Work is underway to develop a community opera for Lewisham as part of the Lewisham Borough of Culture 2022 celebrations
Charity Music and Theatre For All is working with schools and Lewisham communities to create an urban opera celebrating the stories of the people of Lewisham.
They have run five fun and creative community workshops, which have involved turning Lewisham stories into song. The most recent session was puppet-making (see photo), creating characters and stories to bring these to life.
A parallel schools programme is engaging with pupils from Deptford Green, Brent Knoll, Deptford Green, Prendergast Ladywell, Rathfern and Sedgehill. After a first half term exploring skills such as story creation, song writing, puppet making/puppeteering, dance and making music for carnivals, the children are ready to start forming their own opera companies and getting to work creating and preparing their own operas.
Both the schools’ and the community workshops have generated a good level of interest and engagement in our exploration of what Lewisham means to people and putting this to words and music.
The project aims to reflect the Lewisham community in all its diversity, reach those who would not usually get involved in arts projects, and those who face particular challenges or feel isolated, bringing people together in a joyful celebration of all things Lewisham!
The project is being led by innovative and award-winning musician and stage director, Thomas Guthrie. Tom works with diverse groups through text and music to deliver powerful and aspirational story telling for all. Tom says:
“This project is about finding voice, about regeneration across generations, communal creativity, resurgence, revolution, and hope. Our talented team will unlock the creativity of participants of all ages and backgrounds to create a spectacular celebration of Lewisham”
Want to get involved? Saturday workshops are open to all. See MTFA website for further details.
We are also looking for groups who could perform as part of the event next summer. Call MTFA on 07395 041301 or email team@musicandtheatreforall.org