Paint The Town is an exciting theatre and arts festival taking place twice a year in Medway towns, produced by Lyrici Arts.
In partnership with Battersea Arts Centre, London and eight other regional hubs across the UK as part of the Creative Touring Network, the festival aims to bring the some of the best new creative works to venues in Chatham, Rochester, Gillingham and beyond.
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Paint The Town Festival Launch: Pop Up Performance
Paint The Town is a new festival – a call to action for all the community to take over their towns and use the arts to paint it in a fun and inspiring light. This launch ‘performance’ will take place twice on Tuesday 20th September. Expect surprising moments and comedic exploits in this pop-up for all ages. Free – no need to book!
Paint The Town Festival Launch: Chalk it Up
Marvellous Murals will create a spellbinding 3D chalk design to celebrate the launch of the festival. Using just chalk, this amazing optical illusion needs to be seen to be believed! Choose the Design Free family event – no booking required!
Paint in the Community
Create a giant community painting with local artist and curator Matt Bray using imagery from comic books, TV and movies. All the materials will be ready and waiting and Matt will be your guide. This event is suitable for ages 5+.* The main goal here is to get involved and have fun! *All children must be accompanied by an adult. Tickets: Free family event – Pre booking essential.
An Introduction To Verbatim Performance: Workshop 1 of 2
Join Wordsmithery and Paint The Town on a two-day introductory workshop led by Lung Theatre Company, creatives of the verbatim theatre show ‘The 56’. The workshops will support a future project with Wordsmithery in spring 2017. Workshop One: Thursday 22 September 10am- 1pm Introduces you to documentary theatre, examining how to find and collate stories and the legal aspects of these stories in verbatim works. Workshop Two: Sunday 25 September 11am- 2pm Offers a chance to get feedback…
The International Archive of Things Left Unsaid
By Rhiannon Armstrong The International Archive of Things Left Unsaid is an evolving collection of anonymous testimonies donated by members of the public, which began as a one-to-one performance. The web version was commissioned by Battersea Arts Centre and The Space. Each testimony is performed verbatim, and includes binaural beat technology to induce calming brainwaves in the listener. Visitors may browse the Public Index, choose a testimony to listen to, and are then invited to contribute their own. A…
The 56 (with post show discussion)
By Lung The 56 was developed with The Lowry and The Civic in Barnsley Written by Matt Woodhead and Gemma Wilson ‘Nobody dies in football matches in fires. It doesn’t happen’. At 3.40pm on May 11th 1985, a small fire broke out in the main stand at Valley Parade football ground during the last game of the season. Within four minutes, the wooden structure was ablaze. Adapted solely from over sixty real-life testimonies, this bold and pertinent piece…
Baby Beatbox
With Conrad Murray Using basic beatbox techniques, playful clapping, and rhythm, performer and creative genius Conrad Murray, will lead a gentle workshop for babies, toddlers and their carers to create music together using their mouths, hands and microphones. Location: Gillingham Library, Community Hub Gillingham Duration: 30mins Suitability: 0-3 years Tickets: Free family event: Pre booking essential via Medway Libraries on 01634 337799 or visit the library and book in person.
The 56
By Lung The 56 was developed with The Lowry and The Civic in Barnsley Written by Matt Woodhead and Gemma Wilson ‘Nobody dies in football matches in fires. It doesn’t happen’. At 3.40pm on May 11th 1985, a small fire broke out in the main stand at Valley Parade football ground during the last game of the season. Within four minutes, the wooden structure was ablaze. Adapted solely from over sixty real-life testimonies, this bold and pertinent…
Can I Help You?
By Rhiannon Armstrong Help is at hand! I am available to all for FREE help. I come well equipped with sewing kits, philosophical advice, handcream. I am the multitool of helping hands! The performance art version of Handy Andy, use me while you can! So go on, buy that extra bag of melons, there’s someone here to help you carry them home. Regards, Rhiannon Armstrong STRONG ARMS, HELPING HANDS.. p.s. Tool belt includes: garbage bags, change for a tenner, pens,…
Intro to Beatbox workshop
By Conrad Murray Join our beginner’s workshops for beatboxers, singers and MCs. No experience necessary and all skill levels welcome! Learn to beatbox and jam with other young musicians and make your own music. In this one hour workshop, Conrad Murray (creator of Denmarked) will take you through the basics of beatboxing and then in pairs help you create your own compositions to share. Suitability: This event is suitable for ages 6+.* *All children must be accompanied…
Make a Crown drop in activity at Hook Meadow Library
As part of Paint The Town, Hook Meadow Library will be offering a free crown-making workshop to support the ballet performance of the Princess and The Frog ballet. Why not visit the library before the ballet and come to the performance as your very own princess or prince? Location: Walderslade Hook Meadow Library Duration: 45 mins Suitability: 2-9 years Tickets: Free family craft event: Pre booking essential via Medway Libraries on 01634 337799 or visit the library and book in person.
LUNG: Open rehearsal
If you saw Lung’s verbatim theatre production of The 56 or attended one of their workshops during the week, watch them in action during a development rehearsal where they will explore and begin to create a new show around the subject of young carers. This rehearsal is free to attend. Drop in for a short time or for the full four hours. All are welcome. Duration: 240mins Suitability: All ages Tickets: Free family event- no booking required
The Princess and the Frog Ballet
Let’s All Dance Once upon a time there was a beautiful princess. She loved playing with her golden ball but one day she drops it in the pond. When a very friendly and very bouncy frog offers to retrieve it in exchange for her friendship, she is far from keen. But in the end the princess must agree to be his friend just to get her ball back. Slowly their friendship grows and the princess is rewarded in true fairytale…
Music and Beatbox Composition
With Conrad Murray Join Conrad Murray’s (performer) workshop for beatboxers, singers and MCs. No experience necessary! Create a song in this one hour session. Be taken through the basics of how to beatbox, play with foundation sounds, rhythms and a loop station, then in small groups write lyrics and perfect your performance technique. Duration: 60mins Suitability: 14+ Tickets: £5
Denmarked
Denmarked Tales from the council estate of dodgy best friends, that rite of passage; your first arrest, dinner with your social worker and the Christmas dad went prison. An autobiographical performance told through storytelling, singing, rapping and a loop station. Created by Conrad Murray and developed with Battersea Arts Centre, DenMarked explores the extent by which we are marked by events. “Two young theatre-makers are mixing it up” The Guardian “Raw, punchy R’n’B-infused work that adds a significant voice”…
An Introduction To Verbatim Performance: Workshop 2 of 2
Join Wordsmithery and Paint The Town on a two-day introductory workshop led by Lung Theatre Company, creatives of the verbatim theatre show ‘The 56’. The workshops will support a future project with Wordsmithery in spring 2017. Workshop One: Thursday 22 September 10am- 1pm Introduces you to documentary theatre, examining how to find and collate stories and the legal aspects of these stories in verbatim works. Workshop Two: Sunday 25 September 11am- 2pm Offers a chance to get feedback…
Comedy Club 4 Kids
Billed as part of Paint The Town, the Comedy Club 4 Kids has been getting the best stand-ups and sketch acts from the international circuit to do their thing for an audience of children (aged 6+) and their families since 2005… but without the rude bits! It’s just like a normal comedy club, but it’s on in the day, kids are allowed in, and thus there is a higher than usual chance of heckles like “why is that your face!?” …
The Invisible Man
‘The Invisible Man’ Inspired by Ralph Ellison By Lyrici Arts “I am an invisible man…because people simply refuse to see me….” A new work in progress theatre performance by Lyrici Arts, commissioned by Black Theatre Live. Featuring actor Wil Johnson (BBC’s Waking the Dead, ITV’s Emmerdale), Director Olusola Oyeleye, and Composer Ayanna Witter-Johnson.’ —- 8pm-9.30pm Location: The Brook Theatre Duration: 90 mins, including an interval and post show industry discussion entitled ‘Black Theatre Matters.’ Suitability: 16+ Tickets: Donations welcome. Pre…
Paint The Town Festival Finale: Soundscape
A night celebrating community, music and the beauty of improvisation. Sing, hum, whisper, beatbox or even just stay silent and enjoy a completely improvised soundscape by you the audience. Watch as two professional dancers respond to the changes in tempo and tone in a dance piece dictated completely by the sounds and silences created. Open equally to the musically gifted and the tone-deaf; join us in a live experiment to create a performance out of thin air. …
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