Arena Nights

12/06/2026

Morning folks!

For our next Arena Nights evening (in partnership with Poets, Prattlers and Pandemonialists) at the Arena Theatre on Tuesday 16th June at 7.30pm, we are on the hunt for THREE actors to read a 10-minute excerpt of Jade Sanchez's 'Final Act', a supernatural dark comedy.

The roles are as follows:

JULIA CHADWICK-BAXTER - a radio presenter.
HANNAH BLACKWELL - a radio producer.
GRACE FAIRCHILD - a published author and successful playwright of supernatural stories.

This will be a script-in-hand reading, and a script can be sent ASAP. There will also be opportunity to rehearse at the Arena with the rest of the cast of both pieces on the afternoon of the 16th June but this isn't necessary. Ideally, availability needs to be from 7.00pm for the evening at the latest.

This is, unfortunately, unpaid - but Arena Nights is a great opportunity to meet creatives from across the Midlands, have a chat, and get yourself 'out there' into the theatremaking scene and build connections.

If you are interested, please drop an e-mail to Sam Fleming at [email protected]

We also have slots at Arena Nights for longer pieces/a "headliner" where we operate a Pay What You Feel with audiences in attendance, meaning the headline act is paid with the takings, as well as the fact we are always on the lookout for 10-minute works-in-progress. So, if you are also interested in a slot for future Arena Nights, please also let us know.

04/06/2026

𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐑 𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓!

We're delighted to be welcoming Carol J Forrester and her show, 'Stone Tongued', to the next instalment of Arena Nights! 🤩

More details below 👀

📆 Tuesday 16th June
🕢 7.30pm
🎟 https://bit.ly/ANSpring2026

The show is a mixture of poetry and history, built around the poems in my second collection 'Stone Tongued', and examining the historical women who feature in them. It looks at how women such as Johanna Ferrour become a historical footnote, overlooked and forgotten, while John Ball takes centre stage in histories on the Peasants Revolt. I talk about the way in which women rarely conform to our ideas of 'historical women' and how modern historians have been filling in the silences, but sometimes there isn't enough left for history to find a voice in the forgetting. That is where poetry steps in.

The show is essentially a poetry performance, and a history seminar merged together. Poetry and storytelling.

In partnership with Poets, Prattlers and Pandemonialists, we are delighted to present Arena Nights - an initiative celebrating ideas and emerging talent. Arena Nights will bring together a vibrant mix of performance, experimentation, and new work.

University of Wolverhampton Arts Council England Enjoy Wolverhampton Wolverhampton What's On

05/03/2026

Join us for Arena Nights on Tuesday 10th March in the Tilstone Studio at 7:30pm for our development evening. Open mic for performance pieces, and headlined by 'This Could've Gone Better' by Aimee Gebhard.

"This Could've Gone Better" is about a young woman's struggles with survival in the midst of a nuclear apocalypse, as she reflects on her wasted life and unachievable dreams. Dark-comedy, dystopian and coming-of-age.

We also have space for a middle 10 performance, if you have something ready to go email [email protected] to start a conversation.

The event is Pay What You Feel.

11/06/2025

20/05/2025

We're THRILLED to announce that, with thanks to funding from In Good Company, we are hosting a special Arena Collaborative Theatremakers (ACT) on Tuesday 10th June! 🤩

Join us as we put the script-in-hand readings down and - for ONE NIGHT ONLY - invite established theatre professionals who have set up their own companies, acted for stage and screen, and gotten scripts from page to stage to impart their stories and advice on YOU for how they made it into the industry! 🙌

DON'T MISS OUT! ✨

Places are FREE but space is limited - so book quickly! 👀

We'll be announcing our line-up very, VERY soon. Make sure you keep an eye on our social media pages 😍

📆Tuesday 10th June
⌚️7:30pm
🎟 https://bit.ly/ArenaIGC

University of Wolverhampton Arts Council England City of Wolverhampton College Halesowen College Sandwell College Walsall College Central Youth Theatre Gazebo Theatre

06/05/2025

Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances, we have made the decision to cancel this evening’s Arena Collaborative Theatremakers (ACT).

HOWEVER, do keep your eyes peeled across our social media as we have an exciting ACT-related announcement coming soon! 👀

31/03/2025

Arena Collaborative Theatremakers is BACK for its second instalment of Spring 2025 tomorrow night! 🥳

We'll be bringing you a script-in-hand reading of Brian McInally's 'Eostre and Pomona', performed by Stefan Wdowiak, Lily Penfold, Denny Hodge, and Madeleine Hagerty! 🤩

There also may be an exciting announcement on the horizon tomorrow evening, so make sure you join us at Arena Theatre in our Tilstone Studio from 7.30pm 👀 entry is FREE!

👉 https://bit.ly/ACTSpring2025

13/03/2025

A celebration of 10 years of glorious, delightful, creative loveliness.

18/02/2025

It has been a hot minute, but ACT is back at the Arena Theatre on Tuesday 4th March as we enter our TEN YEAR anniversary! 🥳

I know: we can't believe it either 🤯

We've assembled our scripts, and assembled our casts, and we're delighted to be bringing 'An Obvious Divide in the Living Room' co-written by Jade Scotford and Laura Liptrot, and 'Weight Off My Chest', written by Laura Liptrot.

Casting announcements will follow soon - so keep your eyes peeled! 👀

But in the mean time, make sure you book your FREE ticket to come along and support the West Midlands theatre scene! 😍

👉 https://bit.ly/ACTSpring2025