Toot! It’s the International Festival of Town Pipers!

2 - 4 June
All over Colchester!
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For three days in June, waits musicians (British town pipers) from around the world will visit Colchester for a unique event. Re-creating the colourful civic bands that played about town in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, members of the International Guild of Town Pipers will give free performances throughout the town on instruments designed for the job, loud and vibrant shawm, double reeds and brass.

The Colchester Waits, The York Waits, The Charlotte Waites (USA), The Leeds Waits, De Stadspijpers van s’-Hertogenbosch (NL), The Doncaster Waits, The King’s Lynn Waites, Ely Pipers Noyze & The City of Lincoln Waites, de Mowbray’s Musick, The Baggshotte Waits, and finally The Waites of Gloucester are all descending onto our town for the festival.

There will be dance and music workshops members of the public can get involved in. The festival is free and throughout the town held at Lower Castle Park, Firstsite, Castle Park Bandstand, Hollytrees Lawn, Outside the Castle, the CO1 cafe, Lion Walk and Culver Square.

Get on the site for full details. There’s a huge list that we just couldn’t squeeze on here so keep your ears peeled over the June weekend for the historic celebration.

Snublic Drawings @ 15 Queen Street

“Redundant scenes of colchester and cartoon parodies rendered in ink”

Snublic know as Colin McAllister is a Cartoonist and Illustrator living in Colchester, working in black and white, pen and ink. There is a new exibition of his work at the Digby Gallery tucked away in the Mercury Theatre. It’s on until the 28 May.

Snublic’s current drawing interests include local urban scenes, portraits and cartooning. His cartoons are microcosms of issues of interest, and, unlike most cartoons, require time to be studied in order to take in all the detail and action.

Sometimes my subject matter is serious, sometimes sentimental and silly but whatever I’m working on at the time has his full attention and I’m always attempting to out-do my previous efforts without repeating myself.

For his exhibition this year, he has aimed to have completed a series of drawings which are updates of old masters paintings, reworked into my own style. He finds it interesting to begin with a well known composition but to give it his own modern twist. So please do go visit the Mercury Theatre and have a ganders at the new show.

Artworker needed for The Incomers

Matthew Liney has approached us to source a creative who could produce an image for Murray Lachlan Young’s The Incomers. 

They are looking for an an image depicting..

Three pairs of muddy wellie boots in a row (two mens, one womans) next to a pair of high heeled platform shoes with a feather boa draped round.  Rolled up £20 note on the floor.  Possible handcuffs and a smashed wine glass.  Could be photo - could be drawn - could be combo of both

Budget
There is a budget. They would like you to quote for a test shot. ACE money will be coming through at the beginning of June to fund the project. If Murray likes the image you’ll get recompense for either re-staging or re-making the image or for it to be used in all tour publicity. Please contact Matthew for more details.

Format
Stage 1 the work is for print (brochures).
Stage 2 would be for print, online, posters etc.

Target Audience
The play will appeal to audiences aged 12 plus.  However specific groups would include:-

• new drama audiences / previous theatre audiences
• spoken word audiences
• BBC Radio 4 and 6 Music audiences
• audiences with an interest in the urban / rural interest groups
• other arts attenders

Timescale

Phase A - ASAP for a test shot
Phase B - (post funding decision) end of June for finished art work

More information on the project:

The project was formally called A Burlesque (by Murray Lachlan Young). It has recently been recently renamed The Incomers by Murray Lachlan Young.  Essentially the image is to entice people to see the show and let them have a flavour of what they were letting themselves in for!

The Incomers

It’s Gordon and Celia’s wedding anniversary.  They’ve asked their oldest and dearest friends Zach and Jane down from London.  The only problem is that Zach and Jane aren’t Zach and Jane anymore.  Jane has gone and Julia - the twenty five year old, French burlesque dancer, has taken her place.
 
What starts as a simple celebration quickly unravels with one revelation after another until we become aware that no one has been telling the truth to anyone about anything for a very long time.
 
Written entirely in his characteristic verse by BBC 6 Music poet in residence Murray Lachlan Young The Incomers will have you gasping and roaring with laughter in equal measures!

If you are able to produce something for Matthew, he’s like it as soon as possible. We would suggest by Monday 28th, then please email or call 01473 218202 for more details.
 

Sumi Ink Club @ This One Wall

We host Sumi Ink Club once a month, on the last Friday from 7 - 9pm. You simply grab a brush, pour some ink and get involved with a collaborative ‘doodle’ workshop. Held by our flexible member and illustrator Rob Lock, the group get together to produce large drawings in an informal and fun evening.

The bright colourful wall to the side of the building, now know as This One Wall, said goodbye to our resident illustrator Matt Keeling‘s locally inspired prints. It has now welcomed a Sumi Ink Club exhibition curated by Rob Lock.

The work displayed is the result of our evening collaborative illustration workshop. The pieces are a response to This One Wall’s current theme ‘memories’, which you can read more about here.

This One Wall had a quick chat with Rob to find out a bit more about the exhibition, and the club. Enjoy.

We’d also like to thank Colchester Institute School of Art and Design who supply the paper each month!

Green Drinks @ The Apricot Centre

Here’s a blog post on behalf of Green Drinks, a group for local eco friendy and green minded people; who meet here on the 21 of each month. Robbie Spence on behalf of the group wanted to showcase their visit to the Apricot Centre organic market garden on Saturday 21 April for a tour and lunch.

The old shipping container

We began in the Centre’s meeting room, which is made of converted shipping containers.  Containers like this are used only a few dozen times and end up being sold on Felixstowe docks for a few hundred pounds apiece. Once the end walls are cut out and replaced with floor-to-ceiling glass, they provide light and bright, cheap and recycled accommodation.

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This week’s guest events @15queenstreet

Join us throughout the week for seven varied guest events. Held by our members for the creative community.

Green Drinks  -  Monday 21 
7.30 - 9.30pm
Pam Nelson hosts Green Drinks every 21st of the month. This group isn’t about enjoying green drinks, but aimed at green minded people getting together for a drink. This month they are discussing their previous visit to the Apricot Centre plus Emily Harrup of Wombat Car Club will be giving a talk.
Read more & RSVP

Food Exchange  -  Monday 21 
7.30pm
Note! This event is held at the Chocolate Studio this month
Join the growing collection of local foodies cooking up a storm and exchanging their creations at this monthly event. This month they are heading to the Chocolate Studio  for an hour’s hands-on demo and tasting. They’ll be learning how to temper chocolate in to practice for what we make for June’s event (Cakes & Chocolates). Then exchanging this month’s food theme - Pies & Pastries.
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Screenwriters  -  Tuesday 22 
7.30 - 9.30pm
A growing network for screen writers meet twice a month here at 15 Queen Street. This week they will be providing feedback on one script, analysing the first plot point and break into the second act of a narrative. They will also continue to brainstorm ideas for the 50 kisses screenwriting competition.
Read more & RSVP

Sumi Ink Club  -  Friday 25 
7pm - til late
Join our flexible member Rob Lock for the monthly illustration workshop, Sumi Ink Club! Using the Japanese ink known as ‘sumi’, Rob invites you to the building to simply grab a brush and pour some ink! The club is now also exhibiting the work produced from their meetup on This One Wall, Colchester’s street gallery. Find out more here.
Read more & RSVP

Embroiderers’ Guild  -  Saturday 26 
10am - 12 noon
£5
Join the Guild on Saturday morning for a crafty workshop using different techniques to produce interesting textiles to embroider into. This class isn’t about embroidery, but experimenting with new materials and ideas to keep you inspired.
Read more & RSVP

Inspiration for Creative Writing Workshop
Saturday 26,  1 - 2pm
£30/20 concession
Sarah Banham, aka For the Love of Books runs a monthly workshop for local writers to develop and explore their inspiration. It’s a helpful and informative workshop for those having difficulty in getting started or continuing with their Work in Progress.
Read more & RSVP

Film Shoot Sunday
Sunday 27, 11am - 4pm
The film nextwork Film Colchester take over the building on the fourth Sunday of the month to get involved with various local projects needing actors, film makers and anyone else who wants to get involved They meet and collaborate on projects filming around the town. Join their facebook group for more info and to let them know if you have a project that needs support.
Read more & RSVP

Opportunity @ Momentum

Having had a great couple of years, momentum is growing its team again. We are looking for a developer to support existing client work and to also work on upcoming new projects.

Working across design and front-end development, your role will be to implement new functionalities to existing websites and develop new systems from scratch.

This position is ideal for those with a solid set of existing skills but looking to develop further. If you have had experience with a growing business, this position is for you.

One important point! They want a back end developer with a good understanding of front end development. Someone who writes strong markup and knows how to bring it to life. Front end will not need to be your strong point but we expect a very good understanding of it..

For more details on the job please visit the site here.

To apply please email studio@builtwithmomentum.com with your CV, a bit about you and some of your work. If you need more information please call 01206 225234.

Real Circumstance Lab : Fundraising

Saturday 19th May
10am-6pm
Mosaic Publicity, 11 St Peter’s Court, St Peter’s Street, Colchester CO1 1WD
£50.00 (plus £3.65 booking fee)
Read more & RSVP

We heard about a Real Circumstance Lab happening here in Colchester on Saturday 19.

The labs enable you to take control of your creative career within an encouraging and informal environment. The Labs are suitable for both individual artists and theatre companies. Join them for a day-long Fundraising Clinic featuring talks, practical sessions, and group tutoring.

The Fundraising Lab takes a comprehensive approach to developing your fundraising skills, covering:

• How to present yourself and your artistic identity
• Fundraising Strategies
• Approaching funders and partners:
• Budgeting:

The Lab will be delivered by Anna Bewick, Creative Producer of Real Circumstance and Arts Consultant. She has a proven fundraising track record, consistently raising funds from Arts Council England, charitable foundations, local and regional councils, co-producers, and private donors.

Anna will be tailoring the Labs to the participants, so the sooner you book, the more bespoke the Labs can be. They are also running the Labs at a subsidised rate in order to widen access and participation. Just get in touch to find out more.

Places are limited, so please book soon to avoid disappointment. Visit the eventbrite page to book your place!