Happy Black Country Day!
Happy Black Country Day! To celebrate, we've handpicked some lovely events taking place across our mighty fine region over the next week (and a little beyond) for you to enjoy...
Creative Black Country supports the Birmingham and Black Country MELA with LOVEART
📅 19-20 July
📍 Victoria Park, Smethwick
Head to this year’s MELA in Victoria Park, Smethwick, to see the stunning 12.5m high, air-filled structure that frames an elegant aerial performer.
This spectacle of colour, movement and music is a beautiful celebration of love in all its forms. Suspended high above the crowds at Victoria Park, LOVEART will leave you inspired and uplifted.
Mothers Without Hands: A Bold and Beautiful Procession Through Walsall
📅 19th July, 2.30pm
📍Outside New Art Gallery Walsall
On Saturday the streets of Walsall will become the stage for a powerful, ceremonial procession celebrating the resilience, creativity and solidarity of local women. Mothers Without Hands is the grand finale of a six-month international project by artist Tereza Bušková, rooted in folklore and collective making. Starting outside The New Art Gallery, this visually striking event will feature handcrafted headdresses, live music, and performances by Bušková’s longtime collaborator Zoe Simon and an ensemble of local and international artists.
The result of months of art, craft and baking workshops held at Aaina Community Hub and Caldmore Community Garden, the procession is inspired by Czech tradition and explores themes of strength and healing. Come and walk with us—or witness a moment of creative resistance that will soon travel to galleries across Europe.
WOW! Fest
📅 18-19 July
📍Walsall Arboretum
Autin Dance Theatre is delivering WOW! Fest, a brand-new community dance festival, that will be popping up in Walsall Arboretum this weekend. This vibrant, free, outdoor celebration brings together local schools, youth groups and regional companies for a magical weekend of performances, dance workshops and playful activities. The highlight? A breathtaking aerial piece, Up in the Sky, featuring astonishing dance on a towering 7‑metre rig. Across two days, you can catch a range of performances, see acts by local dancers and try your hand at movement workshops.
Black Country Collage Club at The Hop Vault
📅 12th August, 7-9pm
📍 The hop Vault, 9 Market Street, Stourbridge, DY8 1AB
Collage Club, the Stourbridge edition, is here for a fun evening of collaging, cutting and sticking paper materials into creations that tickle your brain. Free to join in and materials are supplied (but please buy a drink from the lovely people at The Hop Vault to support the local indie business).
Sign up for your free ticket here.
Big Family Theatre Weekend
📅 16–17 August, 12pm–4pm both days
📍 Haden Hill Park
Dive into two days of free, family-friendly wonder as Black Country Touring transforms Haden Hill House & Park into a vibrant playground of outdoor theatre, puppetry, circus workshops and interactive games. From slapstick antics with The Dustbusters to puppet adventures like Laika the Space Dog, there's something playful for every age group—no booking required.
Find the full programme here.
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Funding Fellowship Scheme news
The 2025 Funding Fellowship Scheme will be open for applications in the next few days. If you're an organisation looking to apply for funding for a creative project and need support, then we'll be looking for our next round of groups to help. If you're baffled by project grants, need a bit of advice, or are unsure where to start, then this could be for you.
*Please note that Creative Black Country does not offer project grants - this scheme is offered to support groups to apply elsewhere and suggest the tools to get you started.