Funded by Coventry City Council and the National Lottery through Arts Council England, the initiative aims to give more than 500 people the opportunity to experience different art forms – from theatre, dance and music to puppetry, film, and playwriting – and share their creations with hundreds more in a jam-packed festival weekend on June 21 and 22 – called the First Draft Festival.
The programme has seen Coventry residents of all ages invited to make use of the Albany’s new state-of-the-art performance and rehearsal facilities, including two brand new studio theatres, three flexible-use creative spaces and a refurbished main auditorium – all designed to better serve community groups, artists, and audiences across Coventry and the wider region.
Tickets are available on the website, where there will be the option to book festival workshops.
Kevin Shaw at the Albany Theatre urged people to get involved in adult dance classes, intergenerational theatre and artist development workshops available to book on the website.
“The response from the community has been fantastic but there are still plenty of opportunities to get involved on the day and the buildup through some incredible workshops,” said Kevin.
"This is about making the Albany a place where everyone can feel welcome and creative – whether they’re stepping into a theatre for the first time or developing the next stage of their artistic career.
“The new and improved spaces give us a huge opportunity to open the doors wider than ever before, and the festival in June will be a joyful celebration of everything created along the way by the talented people in and around Coventry.
“We can’t wait to share the results of these sessions at our festival weekend in June and want to thank our incredible community partners for their hard work and enthusiasm in bringing Engage Inspire Create to life.”
Workshops are being held in partnership with a host of community organisations including the Carers Trust, Refugee Action Arts and Arawak Community Trust.
Workshops have also been launched under the Albany’s Young Carers Create programme and Albany Empowers, which aims to supporting disabled artists and amplify underrepresented voices.
The Albany’s professional workshop strand will include masterclasses hosted by professionals in the field for emerging artists, a special playwriting workshop with Coventry-born playwright Alan Pollock (One Night in November), in addition to affordable artist development opportunities such as Studio Hire for a Fiver, helping early-career creatives test ideas and access support in a professional setting.
The theatre is also inviting freelance workshop leaders and facilitators to apply to help deliver the programme, with opportunities for artists across multiple disciplines to engage new audiences and lead creative sessions in the final weeks before the festival.
Saturday tickets can be booked at www.albanytheatre.co.uk/shows/first-draft-festival. Sunday tickets are available at www.albanytheatre.co.uk/shows/first-draft-festival-day-2, with a discount applied for those who add both days to their basket at checkout.
For more information visit www.albanytheatre.co.uk.
