Sweet, tender and serene; Drylongso is a coming-of-age drama that follows the life of Pica, a vivacious and passionate young photography student.
After attending one too many funerals, Pica decides to fully immerse herself in her work and channel her trauma through her art. Perfectly encapsulating the life of a young black girl in Oakland where gang activity is steadily rising, Cauleen Smith comments on femininity, sexism, violence and friendships in this fantastic feature film debut!
They’ll be screening this groundbreaking classic in DIY filmmaking in May 15th at Metal, Edge Hill Station. Tickets start from £1 so grab yours now by clicking the link on the right or on the door!
7PM – DOORS OPEN
They’ll be serving refreshments
7:30PM – DRYLONGSO BEGINS
9:00PM – POST SCREENING DISCUSSION
THE FILM
Year: 1998
Runtime: 1h 21m
Certificate: 12
Director: Cauleen Smith
Writers: Cauleen Smith, Salim Akil
Country: America
Languages: English
Genre: Drama
Cast: Toby Smith, April Barnett, Salim Akil, Will Power, Channel Schafer
Synopsis: A young woman in a photography class begins taking pictures of black men out of fear they will soon be extinct.
Trigger Warning: Violence
Drylongso trailer
This screening is in collaboration with Liverpool African Diaspora Film Network
Presented by Black Girl Watching Film Club
Robert Tressell’s novel adapted as a stage play, follows the fortunes of a group of painters and decorators and their families as they struggle to survive against exploitative employers, unemployment, debt and abject poverty.
Where the only safety nets are charity, the workhouse, and the grave.
Do you have a lonely sock in the drawer? That one sock that has been left abandoned? Two socks go into the washing machine and only one returns. Where, oh where do those socks go?
Fear not friends at ArtsGroupie’s Puppet Day – Sat 10th May, 11am till 3pm Liverpool Central Library Liverpool Libraries and Information Services
JOIN their resident puppeteer Ruta Staseviciute for a FREE SOCK Puppet making workshop.
They will also have:
FREE Shadow puppetry making.
FREE storytime with the Liver Bird (sessions at 11:45, 12:45 & 13:45pm).
FREE puppetry demonstrations.
Plus, healthy snacks and refreshments.
A chance to show off your shadow puppets too on their stage.
Kindly supported by Arts Council England part of our #throughshadowswelearn project.
If you have any questions – email artgroupie@outlook.com
As the heart of the Community Launch of the Liverpool European Festival 2025, St Luke’s Bombed Out Church will burst into life with music, movement, and colour in a vibrant celebration of Europe’s rich cultural heritage.
From midday, the iconic venue will host a lively and family-friendly programme featuring cultural stalls, exhibitions, and performances representing communities from across Europe—including Poland, Romania, Greece, Ukraine, the Nordic countries, and many more.
Visitors will also be invited to explore a striking photographic exhibition inside the church, capturing the everyday lives, traditions, and contributions of Liverpool’s European communities. Through a compelling mix of portraits, candid scenes, and cultural moments, the display highlights the deep-rooted presence and lasting impact of European heritage in the city.
Free and open to all, this vibrant event offers a unique opportunity to experience Europe’s diverse cultures—right in the heart of Liverpool.
Are you an artist or professional working with young people?
This year in the UK 38,792 children and young people will enter the care system*. In 2023, a total of 83,840 children and young people were looked after**.
This training will explore how creativity can support the wellbeing, personal and educational development of care-experienced children and young people.
Attendees will:
be introduced to the policy / strategic context of the care system;
unpack terminology around care and young people;
discuss the benefits of creative work for care-experienced children and young people;
consider aspects of good practice in working with care-experienced children and young people;
explore practical approaches and creative ideas for the work.
Online Event: This training will take place online using Zoom. You will receive an email with the link. Please note – we do not record the sessions because of the sensitive nature of the topic.
Length: 3 hours
Ticket Cost: For attendees supported by their organisations the full price of a ticket is £40.00 For freelancers and individuals from non-regularly funded organisations attendees the price of a ticket is £30.00 For those on low or no income the ticket price is £18.00. They also have a small number of bursary places available for those with limited funds, please email info@collective-encounters.org.uk Please Note: Ticket sales will end 24 hours before this event is due to start.
Mystery Theatre Club Edition 14
Metrocola
Doors at 7pm
Pay What You Can ( cash on door )
After a brief stint away and a few secret screenings, Mystery Theatre Club is back!
This time they’re upstairs at Metrocola in town!
In May we will be screening Ash & Money, a favourite during our residency at Kitty’s Launderette.
Ash and Money is the first film project by Theatre NO99. It is a full length making-of documentary that sheds light into how NO75 Unified Estonia came to be, interviews the people behind the project and also many political figures in office at the time and looks into how the process of creating possibly the biggest contemporary performing arts event in recent European history evolved in real time.
The NO99 Theater announced in March of 2010 that it would use all the tricks commonly used in politics and communications over the following two months to create a new successful and energetic super-party. The theater organized a party convention and staged it with the participation of 7000 people. The documentary film produced about the project and its influences is a study of the state of affairs in democracy, the media and grass-roots society in the Republic of Estonia.
BUT time did it’s work…
Situation changed and people changed.
Or did they?
At Kook, they enjoy exploring the boundaries of comedy and tragedy – what makes a moment simultaneously beautiful, painful, and funny? How can you challenge yourself to view your work from a different perspective and be courageous enough to tear it down and start anew?
This session will focus on your individual spirit of play and how it integrates into an ensemble dynamic. Sean Kempton, a seasoned performer, director, and teacher with over 30 years of experience, has created and performed work for numerous international companies, including Cirque Du Soleil. Sean has also been a core teacher at the National Centre for Circus Arts.
Participants must be 18+
Dylan is living with dementia. Heather must watch the love of her life drift away and battle with the erosion of his memories…but Heather is not going to let Dylan go easily!
Instead, they fight to remember their past together, the laughter, the battles, and to rediscover a joy that keeps them connected for whatever the future holds.
Kook Ensemble brings together a team of world class theatre makers to create original and playful stories. They delight in blending the very best of circus arts and theatre to charm, surprise and keep you guessing until the end!
‘Sand’ is Kook Ensemble’s second show, hard on the heels of their critically acclaimed tour of ‘Filibuster’ in 2024.
Created and produced by Kook Ensemble, co-commissioned by Landmark Theatres. Supported by Arts Council England and the Royal National Theatre Generate programme.
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be born into a country where your safety was at risk?
Afloat is a theatre for social change performance, following the journey of two English citizens seeking asylum in a fictional place, fighting for their lives as the dream to make Britain Great turns into a living nightmare. Afloat brings to the stage powerful real-life stories of asylum seekers, inviting the audience to step into their shoes and confront the daily struggles and challenges faced with every step.
15+
An artist (‘An Té’) sits in their studio, frantic and lonely, as their life has begun to unravel due to their burgeoning queer identity.
Over the course of this monologue play, we begin to understand that An Té has recently become obsessed with the old Irish legend of the Brown Bull of Cooley – a figured revered for his masculinity and assertiveness – and in order to solve their problem, they summon the Bull to their basement studio. A battle of monologues ensues as An Té desperately tries to figure out their predicament: whether life beyond the binary would be worth potentially losing the love of their life.
Performed in the Irish language with English surtitles, the play is suitable for ages 12+.
