We have just started up a brand new Black Country Touring facebook group. Here we get the chance to let you know whats going on at Black Country Touring, and you can tell us what you think, so click on this link and join us. 

Sandwell Arts Festival is due to get underway on the 12th of July, so make sure you don't miss it. Partners from all over Sandwell have been working together to create this inaugural arts festival for Sandwell. We hope it will become an annual fixture.

There's plenty for everyone to see, with an exhibition of local artists at The Public, street theatre across the borough and performances of "Al Bowlly's Croon Manifesto" by Untied Artists at West Bromwich Town hall

To download the whole brochure of events click here

Part 2....

Take a peek at our video of The Corner Shop Project .....

Phase 2 of the Corner Shop exhibition led by English Heritage kicks off at Birmingham Central Library before touring the Midlands. 

Polka - Smethwick

Tour Dates

• 5 - 27 May 2010
  
  Birmingham Central Library (Gallery 1st floor)
  Chamberlain Square, B3 3HQ
  Tel: 0121 303 4511
  Opening times: Mon-Fri 9am-8pm, Sat 9am-5pm, Closed Sunday
  
• 9 June – 2 July 2010
  
  Wednesbury Museum & Art Gallery
  Hollyhead Road, WS10 7DF
  Tel: 0121 5560683
  Opening times: Tues – Fri 10am-5pm, Sat 2-5pm, Closed Mon-Sun
  
• 17 - 18 July 2010
  
  English Heritage Festival of History
  Kelmarsh Hall, Northampton NN6 9LY.
  Book your tickets by calling Customer Services on 0870 333 1183 or visit www.festivalofhistory.org.uk to purchase tickets on-line.
  
• 1 – 30 August 2010
  
  Leicester Central Library
  Belvoir Road, LE1 6QL
  Tel: 0116 299 5402
  Opening times: Mon – Thurs 9.30am-7pm, Fri 9.30am-5pm, Sat 9am-4pm, Closed Sunday
  
• 11 – 26 September 2010
  
  Bilston Town Hall
  Church Street, Bilston, Wolverhampton, WV14 0AT
  Tel: 01902 497222
  Opening times: Mon-Fri 9.30am-5pm
  
• 28 September - 31 October 2010
  
  Halo
  The Bromyard Centre, Cruxwell Street, Bromyard, HR7 4EB
  Tel: 0845 24 10 980
  Opening Times: Mon, Wed & Fri 7am-10pm, Tues & Thurs 9am-10pm, Sat & Sun 9am-4pm
  
• 2 – 28 November 2010
  
  Acocks Green Library
  Shirley Road, Birmingham, B27 7XH
  Tel: 0121 464 1738
  Opening times: Mon 9am-7pm, Tues – Sat 9am-5pm, Closed Sundays
  For more information The Corner Shop Project visit www.bctouring.co.uk/thecornershop

Expressions, a creative group of disabled people presented a public
 performance of songs and stories at the Maltings Day Centre in Wolverhampton on Thursday April 1st at 1 pm. Over 150 people attended, many were disability groups from around the city, involved in the Wolverhampton Disability Arts Network, like No-Nonsense Theatre, Wow Theatre and the Discovers. Robin Surgeoner, a natural role model to the 
Expressions group, presented his new performance “All the things we could of been” A powerful new play with songs fitting to the lives and 
experience of disabled people.

You can find out more, and watch the video by going to the working parts website

Artist Robin Surgeoner with Expressions

Black Country Touring is pleased to announce that WORKING pARTS is running for another year, thanks to Arts Council England West Midlands. WORKING pARTS is an informal partnership between a group of arts organisations based in the Black Country who share common interests and values around their arts work with Deaf and disabled organisations, which includes Black Country Touring, Multistory, the Arena Theatre, and Walsall Council's Creative Development Team. The reason we came together was to get more Deaf and disability organisations in the Black Country to use the arts as part of their normal, every day activity and to find ways for them to make an active choice as to what that should be. In 2010, our idea is to bring together a wide group of organisations that have an interest in networking as well as using the arts as part of their work. We hope the network will be used by disability groups and disabled people. Towards this goal WORKING pARTS launched Open Sesame a roadshow about unlocking the mysteries of networking on the internet, and how to start a new community. Over 40 people attended the 4 events in Sandwell, Dudley, Wolverhampton and Walsall. If you want to find out what happened during the Open Sesame Roadshows, check out video interviews with participants and a review of the Dudley event on the WORKING pARTS blog. To find out about the forth coming social networking site for disability groups in the black country email. If you are an artist, performer, director, writer or creative type WORKING pARTS are running an event to find ways of involving artists and start disability initiatives. The artists gathering is at New Art Gallery, Walsall on May 11, 5 - 7 pm. You can find out about how WORKING pARTS involved artists in 2008/9 by watching video interviews with groups.

Hello, my name is Katherine Goodenough. Two years ago I graduated with a degree in Contemporary Theatre and Cultural Entrepreneurship from Dartington College of Arts. My time at Dartington gave my valuable skills about how to devise and create new and innovative theatre and performances, but I felt that I needed to develop my skills in promoting and marketing a theatre show and a theatre company. Over the last two years I have tried to immerse myself into all the theatre and art that is happening in the West Midlands, and became excited about the variety and the quality of work that is being created here. I have just recently started up my own Midlands based theatre company, and we are just starting to make and perform work in the area. This Black Country touring placement will hopefully be able to develop my skills in how to manage a theatre company, and how to promote and market the work that we are making. I am very excited about working with Black Country Touring and gathering as much information as I can about my craft and about the industry I hope to have a long career in.

The Corner Shop project was nominated for a "Best of the West" award at the recent Renaissance West Midlands awards ceremony - and it won!

The "Best of the West" awards are the leading scheme for recognising the great work done by museums and art galleries in the West Midlands. The competition is fierce.

To quote the organisers “The Best of the West Awards provide the sector benchmarks for excellence and have high credibility and recognition amongst senior managers, academics and cultural professionals.”

So it’s a big pat on the back for everyone who made this possible, and it’s a lot  of people – us, Foursight Theatre, English Heritage, Sandwell Museum Service, Sandwell Community Histrory & Archive Services, the Heritage Lottery Fund, Wolverhampton Arts & Museum Service, Birmingham  Archives & Heritage Services, two shopping centres - the Queen's Square and the Mander Centre -  and crucially all the dozens of volunteers who gave their time to record the interviews – or to be recorded, to create the show, to contribute to the archive… I could go on and on.

Well Done Everybody!

We are looking forward to getting to know her and hope she will enjoy her new role as Chair of the BCT Board.

 A big thank you goes to Kate Organ, who after six years of bringing her wealth of knowledge, experience and sense of humour to this demanding role, steps down as Chair and hands the baton on to Vishalakshi.

Bharti and Sarah swap quotes about The Corner Shop

The Corner Shop continues to make its way into further unlikely places. After two shopping centres, it has now made its way onto BBC radio 4's consumer programme You and Yours, where it was used to illustrate a feature on the demise of the local convenience store.

If you want to listen click here and use the slider to find the feature - which appears towards the end of the programme!

Black Country Touring is now an Arts Award Welcome Centre.

If you are a Young Person based in the Black Country, doing an Arts Award, we can offer you free tickets to Black Country Touring shows, check out the shows page for whats on. We  occasionally have the need for volunteers on specific projects, so keep looking at the Opportunities page on a regular basis so you don't miss out on a fantastic opportunity.

If you would like to know more about us, please contact the office on 0121 552 0014 or email us@bctouring.co.uk

Resonate - a celebration of three-years work
(May 2005 to April 2008)

After an initial pilot year in 2004, over the past three-years (since 2005) we have been delivering our South Asian programme by creating more links with companies, producing projects and developing promoters and audiences.

We have just completed a multi-media evaluation of the first three-years of Resonate in partnership with Anouk Perinpanayagam and Sakab Bashir.

Click the link below to learn more about the activities and download detailed information. www.bctouring.co.uk/resonate