Each year, our Creative Engagement team moves into a different Barnsley community.
Previously, we’ve worked in Wombwell, Elsecar, Hoyland, and Cudworth. From September, we’ll be focusing on Barnsley Central, so expect to see us in Kingstone, Dodworth, Worsborough, and Kendray. By spending a whole year in one place, we can build strong relationships with schools, community groups, and partners, including Barnsley Libraries.
Over the next year, we plan to collaborate with Barnsley Academy and Horizon Community College, creating new opportunities for young people in creative writing, photography, and drama. Now in its third year, we’ll continue our project Teenage Wildlife, which involves embedding ourselves in a community to collect stories of teenage experiences over the last 80 years. These stories are transformed into a new, young people-led piece of community theatre, with results that are life-changing!
Teenage Wildlife
Teenage Wildlife is an oral history project that collects and celebrates the stories of youth culture and teenage experiences in Barnsley over the past 80 years. Initially part of a Historic England-funded initiative of the same name, the first iteration took place in 2022, focusing on the Eldon Street area of central Barnsley.
Working alongside talented drama practitioners Becky Newbould and Gemma Whelan (collectively known as We Great Ladies), young people from around Barnsley collaborated to bring to life the real stories of six teenagers from Eldon Street’s history. The resulting piece of theatre, Teenage Wildlife Mixtape, premiered at Barnsley Civic in spring 2023.
In September 2023, we began the second iteration of Teenage Wildlife in Wombwell, gathering stories that date back to the 1940s. With these stories in hand, we approached Netherwood Academy, hoping to create an after-school project. Instead, we were warmly invited to integrate our project into the Year 10 drama curriculum.
Once again, alongside We Great Ladies, our group of fourteen young theatre makers crafted a series of monologues inspired by the authentic stories of nine former Wombwell teenagers. This captivating piece was performed for a live audience of Wombwell residents at the Wombwell & District Operatic Society Theatre in May 2024.
Looking ahead to autumn 2024, we’re excited to begin collecting stories from the Dodworth, Kingstone, and Worsborough areas of Barnsley. These stories will be brought to life by students from Horizon Community College, culminating in a performance in spring 2025—supported by The National Lottery Community Fund.
