Poet in the City, a London-based arts organisation committed to platforming underrepresented stories, is pitching up in Woolwich this summer, with a four-week programme of events it hopes will appeal to the whole community.
Nine events in total will run over the six weeks, many of which are workshops aimed at supporting young people aged 16-25 in taking their first steps in a creative industry.
The workshops cover everything from putting on an exhibition (July 26) to producing a music video (August 9), and there are also discussion panels with artists representing a range of different industries.
For a general taster of what’s on offer, don’t miss the Run the Night launch event in General Gordon Square on July 28 (3pm – 5:30pm), which promises fresh poetry performances and an introduction to what’s coming up throughout the series. Further events are being held in Woolwich Front Room, Woolwich Centre Library and the Tramshed.
We spoke to Poet in the City’s Head of Creative Engagement Catherine Nicholson to find out more…
Holly O’Mahony (HOM): Firstly, for those who haven’t heard of Poet in the City, how would you describe its mission?
Catherine Nicholson (CN): As a charity, Poet in the City is all about supporting people and places to tell stories and inspire change through trailblazing poetry. We do this through working with different groups of artists, activists and third sector workers, and commissioning poets to tell stories that are underrepresented in the mainstream. The work created is then presented through exciting live poetry events.
Poet in the City: Run the Night
HOM: Tell us about your upcoming four-week scheme Run the Night. What was the inspiration behind it?
CN: Run The Night was developed with Greenwich’s ‘night time strategy’ team with an aim to celebrate Woolwich, and provide exciting, safe and inclusive night time events.
Following our 2021 programme ‘Woolwich Speaks’, we wanted to continue working with local artists to tell the stories of Woolwich.
Run The Night comprises four producing masterclasses for young people, four live poetry and music events, and a new poetry commission by Belinda Zhawi in collaboration with Weyland MacKenzie-Witter, which is being displayed at Woolwich Library.
HOM: How do Run the Night events support up-and-coming artists?
CN: The events showcase the talent and artistry that the local area has to offer, whilst the masterclasses beforehand offer insight and expertise into how events like these are produced, which support young local people to consider creating further events.
HOM: Why is the sharing of ideas and skill sets so important?
CN: In order to foster fresh, creative ideas, it is vital that organisations devolve power to young people to determine what future creative events might look like.
We are passionate about hearing what stories young people have to tell about their area and supporting them to create events in response to that. In turn, this shows our organisations new possibilities for what creative events could look like as led by the next generation.
HOM: How did you go about finding the right professionals to run the sessions?
CN: We approached producers whose work we admire and know to be of high quality in the field. The experts represent the diversity of roles available in creative producing, showing the variety of possibilities available to young people who might have never considered a career in creative producing before, or had the tools to get started.
HOM: Lastly, what do you hope attendees take away from joining a Run the Night event?
CN: We want all attendees to leave Run the Night events feeling creatively inspired, and proud of the artistry in south east London.
For young people taking part in expert sessions, we would love to see them go on to develop further events as a result of the experience gained.
We are currently working with Woolwich library to develop a longer-term producing programme which will enable young people to put on future events, so watch this space!
Run the Night events are taking place across Woolwich from July 21 – August 16.
For more information about dates, times and prices, visit: www.poetinthecity.co.uk/Pages/Events/Category/run-the-night?Take=9
