What role can dance play in revitalising collections for new audiences?
At our first in-person Advocacy Event, we invite you to imagine ways in which dance can be used in response to museums, sites, collections and stories to develop relationships with new audiences and communities; to bring new perspectives on historical collections, and to uncover hidden stories.
Christchurch Mansion (Soane Street, Ipswich, IP4 2BE)
10-4pm
For more information and to book, visit Eventbrite here.
Working in partnership with Colchester and Ipswich Museums and DanceEast, we will offer a programme integrating Case Studies, opportunities to participate in discussion, practical activities and a chance to network and watch films over lunch. Case Study projects will include the hugely successful Power of Stories exhibition, curated by Colchester and Ipswich Museums with Aspire Black Suffolk and a team of Community Curators, BEEE Creative‘s Perform Transform project, and the dance/heritage practice of Glass House Dance.
More information about our speakers
We are thrilled to start introducing you to a series of speakers for the ‘Telling Everyone’s Story’ event, starting with Glen Chisholm, community curator for the Power of Stories exhibition.
Breaking record footfall at Christchurch Mansion when the exhibition was first on display, the Power of Stories used film costumes – including those from Marvel’s Black Panther – historic museum objects, and local stories to explore storytelling and identity. As community curator, Glen saw his love of comic books, lived experience of racism, and love of his hometown come together.
Isobel Keith, from Colchester and Ipswich Museums, was a key part of the Collections and Learning team from the Museum – along with Eleanor Root and Melanie Hollis – who came up with the idea of the Power of Stories exhibition, and worked with community groups and curators (and the CIMS exhibition team) to bring it into being. She was particularly involved in making the arrangements for the loan of the Marvel ‘Black Panther’ costumes.
Carrie Washington is Director of BEEE Creative, an arts charity working across Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire that engages people of all ages through dance, heritage, arts and digital projects. As a professionally trained dancer, Carrie has worked for 26 years in the dance sector with organisations including English National Ballet School and Rambert, and is also a visiting lecturer at Middlesex University.
Glass House Dance was set up by Sarah Lewis and Laura Anderson to take contemporary dance into public spaces. They have made their mark on the outdoor arts scene, touring nationally for 10 years. Their reputation is built on creating uplifting participatory and interactive performances and events for people of all ages including You, Me & Everybody Else, Us, Time Machine Disco, A Little bit of Light, The Quiet and the dance-alongs.
Laura and Sarah are recognised for working collaboratively with both professional and recreational dancers by hosting a positive, playful space for people to express their unique creativity to make essentially human, touching dance experiences with wide appeal.
In 2022, Laura and Sarah became Associate Artists at DanceEast.
We’ll reveal more details about our event speakers over the coming weeks, so do check back for more information.
Tickets £30 (for those representing organisations); £20 (for freelance practitioners or those representing smaller/volunteer-led organisations)
There are also a limited number of 10 x £5 Bursary tickets available to freelance practitioners and those representing smaller/volunteer-led organisations on a first-come-first-served basis.
We do not want cost to be a barrier to anyone attending our events so please get in touch, in confidence, with our Project Manager Alice on manager@imaginationmuseum.co.uk should you wish to discuss any alternative arrangements. We also have an access fund available if you require assistance with any of the additional costs (such as travel) that you may incur by attending the event.
Please note, the day on the 13th May will be followed by an optional practical session at DanceEast on the 14th May (10-1pm). This free session will be aimed primarily at dance artists interested in working in response to heritage (but all are welcome), facilitated by The Imagination Museum’s current Strategic Lead, Katie Green. Booking details for this optional practical event are now available here.
Who is the Suffolk Imagination Museum event for?
Our online and in-person Advocacy Events will be open to anyone from dance, arts, heritage, community contexts with an interest in collaboration and finding creative ways of interpreting local sites, collections and stories through dance and movement.
You may have some experience of working with dance in response to heritage, museums, archives, galleries, or you may be completely new to this way of working.
We want everyone to feel welcome, and we are working with Access and EDI consultants to support us to make the events as inclusive as we can (and to learn about how to do this better in the future). Please get in touch if there is anything that we can put in place to support you to access this event.
We also plan to record any key presentations (where it is possible to do so) and will make these recordings available on our website after the events to enable more people to access the content on demand.
If you have any questions or need any further information, please contact our Project Manager Alice Odin on manager@imaginationmuseum.co.uk .
The Imagination Museum is supported by the National Lottery through Arts Council England, and is currently being managed by Made By Katie Green. In 2024 it is being delivered in partnership with Colchester and Ipswich Museums, DanceEast, Wheal Martyn, Showtown, the Horniman Museum and Gardens and Trinity Laban, with additional support from an Executive Committee, and Advisory Organisations including the Association for Suffolk Museums and Arts & Heritage.