Two Nights, Two Counties – A Story That Roars to Life
This November, we’re thrilled to welcome the new theatre production Wild from Black Country Touring in the Midlands, to East Anglia, as part of a national tour supported by Create Tour Connect.
After a visit to a Norfolk high school on Thursday 27th November, the show will arrive at its first Creative Arts East rural touring gig on Friday 28th November at Shouldham Village Hall in West Norfolk. It will then travel to Cambridgeshire for a performance at The Old School Hall, Sawtry on Saturday 29th November.
Celebrating what wild means to us, in the natural world, in our towns and cities, and within ourselves, Wild weaves together stories collected from over 70 people across rural, urban and seaside locations. It invites the audience to reflect on their own definitions of wild, fostering a deeper appreciation of both nature and human nature.
This show features original songs, immersive soundscapes and vivid storytelling, taking audiences on an emotional journey from exhilarating fear to childlike joy and will leave you wondering… what is your own “wild”?
“I loved the way that the staging was so precisely calibrated to get the maximum theatrical effect from venues that aren’t automatically geared for live theatre. It felt locally significant, but not insular in any way.”
– Audience member
Experience Wild this Autumn…
Friday 28th November, 7.30pm, Shouldham Village Hall, Norfolk – Full details
Saturday 29th November, 7pm, The Old School Hall, Sawtry, Cambridgeshire – Full details
Touring Wild Nationally with Create Tour Connect
The national tour of Wild is made possible through Create Tour Connect (CTC), an innovative partnership project supporting the commissioning, development and touring of new theatre across the UK’s rural touring network.
Led by Applause, CTC brings together 17 partner organisations across four regional hubs – North, Southwest, Midlands and Southeast – each committed to championing small-scale touring and widening cultural access in rural communities. By supporting shows like Wild, CTC strengthens the pipeline of new theatre reaching village halls, community centres, and rural or underserved locations nationwide.
We’re incredibly excited to be part of the Southeast consortium, working alongside Applause and Farnham Maltings to help bring brand-new theatre to the region and, ultimately, to the rest of the country.
“The show succeeds brilliantly in taking us to the wild places, the wild nature of life, weather, flora and fauna. A brilliant show on a deceptively simple theme. Great staging and fantastic sound design.”
– Audience member
Looking Ahead: The Southeast Begin Their Selection
Momentum is already building for the Southeast consortium’s own CTC commission, with a wide range of exciting applications currently under review.
The chosen show will tour nationally in Spring 2027, following in the footsteps of Wild and continuing the mission to grow high-quality, locally rooted theatre for audiences everywhere.
Find out more: The National Rural Touring Forum discuss the transformative power of this unique nationwide project.
Heading up the project on our team is our Community Touring Coordinator, Zoë, who said:
“I’m really excited to have a show like Wild touring to our Promoters later this month. With an ambitious, multi-level set that fills the whole room and seats audiences on two sides, I hope our rural audiences will feel that their local community space has been utterly transformed by the magic of great theatre. By being part of the Connect Tour Create project, our ability to offer high-quality, professional multi-hander shows to our network of small-scale venues has increased, which goes some way to addressing the challenges associated with the current touring landscape.”
And Next on the Touring Schedule… Eyes Down
As we celebrate Wild’s arrival, we’re also looking ahead to the next production heading our way through CTC. Manchester-based company Just Some Theatre have been selected to represent the North with their new show Eyes Down, which will visit the Eastern region in March 2026.
So, keep your eyes peeled for Eyes Down, coming in the new year!
Image credits: Anand Chhabra
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