'Three Minutes on High' Exhibition by Sam Kitson

March 19th - 31st 2025

Explore Sam’s exciting collection of hand-cut retro collages and stories that are packed with personality, including old prints and paintings that have taken on a new life - all are bound to bring a smile!


Dame Judi Dench sends her love

Dame Judi Dench sends her heartfelt regards to Mr Dax and all the talented pupils of Belvoirdale Primary School as they prepare to take the stage with A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Coalville Theatre Festival this June.

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STUDENTS EXPLORE

Students taking part in this year’s Coalville Theatre
Festival recently visited Snibston Colliery to explore Coalville’s rich mining heritage and gather inspiration for site-specific performance work. The visit gave students the opportunity to learn more about the role of the miner and the lived experiences of those who worked at the colliery, while engaging directly with the buildings, grounds and atmosphere of this significant heritage site. Being on location encouraged students to consider how history, place and memory can be brought to life through performance. During the visit, students also explored potential performance locations on the site. The space will help shape a student-devised, site-specific performances to be presented as part of the Coalville Theatre festival, offering audiences new ways to experience familiar places.
The visit forms part of a wider creative programme inspired by Gary Clarke Company’s dance theatre work Coal, supporting young people to respond creatively to Coalville’s industrial past.

PALITOY WORKERS

Calling all workers who worked at Coalville’s Palitoy factory! Local playwright Ben Weatherill and a team of actors are creating a new play inspired by your experiences — and we want your memories, laughter, and voices to help shape it. We’re inviting you to a friendly, informal gathering where you can reminisce about daily life at the factory, friendships, challenges, and proud moments. Your stories will be recorded and may even be heard in the play, giving your real voice a central role on stage.

CASTLE ROCK STUDENTS INSPIRED BY GARY CLARKE

Young people from Castle Rock School will premiere a powerful new site-specific performance at Snibston Colliery this summer, inspired by acclaimed choreographer Gary Clarke’s celebrated dance work Coal. The students have been working with Clarke to create an original piece of drama responding to the themes of his production, which explores the legacy of the UK coal industry and the impact of the miners’ strike on communities across the country.
Their performance will take place at the historic Snibston Colliery site as part of the Coalville Theatre Festival in June, transforming the former mining landscape into a stage for a new generation to reflect on the area’s past. Snibston Colliery, once a key part of Leicestershire’s mining industry, provides a fitting backdrop for the performance. By staging their work on the historic site, the young performers will connect directly with the environment that shaped the stories they are exploring.
The project is part of Coalville Theatre Festival’s commitment to celebrating both professional artists and community voices, while encouraging young people to engage with local history through the arts.