People’s Theatre Collective is thrilled to announce the return of its biannual Tell Your Story Festival – a vibrant, youth-led celebration of creativity, identity and community, taking place from the 25th of October to the 1st of November in Banbury town centre. The festival will bring together young people and professional artists for a week of workshops, performances, and installations, primarily at the Festival Hub in Castle Quay Shopping Centre.

Now in its third edition, the festival continues the Collective’s commitment to co-creation and community-led arts. This year’s theme ‘Made In Banbury’ encourages young people to explore culture, identity and belonging, with the festival providing an excellent platform to share their stories. From spoken word to drama and visual art, the Tell Your Story Festival invites audiences to experience Banbury’s creativity in fresh and unexpected ways.

“Tell Your Story Festival is about young people taking up space — expressing themselves, celebrating their differences and leading the creative conversation” says Tristan Jackson-Pate, Artistic Director of People’s Theatre Collective. “This year’s festival is the most ambitious yet, with young people shaping every stage of the process, from themes and performances to the artwork and staging.”

Highlights of the festival include:
– Workshops and performances led by professional artists in theatre, comedy, creative writing, zine-making and special effects make-up
– A family lantern-making session At Bridge Steet community garden
– Gallery displays and ongoing art drop ins created by young artists
– Premiere performances of new plays written by Banbury’s young playwrights
All events are free of charge and open to all, in line with The Collective’s commitment to an open access model, ensuring that financial circumstances never prevent a young person from participating. This project has been made possible due to generous support from funders including Cherwell District Council, Peoples Postcode Lottery, Project Spark, and Boutell Bequest

Peoples Theatre Collective has been working with young people since 2004 to remove barriers to arts participation. Each year, the Banbury-based charity reaches over 5,000 young people through free workshops, performances and creative learning opportunities.

Free