developing and sharing skills through open workshops and events. World class practitioners from around the UK are invited to Crawley to work closely with local creatives and share valuable insights and practical information into how to survive as a creative professional in today’s world. These include fundraising with Jamie Wyld, to Telling Your Story with local entrepreneur Matt Turner, and the programme welcomes The Producer Gathering to Crawley for the first time, offering a session for those who are interested in putting on events and learning more about producing to come together with some nationally renowned producer
‘Having worked with young music artists across Sussex and in Crawley for many years, we know how crucial a project like The Creative Village is for the town. Our collaboration with Creative Crawley and Theatre Centre has huge potential to change the creative future of the town.’ (Adam Joolia, CEO, AudioActive)
‘The Creative Village is a new addition to our programme and is for local emerging and established people who work in the creative industries. If that’s you, come and talk to us about what you need and get involved.’ (Louise Blackwell, Creative Director of Creative Crawley)
Join us at one of our new Meet the Team online events (Wednesday 25th September & Thursday 21st November). You’ll get a chance to have a one-on-one chat with us, ask questions about what we do, how we work, specific projects and explore ways to get involved. It’s a great way to put a face to a name and connect with us directly.
The Creative Village includes a paid Skills Exchange Programme with ten locals aged between 16 – 30 who will work together from September 2024 – June 2025 to gain hands-on skills related to the creative industries. They’ll explore live performance, visual art and digital practice; as well as business, marketing, access, environmental sustainability and fundraising skills – allowing them as full and rounded overview of the creative industries as possible, all while they are paid for their time.
‘I’m really excited to see what new things I can learn about and try on this program, I think it’s important at this stage of my life when I’m not sure what exactly I want to do that I get to try as many things as possible. I’m really thankful that I’ve been given the means to access this type of knowledge from industry professionals and I’m looking forward to meeting more artists in my town.’
(Izzy Burghard, a Skills Exchange participant)
Image: Woodzy, Around the Lake Festival © www.iangreenland.ukStarting in October, spoken word artist and rapper Woodzy will host a monthly gig showcasing local talent. Woodzy & Friends will offer creatives from Crawley, West Sussex and Surrey the chance to come together and share their work in front of a kind and generous audience. This curated evening of local talent, spanning music, theatre, film, and visual art, provides the space to share thoughts and ideas with likeminded people. Woodzy said ‘I think it will be something that will grow over time, that will have a regular group that always attend as well. I’m really looking forward to starting it!’
In November, Theatre Centre in co-production with Sheffield Theatres will bring their brand-new show Dizzy to the Hawth for one night only, presented by Creative Crawley. Written by the Olivier-nominated Mohamad-Zain Dada (Blue Mist, Royal Court), Dizzy combines audio performance and soundscape with a live performance onstage. It is a daring and original story of graffiti culture and grief, with dream-like magical realism throughout. Watch the trailer here.
Image: Dizzy artwork © Rebecca PittCreative Crawley (with HemingwayDesign and always possible) have been commissioned by Crawley Borough Council to deliver a consultation with residents on what a Cultural Quarter could look and feel like in Crawley. A survey launches soon and there’s also an in-person event at Crawley Town Hall on Thursday 10th October where you can get involved and share your thoughts.
Meanwhile, Creative Crawley’s Creative Playground continues this autumn. Playmakers will gather for meetings, feasts, and parties to plan exciting future arts activities for the town. Our Saturday Sessions are back too, offering free creative activities for all ages, including a chance to stargaze at a local temple, craft textiles from yarn, experience a virtual reality performance, take part in an play and much more. BOOST returns with more seed funding and support to help test new creative ideas for Crawley. Plus, Come With Us will continue taking residents on funded trips to explore arts and culture, both in Crawley and beyond, sparking great conversations along the way. The first trip is to Come As You Really Are on Saturday 19th October, an exhibition by Hetain Patel in Croydon with thousands of objects created, modified or collected by hobbyists, presented by Art Angel London.
Image: Make Your Own Hologram with artist Kristina Pulejkova, available to try as part of Saturday Sessions: Dreamy Place on Saturday 5 October at Crawley Library.
The Creative Village is a brand new skills exchange, showcasing and cultural development programme for and with creative professionals in Crawley, West Sussex and Surrey, managed by Creative Crawley in partnership with Theatre Centre and AudioActive, and funded by Arts Council England and supported by Crawley Borough Council’s Shared Prosperity Fund and Gatwick Airport Ltd.
Creative Playground is a Creative People and Places project funded by Arts Council England.
