Building Community Through Creative Practice

How do you move beyond audience engagement to create genuine community? Spaces where people feel connected, valued and like they belong.

In this two-hour session, Zest Theatre will share the practical approaches they use to build meaningful communities around their work. While their practice is rooted in working alongside children and young people, the principles behind it are relevant to anyone looking to better understand and serve the people at the heart of what they do.

As an artist-led organisation, Zest begins by listening. Through creative conversations, co-creation and relationship-led practice, they gather the voices and experiences of their communities and use them to shape everything from artistic work to organisational direction.

This session introduces the practical building blocks used to create belonging within projects. Participants will explore how to open dialogue, build trust and create environments where connection can happen quickly and authentically.

Alongside sharing their practice, the session will create space for participants to connect with one another, reflect on their own communities and begin building a shared sense of belonging within the Barbican Creative Hub community itself.

Participants will leave with practical tools, fresh insight and adaptable techniques that can be applied to strengthen connection and community within their own work.

Funded by the East Midlands Create Growth Programme.