FUSE arts

31/08/2026

31/08/2026

Are you a young performer ready to be part of Europe’s largest Halloween festival? 👻🕺🪩

🧟‍♂️ FUSE arts are looking for young performers aged 8-15 to join us this Halloween, bringing the haunting local story of the Blue Guardian to life once again! 🧟‍♀️

Each year, the ghostly Blue Guardian escapes from the old Glendermott Road Workhouse, searching for the children she once cared for. As darkness falls over Mute Meadows, their spirits emerge from the shadows, drawing the Blue Guardian ever closer…

Through dance, movement and storytelling, our young performers will bring this haunting local story to life in a mysterious and beautiful outdoor performance as part of Derry Halloween 2026.

🌟 This is an incredible opportunity for young people to build confidence, make new friends and experience being part of a large-scale performance at the heart of Derry Halloween.

From learning the choreography and rehearsing together each week, to creating their own costume through a special clothing breakdown workshop, getting into character and performing for the Derry Halloween crowds, they’ll be part of the whole journey from rehearsal room to live performance.

No previous performance experience is necessary - just enthusiasm, commitment and a willingness to get involved!

REHEARSALS
📅 Mondays, 4:30–5:30pm
7, 14, 21 & 28 September
5, 12, 19 & 26 October 2026
📍 Foyle Arena

PERFORMANCES
Performances will take place between 6-9pm on 28, 29 & 30 October, with the Derry Halloween Parade on the evening of 31 October.

To join the Blue Guardian Performance Troupe, your child must be available for at least three of the four performance nights.

💷 PRICING
£50 for the full 8-week block - just £6.25 per class
£8 per class when paying weekly

💙 NEW PERFORMERS ARE VERY WELCOME!
Your child doesn’t need to have attended previous FUSE dance classes to take part.

Ready to join the troupe? 💫
Sign up here 🔗 https://forms.gle/Apyk5Vd87hLXzQbi6 🔗
Places are limited so early sign up is recommended.

📸 previous Blue Guardian performances, rehearsals & workshops

28/08/2026

The North-West Creative Network is back 📣 on Wednesday 16th September, from 10:30am-12:30pm, Cultúrlann Uí Chanáin in An Croí 🌟

This session is all about coming together, connecting and sharing. A chance to step away from the day-to-day, get out of the studio, office, rehearsal room (or wherever you’ve been hiding), have a cuppa and spend a couple of hours with other artists and creatives from across the North-West.

Working in the arts can be isolating, and we don’t always get enough chances to meet people working outside our own disciplines. So this session is really about getting people in a room together - catching up, meeting someone new, hearing what’s happening around the city and having a proper conversation about what it’s like to work creatively here.

Gemma Walker Farren will facilitate the session, with plenty of space for people to share experiences, ideas, frustrations and thoughts on what could make the North West creative community stronger 💪

We’ll also be launching , a new collaborative Instagram artist and creative database for the North-West! We’ll share more about how it works at the event, with all the info available on the account afterwards.

📍 Cultúrlann Uí Chanáin is located at 37 Great James Street, Derry, BT48 7DF. The Creative Social will take place in An Croí, on the ground floor.

🚗 The nearest car park is William Street Carpark. There is also some on-street parking available on Great James Street.

♿ Cultúrlann is wheelchair accessible, with level access into the building and An Croí, a lift to all public floors and accessible toilets. An induction loop is also available in An Croí, and there is a designated accessible parking space at the front of the building.

🏛️ We’ll finish up with an optional tour of Cultúrlann’s facilities for anyone who’d like to have a look around.

No big agenda. Come along, grab a cuppa, meet some people and be part of the conversation 🤗

The organisation and development of this initiative is kindly supported by Derry City & Strabane District Council through their Creative Practitioner Award Scheme 🙏

19/08/2026

👻 Would your child love to be part of Derry Halloween this year? 👻

We have dance & performance opportunities for ages 6-15!

Our dance programme will return to Foyle Arena this September with two unique classes for young dancers and the chance to perform as part of Derry Halloween 2026!

👻 CONTEMPORARY DANCE & CREATIVE MOVEMENT
Ages 6-10 | Mondays 3:30-4:30pm

A fun, supportive and non-competitive class where children can explore contemporary dance and creative movement, learn choreography and develop confidence, creativity, coordination and musicality.

Participants in this group will perform a fun, gentle performance in the Derry Halloween Parade on the 31st October!

👻 BLUE GUARDIAN PERFORMANCE TROUPE
Ages 8-15 | Mondays 4:30-5:30pm

Over eight weeks, the Blue Guardian troupe will work together to learn and develop a dynamic new performance, before taking it to Mute Meadows as part of the Derry Halloween Awakening the Walled City Trail & Parade.

📍 Foyle Arena
📅 Mondays from 7th September
£50 for the full 8-week term | £8 weekly

New dancers are very welcome and no previous experience with us is needed 🖤

Want to join us?
Sign up via the link in our bio 🔗 https://forms.gle/2kTsuYvr6rQki7K46 🔗

📹 content of The Blue Guardian Dance Troupe at Derry Halloween Parade 2025

16/07/2026

Arts Council of Northern Ireland Individual Funding Opportunities currently open 👇

Funding schemes currently open under the Support for Individual Artists Programme

🔵Major Individual Artists Awards
📅Application deadline: 12noon, 20th July 2026

🔵Project Funding for Individual Artists
📅Application deadline: 12noon, 30th July 2026

🔵Artists’ International Development Fund
📅Application deadline: 12noon, 30th July 2026

🔵Creative Progression
📅Application deadline: 12noon, 20th August 2026

Visit https://artscouncil-ni.org/funding/funding-for-individuals for more information and to apply.

14/07/2026

💫 A huge shout out to our brilliant Youth Dance Troupe! 💫

As part of this year’s Foyle Maritime Festival, our young dancers performed ‘Ebb & Flow’ - a playful and imaginative movement piece choreographed by Zoë Ramsey inspired by the sea 🌊

The troupe were due to perform twice in the Festival Village on the Saturday and managed to complete their first performance before the heavens opened and the rain rolled in! 🌧️

Not to be deterred, they quickly adapted and brought their second performance to the Science of Water Tent instead, sharing ‘Ebb & Flow’ with a whole new audience.

Between the rain, a last-minute change of venue and a few unexpected technical challenges, our dancers took it all in their stride and kept going with smiles on their faces throughout 🥹

Through creative movement and music, they rippled, splashed, swirled and drifted like the ever-changing sea, bringing so much energy, joy and imagination to the festival.

We couldn’t be prouder of this talented group of young people and the way they embraced every challenge with such enthusiasm, resilience and positivity 💙

We’d also like to wish all of our dancers a wonderful summer break, and we look forward to welcoming them back - along with some new faces - when our dance classes returns in September!

Well done everyone - you were amazing 👏🌊

13/07/2026

🌊 Foyle Maritime Festival Science of Water Tent memories 🌊

At the end of June, we were delighted to bring four days of family-friendly creativity, curiosity and hands-on discovery to the Science of Water Tent at this year’s Foyle Maritime Festival ⚓️

From adventurous tales with ‘Pirate Penny & the £1 Boat’ to fabric collage, puppet making, bridge building and colourful natural dye workshops, it was fantastic to see so many people of all ages getting stuck in, asking questions, experimenting, creating and making memories with us.

Over four days, the tent was filled with storytelling, imagination, problem-solving, creativity, experimentation, team work and fun - exactly what FUSE arts is all about 💚🩵🩷🧡💙

A huge thank you to everyone who joined us throughout the festival and helped make the Science of Water Tent such a vibrant and welcoming space and to the pupils from Oakgrove, Good Shepherd & Chapel Road Primary Schools whose creativity helped transform and decorate the tent for festival visitors to enjoy 🪼🐠🦀

We’re also incredibly grateful to our amazing facilitators, staff and volunteers whose energy, creativity and hard work made the programme possible.

And last but not least, thank you to Derry City & Strabane District Council for working with us and to our sponsors - LDB Safety Services Ltd, AE Global, Scarpello & Co and Allies.Studio - for supporting the FUSE arts programme and helping us bring arts, science and creativity together at this year’s festival.

These four days were just the beginning, marking the launch of our wider Entangled Peace project with Tere Chad exploring creativity, community and the legacy of peace building in Northern Ireland. More on that soon...🤝🧵🪡

📸 Credits: Emma Duddy & Tere Chad

28/06/2026

It’s the last day of the Foyle Maritime Festival!!! Come join us in The Science of Water Tent for family friendly fun 🤗

25/06/2026

is here!! ⚓🌊
📅 25-28 June 2026
📍Along the Quay

You can find us in the ‘Science of Water’ Tent (in front of the Quaywest and the funfair) for an exciting programme of interactive STEAM workshops, storytelling, creative activities, community art, and family-friendly fun inspired by the theme “Forged by the Foyle - It’s in Our DNA.”

The FUSE arts programme is funded by the Derry City & Strabane District and kindly supported by LDB Safety Services Ltd, AE Global, Allies.Studio and Scarpello & Co Bakehouse & Pizzeria 🙏

22/06/2026

🌊 Ebb & Flow - a playful and imaginative movement piece inspired by the sea 🌊

📅 Saturday 27 June 2026
📍 Festival Village, Foyle Maritime Festival
⏰ Performances at 1:10 and 2:50pm

Ebb & Flow follows our FUSE arts Youth Dance Troupe as they ripple, splash, swirl and drift together like the ever changing ocean. From gentle tides to rolling waves, they explore the joy, energy and calm of the sea through creative movement and music - ebbing and flowing through the motions.

Come along and be swept away by this joyful celebration of the sea and the creativity of our young performers.

This performance choreographed by Zoë Ramsey, funded by Derry City & Strabane District Council and kindly supported by LDB Safety Services Ltd, AE Global, and Scarpello & Co 🙏