Strike A Light

04/06/2026

Come and be part of a new choir in , led by the brilliant Philippa Smith from Voice Academy. 🔥

A great opportunity to sing, meet others AND perform in SMOOSH! - a rip roaring music parade from Paraorchestra. 🎉

Sessions will be held at St James and Christ Church, Gloucester and kick off this week.

For more info, or to join, email Philippa: [email protected]

04/06/2026

May Dump 🔥

1. A Sound experience by at the Meanwhile Gallery - featuring beaut words by and brilliant artists from Gloucester, London and Bangladesh.

2. Polly, Zariq and Charlene at the bangin’ SHIFT conference at , produced by & .

3. A fantastic work-in-progress sharing by as part of ’s Artist in Residence programme.

4. Loads of site visits and meetings in Tredworth, gearing up for a busy summer of stuff - including performances by and .

5. Halima with some very well-deserved flowers after her work-in-progress sharing of ‘Her Name Wasn’t Banu’.

6. Rehearsals are well underway for Strike A Light Youth Theatre’s upcoming performance ‘Welcome to Rainbow Land’.

7. Zariq collecting musical instruments from
to take to for a workshop as part of ‘The Table’ – a new project with , Aisha Zia and .

8. After nearly eight years in our office… we finally got a Strike A Light window sticker.

03/06/2026

SMOOSH! - a rip roaring parade coming to Gloucester on Friday 10 July 🎉🔥

https://strikealight.org.uk/smoosh-paraorchestra/

02/06/2026

We’re SUPER EXCITED to announce Strike A Light Youth Theatre’s next performance… WELCOME TO RAINBOW LAND 🌈

🗓️ Wednesday 24 June 2026, 7:30pm
📍 The Performing Arts Centre, Uni of Glos
🎟️ Pay-what-you-can

The Fairy Godmother has been running Rainbow Land for a long time. Over the years, she’s brought lots of unhappy people to be in her happy happy place and it’s just magical. ✨

She’s just brought a new person to her realm, Acer, who’s a curious dreamer. Unfortunately his twin Ashlynn followed and she is not under the spell of the Fairy Godmother. Watch them navigate their relationship in this weird and wonderful world, meeting people that are just happy as Larry.

Expect lollipops, pinatas and rainbow chickens! 🍭

This is ‘Welcome to Rainbow Land’, Strike a Light Youth Theatre’s original performance exploring childhood, growing up and managing emotions.

An ensemble piece devised and performed by Strike A Light’s Youth Theatre. 👏

https://strikealight.org.uk/welcome-to-rainbow-land/

30/05/2026

26/05/2026

Two Places at Once - FREE Dance / Movement Workshop led by Lauren Scott 🔥

A relaxed public dance and movement workshop rooted in popping, hip hop and social dance. Movement artist .0 will lead an accessible session exploring rhythm, listening and community. Expect simple movement tasks, accessible foundations and a welcoming space to move together.

This workshop is part of Two Places at Once - a headphone-led experience by , bringing together artists across Gloucester, London and Dhaka to create a shared listening space between two places.

🗓️ Saturday 30 May 2026, 3pm - 4pm
📍 GASP Studios, Level 1, Eastgate Shopping Centre, Gloucester
💰 Free - no tickets needed - just show up!

Lauren Scott is a movement artist specialising in street styles, with a practice rooted in popping and hip hop, complemented by contemporary and theatrical influences. An active member of The Architects Crew and IndaFam / IndaHouse UK, Lauren moves fluidly between training, battle culture and the stage. Her work has been platformed by leading venues including Sadler’s Wells, The Place, Somerset House, Breakin’ Convention and Dance Umbrella, alongside commercial collaborations with Nike, Red Bull and Formula 1.

Two Places at Once - created by state of the [art] with BACK Art Foundation, and supported by the British Council and Strike A Light.

25/05/2026

SMOOSH! is coming to Gloucester - a rip-roaring parade from 🔥

Friday 10 July 2026 // 2pm & 6:30pm // Tredworth High Street, Gloucester // Free - just turn up

Taking to the streets of Gloucester, SMOOSH! brings a high energy wind and brass band to Tredworth in a celebration of music, movement, and community. The joy-packed parade features a selection of pop bangers and karaoke classics – with tunes from Fatboy Slim and Basement Jaxx, to Kate Bush and Adele.

A core of Paraorchestra musicians – accompanied by dancers, and alongside members of the local community – will form a mobile human jukebox that invites you out onto the street to dance and sing along in a magnificent communal ‘mass-aoke’.

See you there?! 🎉

*Smoosh! is created and performed by Paraorchestra and presented in Gloucester by Strike A Light and funded by & .*

22/05/2026

Two Places at Once - FREE Poetry / Spoken Word Workshop led by Ish*ta Uppadhayay🔥

A relaxed group writing workshop exploring memory, home, migration, belonging and what it means to feel connected to more than one place.

Poet and facilitator will guide participants through simple writing prompts, poetry books and shared reflection. You do not need to have written poetry before.

This workshop is part of Two Places at Once - a headphone-led experience by , bringing together artists across Gloucester, London and Dhaka to create a shared listening space between two places.

🗓️ Saturday 30 May 2026, 1pm - 2pm
📍 GASP Studios, Level 1, Eastgate Shopping Centre, Gloucester
💰 Free - no ticket needed - just show up!

Ish*ta Uppadhayay is a poet and facilitator from India based in London. They have been published with fourteen poems, the87press, and with Brick Lane Bookshop Press. They won the 2025 Aurora Prize for Writing. They are a Roundhouse Poetry Collective and Barbican Young Poets alum, as well as having been part of the T. S. Eliot Young Critics Scheme. Ish*ta writes about immigration, grief, alcoholism, and relationships — everything you shouldn’t discuss at the dinner table.

Two Places at Once - created by state of the [art] in partnership with BACK Art Foundation, and supported by the British Council and Strike A Light.

21/05/2026

Congrats to on a fantastic sharing of ‘Her Name Wasn’t Banu’ - a new project exploring the story of Halima’s mother, who came home from school one day to discover it was her wedding day.

The project pieces together her mother’s journey and life story, exploring cultural identity, migration, family expectations and consent.

Huge thanks to everyone who came along to yesterday, and to everyone who has supported the project so far + more 💛

📸 George Robotham

19/05/2026

Two Places at Once: Soundroom - a headphone-led public installation from exploring climate, environment, migration, belonging, diaspora and memory between the UK and Bangladesh. 🔥

🗓️ Saturday 30 May 2026
⏰ 12pm - 5pm
📍 GASP Studios, Gloucester
💰 FREE - drop in

Audiences enter a living-room-style space, put on wireless headphones, and listen to sound works created by artists across Gloucester, London and Dhaka.

Created by state of the [art] in partnership with BACK Art Foundation, and supported by the British Council and Strike A Light