Current Vacancies
We thrive on working with a range of different people and ensuring that our projects are fully accessible to all. We love working with new people whether you are a new member joining one of our groups, a volunteer, a freelance artist sharing your skills or a paid role.
Below you will find a details of our current opportunities to work with us. We have a detailed Equal Opportunities Policy and Recruitment Policy.
Project Leader
The Witches of Essex Community Heritage Project
Key information:
Title: Project Leader for The Witches of Essex Community Heritage Project
Start date: 5th May 2025
End date: 31st October 2025
Payment: £150 per day
Working hours: 1 day per week (Wednesdays)
A brief outline to the project
The Witches of Essex Community Heritage Project is a new project run by our Black Dog Theatre Creation community group and supported by The Heritage Lottery Fund. The aim of this new community project is to create a new project exploring the witches of Essex and particularly, of St Osyth, an Essex village around which a series of ‘Witch’ accusations spread in the 1580s along the coast to Clacton, Hamford Water and Walton. Following on from our recent successful local Victorian community heritage project with Alfie James Productions; we have teamed up once again with the Essex Records Office to continue developing our historical enquiry and archives research skills whilst also developing a new skills in using and developing audio and digital archives. In this project, we are also delighted to be working with local Historian and Writer Professor Marion Gibson, and we hope that the project will support the new emerging Essex Witches Museum by providing them with a series of educational resources. The project will be open to approximately 15-20 local participants in Colchester (Essex) focusing upon (but not limited to) engaging with people with poor confidence and mental health issues. Participants will be invited to attend a weekly workshop where we will develop historical enquiry skills, use archives, artefacts, performance techniques and visits to research to develop an understanding of the stories of those who were accused of witchcraft. We will create a series for educational and learning materials as well as developing a series of audio stories / monologues bringing to life some of the real-life stories of those accused to share to the local community.
Specific duties to the role:
As our Project Leader, you will work in a team with the Trustees and staff, Volunteers and Participants supporting each other with the general running of the project and guiding the team towards its collective vision and shared goals. Duties include (but not limited to):
1.Planning and leading of workshops – running differentiated and accessible activities, helping to demonstrate and model key skills and encouraging participants to develop key historical enquiry, research and performance skills.
2. Ensure that necessary health and safety/risk assessments are carried out and shared.
3. Organise resources including artefacts, sharing archives, topic loans, visits.
4. Support the participants during the workshops – Having lots of positive energy, a ‘get up and go vibe’, encouraging them to take part in activities, supporting them to access the work that we do, giving positive feedback and helping to create a positive safe environment for everyone to thrive.
5. Attend and oversee visits e.g. Essex Records Office, Essex Witches Museum to support our learning of historical enquiry skills and research. Thanking guest workshop leaders.
6. Support the project’s public engagement strategy by helping to promote the project on social media.
7.Taking photographs and filming of workshop activities, visits, research activities, rehearsals and performances as part of our evaluation process.
8. Promote and model the projects overall vision and its aims and objectives, serving as a guide for everyone as they journey through the project.
9. Oversee the management of the project, including its timetable, budget, evaluations.
10.Lead staff, offering support, training and advice throughout.
11.Write, Direct, produce audio’s.
12. Work as a team to create learning resources sharing what we have learnt. This may include helping to create audio’s, learning information sheets, creating props, short films, webpage.
13. Ensure that participants are supported in their learning and that activities are accessible.
14. Ensure that the project is evaluated at regular intervals throughout the project and feeding back to the project partners.
We are looking for someone local to Colchester who is enthusiastic about both heritage and theatre and making the arts and heritage more accessible for others. You will have excellent communication skills and a positive outlook ad a good sense of humour. You will have experience in a similar role and working with vulnerable adults with experience of both heritage. This role is subject to a DBS check.
To download a complete job description outline please click the vox below:
To apply:
Please send us a copy of your CV along with a cover letter or a video/audio recording telling us a little bit about yourself, your experience and what you can bring to the project. (Please note, recordings should be no longer than 5 minutes in length)
Submit to:
blackdogtheatrecreation@gmail.com
Closing date: Monday 28th April 12 noon.
Interview date: Thursday 1st May
Assistant Workshop Facilitator
The Witches of Essex Community Heritage Project
Key information:
Start date: 5th May 2025
End date: 31st October 2025
Payment: £75 per day
Working hours: 1 day per week (Wednesdays)
A brief outline to the project
The Witches of Essex Community Heritage Project is a new project run by our Black Dog Theatre Creation community group and supported by The Heritage Lottery Fund. The aim of this new community project is to create a new project exploring the witches of Essex and particularly, of St Osyth, an Essex village around which a series of ‘Witch’ accusations spread in the 1580s along the coast to Clacton, Hamford Water and Walton. Following on from our recent successful local Victorian community heritage project with Alfie James Productions; we have teamed up once again with the Essex Records Office to continue developing our historical enquiry and archives research skills whilst also developing a new skills in using and developing audio and digital archives. In this project, we are also delighted to be working with local Historian and Writer Professor Marion Gibson, and we hope that the project will support the new emerging Essex Witches Museum by providing them with a series of educational resources. The project will be open to approximately 15-20 local participants in Colchester (Essex) focusing upon (but not limited to) engaging with people with poor confidence and mental health issues. Participants will be invited to attend a weekly workshop where we will develop historical enquiry skills, use archives, artefacts, performance techniques and visits to research to develop an understanding of the stories of those who were accused of witchcraft. We will create a series for educational and learning materials as well as developing a series of audio stories / monologues bringing to life some of the real-life stories of those accused to share to the local community.
Specific duties to the role:
As our Assistant Workshop Facilitator, you will work in a team with the Project Leader supporting each other with the general running of the project. Duties include (but not limited to):
1. Assist the leading of workshops – supporting the Project Leader by joining in with activities, helping to demonstrate and model key skills. When you feel comfortable to do so, you’re welcome to lead individual activities as part of the workshops such as warmups, cool-downs, small activities to develop particular aims.
2. Arrive 30 minutes before the workshop commences to help set up and help pack away at the end of each workshop.
3. Lead the project / workshops in the Project Leaders absence.
4. Support the participants during the workshops – Having lots of positive energy, a ‘get up and go vibe’, encouraging them to take part in activities, supporting them to access the work that we do, giving positive feedback and helping to create a positive safe environment for everyone to thrive.
5. Attend visits e.g. Essex Records Office and Essex Witches Museum to support our learning of historical enquiry skills and research.
6. Support the project’s public engagement strategy by helping to promote the project on social media.
7.Taking photographs and filming of workshop activities, visits, research activities, rehearsals and performances.
8.Working with the Project Leader helping to direct, produce performances.
9. Work as a team to create learning resources sharing what we have learnt. This may include helping to create audio’s, learning information sheets, creating props, short films, webpage.
10.Taking on specific key roles with our performance to support the participants showcase their work. This could include performing or assisting the accessibility of participants, helping with audios/writing and directing devised stories and plays.
11. Help the Project Leader to ensure that participants are supported in their learning and that activities are accessible.
12. Work with the Project Leader to organise, produce props, costumes and workshop materials and manage these for rehearsals, transporting them.
13. Helping to set up and pack away on the workshops, performances, arriving before the cast to safely set up / pack away.
14. Help to evaluate the project at regular intervals throughout the project.
We are looking for someone local to Colchester who is enthusiastic about both heritage and theatre and making the arts and heritage more accessible for others. You will have excellent communication skills and a positive outlook ad a good sense of humour. You will have experience in a similar role and working with vulnerable adults with experience of both heritage and theatre. This role is subject to a DBS check.
To download a complete job description outline please click the vox below:
To apply:
Please send us a copy of your CV along with a cover letter or a video/audio recording telling us a little bit about yourself, your experience and what you can bring to the project. (Please note, recordings should be no longer than 5 minutes in length)
Submit to:
blackdogtheatrecreation@gmail.com
Closing date: Monday 28th April 12 noon.
Interview date: Friday 2nd May
WE’RE LOOKING FOR NEW MEMBERS, LOCAL ARTISTS & VOLUNTEERS
We are always looking for new people to work with including:
-New Members for all our groups (Adults aged 18+)
-Local Artists who may like to collaborate with us or be our guest workshop leaders sharing their skills.
-Volunteers to support our members
Please get in touch if you’re interested