The Pomegranate Youth Theatre offers weekly drama workshops that are available to all regardless of their ethnic or social background at a low cost. The Pomegranate Youth Theatre was formed in 2002 from an external drama group consisting of 10 to 15 members.  It has grown to an existing group of up to 90 young people ages 4-30+, drawn from all around the Chesterfield and outlying area. The fun workshops provide a service to teach all aspects of stagecraft with professional facilitators which promote teamwork, social skills, emotional intelligence, creativity and confidence. The young people involved choose and explore issues relevant to themselves and the area in which they live as well as subjects and events from other aspects of life through research, improvisation, devising, scripting and performing.

All members take part equally in performance and illustrate in an entertaining way the skills they have acquired.
 

 Gekkota Arts evolved from the Pomegranate Youth Theatre. It was formed with a group of long standing Youth Theatre members who wished to continue their journey and further their skills in every aspect of stagecraft. They produce high quality performances of new and existing works, in the local area and further afield.

Gekkota Arts toured another brand new play Top Table written by Richard Stone.

They also hold regular monthly  Comedy Impro nights at the Studio Theatre

 

The Pomegranate Youth Theatre work with professional writers and musicians and through devising and improvisation create new productions that are performed at the Pomegranate Theatre and other venues across the area.

 

 Past productions include scripted work with an original slant, for example Oh What a lovely war and Animal Farm.

 

They performed a brand new production with music funded by the heritage lottery about the Chesterfield Workhouse – ‘No One to Assist’. (This is now available for schools and other youth groups to use.)

 

They performed an original production  written by Sheila Young with music by Robert Laughlin from improvisations by the group from stories about the Chesterfield Canal. ‘Cuckoo’ was performed at the Pomegranate Theatre, the Staveley basin as part of the Canal Festival and Stainsby Festival.

Another Arts council supported production was 'The Candy Girls' about the lives of the workers at the former Trebor factory in Chesterfield. It was written by The Pomegranate Playwriting Group and additional sces by Richard Stone and Original music by Robert Laughlin.

They performed in a new intergenerational piece funded by Derbyshire Intergenerational Strategy 'Cradle to Grave' looking at the NHS.

 They have performed in new work for Haulocoust Memorial Day, written by Katy Dent,, Jam and Justice written by Louise Page in partnership with the WI Funded by Derbyshire intergenerational Strategy), Larks in the Park showcase, Written in Stone, written by Sheila Young (funded by the HLF) and Hidden Strangers  by Louise Page (Funded by Nottingham University)

 

They have just performed 3 new pieces of work in July 2022

Jungle Runners- The Excellent Pink Custard

Iguanas - Channel Hopping by Katy Dent

Komodo Dragons - Isol8 by Ciaran Lindley

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    As well as the continuation of high quality performances at  Chesterfield Venues, the Pomegranate Youth Theatre  is a member of the East Midlands Youth Theatres network and the National Association of Youth Theatres. 

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Carole Copeland

Founder and Director of the Pomegranate Youth Theatre