Creative Midlands Heritage |
- Bandstand Development Blog – Old photos and things I am thinking about… – by Katherine Maxwell-Cook
- It is about time city got <b>theatre</b>
- Plans for Stourport Lucy Baldwin Hospital site revealed
- £15m bill to bring Hippodrome back to former <b>theatre</b> glory
- We can't revive city overnight
- BAM GROEP KON : Harborne Academy's new building: BAM selected
| Bandstand Development Blog – Old photos and things I am thinking about… – by Katherine Maxwell-Cook Posted: 27 Jan 2012 07:20 AM PST Bandstand Development Blog – Old photos and things I am thinking about… – by Katherine Maxwell-Cook We are currently making two new Bandstand Audio Experiences for the bandstand in West Park, Wolverhampton. We are working with our commissioning partners Black Country Touring to develop and promote these new works. I'm Katherine Maxwell-Cook, and I'll be writing the story and the text for the experiences. One will be for a solo listener/participant/audience member, and one will be written for a pair to experience together.
I've been looking at old black and white photographs of the bandstand in West Park and trying to imagine what it was like to be there in a bygone era. The Black Country website (http://blackcountryhistory.org/) is an amazing resource of historical pictures, pamphlets and articles from the region. It looks like the actual layout of the park hasn't changed much since it was originally landscaped in the 1880s. What was it like in the park after World War II when much of it had been turned into allotments for the war effort? Were bands playing on the bandstand during this time? How will the male and female sides of the story differ? What effect did the war have on the relationship between the man and the woman? What is it about the bandstand that is so alluring, even today? I enjoyed reading this description of the Black Country from the mid nineteenth century, 'The appearance of the country around Wolverhampton and Bilston is strange in the extreme. For miles and miles the eye ranges over wide-spreading masses of black rubbish, hills on hills of shale, and mashed and muddled coal dust, extracted from beneath and masking, as it were, the whole face of nature." (http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac.uk/articles/Parks/Parks.htm) It reminded me of the importance of public parks in the industrial heartlands; even in the last century they were weekend sanctuaries; an opportunity to stroll on the green grass, go boating or picnic under the sheltering trees. Somehow I'll try to weave this sense of escape into the stories I'm writing. Katherine Maxwell-Cook |
| It is about time city got <b>theatre</b> Posted: 20 Apr 2012 03:34 PM PDT IT was nice to read in The Citizen, April 13, that the Gloucester Quays new cinema is to commence! In recent articles, I was not surprised to learn the Stanhope proposals for a King's Square cinema complex could be axed through rivalry at Gloucester ... See all stories on this topic » |
| Plans for Stourport Lucy Baldwin Hospital site revealed Posted: 20 Apr 2012 03:09 PM PDT Taylor Wimpey West Midlands showed off its design proposals at a public event in the Brinton Arms, Bewdley Road, last night. Under the scheme the majority of buildings would be demolished and replaced with 11 or 12 three and four bedroom detached ... See all stories on this topic » |
| £15m bill to bring Hippodrome back to former <b>theatre</b> glory Posted: 20 Apr 2012 02:57 PM PDT A £15.4 million restoration to make the former Hippodrome into a West End-style theatre is financially possible, according to a study. In December, city architect firm Lathams was appointed by the Hippodrome Restoration Trust to carry out an appraisal ... See all stories on this topic » |
| We can't revive city overnight Posted: 20 Apr 2012 02:47 PM PDT I think this piece of writing was foolish and irresponsible and leads people to think once again that the best thing for our beautiful buildings in Stoke-on-Trent is to knock them down because at the moment they are out of use. WORTH SAVING? See all stories on this topic » |
| BAM GROEP KON : Harborne Academy's new building: BAM selected Posted: 20 Apr 2012 07:47 AM PDT This will be a landmark building that will put Harborne Academy on the map as the leading Academy in the West Midlands. BAM will build the replacement facility highlighting the institution's flagship health and science facilities and creating new ... See all stories on this topic » |
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