By the one and only Grace Hatchell in Newbury.
I spy with my little eye that the Corn Exchange Newbury is bringing a free outdoor arts programme to the town centre this summer, featuring large-scale performances like Motionhouse’s BLOCK and ADHOK’s Watchful, alongside training opportunities and community events.
Now then, I’ve had something rather exciting land in my satchel this week, and if you happen to be anywhere near Newbury this summer, you might want to keep your diary wide open. Because it sounds like the Corn Exchange isn’t just putting on a show… it’s turning the whole town centre into one.
Honestly, I do love it when theatre escapes the building a bit. There’s something about stumbling across a performance in the open air that feels a touch more magical, like the village itself has decided to put on a show without asking permission first.
So here’s what’s happening. The Corn Exchange Newbury is rolling out a full summer programme of free outdoor arts, with performances dotted throughout the day and into the evening. We’re talking physical theatre, dance, and storytelling — all out in the open, where anyone can wander past and get swept up in it.
Kicking things off on 21 June is Motionhouse’s BLOCK, and I must say, this one sounds like a proper spectacle. Picture this: twenty enormous blocks stacked up like a giant game of Jenga right in the Market Place, with performers climbing, leaping, and quite literally defying gravity around them. It’s aerial dance meets circus, all wrapped up in a bold take on city life — the chaos, the structure, the constant balancing act. I can already imagine people stopping mid-shop just to stare.
Then in July, things soften slightly with Watchful from ADHOK, landing on 25 July. This one feels more tender — a dance theatre piece following a couple through the decades, from their early twenties right through to old age. It’s the sort of story that sneaks up on you, I think. Quiet, reflective, but probably packing quite the emotional punch if you let it.
And it’s not just about watching either. There’s a proper opportunity for artists to get involved too, with a four-day summer school running from 27 to 30 July at 101 Outdoor Arts over at Greenham Business Park. It’s called The Language of Dance Theatre Outdoors, which sounds delightfully grand, but essentially it’s a chance for performers and creatives to learn how to take work out of traditional spaces and into the open air.
Now, I had a little read of what Danielle Corbishley, Head of 101 and Outdoor Programmes, had to say, and I rather liked her spirit. She called it a “rambunctious programme,” which is exactly the kind of word you want attached to a summer of theatre, if you ask me. And she’s absolutely right — these sorts of events aren’t just for theatre regulars. They’re for everyone. Grandparents, kids, neighbours… even that one person who says they “don’t really do theatre” but somehow ends up watching the whole thing anyway.
And it doesn’t stop there. There are more performances lined up later in the year, including work from Rara Woulib in September and their Festival of Light in December, which sounds like it’ll be a whole different kind of magic once the nights draw in.
What I find particularly lovely about all this is how rooted it feels in community. The Corn Exchange already works with over 130,000 people a year through its events and outreach, and 101 Outdoor Arts has become this huge creative hub — not just locally, but nationally and even internationally. It’s the kind of place where ideas don’t just sit quietly on paper… they get built, tested, and sent out into the world.
And for a few weeks this summer, it seems Newbury itself becomes the stage for all of that.
So if you happen to be passing through, don’t just rush by. Slow down a moment. Have a look. You might just find a performance unfolding right in front of you — no ticket required, no curtain call needed, just a bit of theatre appearing where you least expect it.
And that, my loves, is exactly the kind of delivery I like to make.
Website https://101outdoorarts.com/labs/summer-school-with-adhok
BLOCK https://cornexchangenew.com/events/blockWatchful
Watchful https://cornexchangenew.com/events/watchful
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