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We Claim the hall

We Claim the Hall is a creative collaboration, a statement of intent, a call for change, and a cultural intervention.

Disabled artists from Uncurbed Collective and DIY Theatre joined together to reimagine what access, inclusion, and leadership can look like in Salford’s cultural spaces. Together, we’re placing genuine inclusion at the heart of Salford’s Cultural Strategy, not as a bolt-on, but as a creative force in its own right.

The collaboration took shape artist-to-artist, organisation-to-organisation – co-creating new work that amplifies disabled voices as essential to the future of local culture.

This is how we begin to shift power, share ownership, and redefine who gets to take up space in the cultural life of our city.

We Claim the Hall – The Film

We Claim the Hall features artists from DIY Theatre Company and Uncurbed Collective working in cultural venues across Salford. Filmed by Phil Smethurst, Manchester Lights Media.

Co-Creating the Hall

Disabled artists from Uncurbed and DIY Theatre brought their practices together, exploring access as a starting point for creativity. We worked in movement, words, sound, and presence, collaborating with Company Chameleon and Manchester Lights Media to co-create new performance material. The process was exploratory and collective.

http://An%20aerial%20photo%20of%20DIY%20Theatre%20Company%20and%20Uncurbed%20Collective%20artists%20in%20a%20circle%20formation%20seated%20in%20a%20circular%20landscape%20in%20START%20gardens.

http://A%20performer%20is%20seen%20outdoors%20and%20is%20captured%20from%20behind.%20They%20are%20moving,%20focused%20on%20their%20hands%20stretched%20out%20in%20front%20of%20them.

http://Five%20performers,%20a%20mixture%20of%20DIY%20Theatre%20and%20Uncurbed%20Collective%20artists%20move%20together.%20They%20are%20in%20front%20of%20a%20vast%20window%20which%20creates%20silhouettes%20in%20front%20of%20the%20blue%20Salford%20sky.

http://An%20Uncurbed%20Artist%20is%20sat%20in%20a%20workshop%20space.%20They%20are%20listening.

http://An%20Uncurbed%20artist%20is%20performing%20a%20movement%20piece%20in%20The%20Lowry%20Theatre.%20The%20backdrop%20is%20impressive%20with%20the%20word%20'Theatre'%20emblazoned%20across%20an%20electric%20blue%20wall.%20The%20performer%20is%20moving,%20focusing%20on%20his%20hand%20and%20fingers,%20the%20movement%20piece%20is%20precise%20and%20intricate.

http://An%20image%20of%20a%20movement%20workshop

http://Three%20artists%20are%20in%20a%20curtained%20rehearsal%20room.%20They%20are%20in%20motion%20-%20their%20arms%20and%20hands%20connecting.

http://An%20image%20of%20artists%20moving%20in%20line,%20in%20silhouette.

http://A%20workshop%20leader%20is%20speaking.%20Participants%20listen%20intently.%20They%20are%20in%20a%20workshop%20space.

http://A%20dynamic%20image%20of%20a%20workshop.%20Workshop%20participants%20all%20outstretch%20their%20arms,%20reaching%20upwards%20and%20outwards%20in%20different%20directions.

http://An%20artist%20is%20captured%20mid-movement%20-%20their%20movement%20is%20centred%20on%20their%20arms%20and%20hands.%20They%20are%20looking%20directly%20into%20the%20lens.

http://In%20the%20gardens%20of%20Ordsall%20Hall,%20an%20aerial%20view%20of%20DIY%20Theatre%20and%20Uncurbed%20Collective%20artists%20in%20a%20circle,%20reach%20towards%20the%20sky%20in%20synchronisation.

What’s next?

We’ve already started sharing the work with disabled residents, cultural leaders, and organisations across Salford, sparking conversations about access, leadership, and change.

We’re looking for partners who share our ambition to centre disabled voices in culture.

Want to host a screening, start a conversation, or explore co-creation?

GET IN TOUCH

This project has been shaped through the support and collaboration of many: Salford Culture Place Partnership, Salford City Council; co-creators, DIY Theatre Company; and creative collaborators, Manchester Lights Media, and Company Chameleon.

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http://An%20image%20of%20a%20performance%20of%20Help.%20The%20performer%20in%20the%20foreground%20is%20sat%20at%20a%20table%20completing%20a%20sudoku.%20In%20the%20background%20a%20performer%20wears%20a%20medical%20tabard%20as%20they%20sanitise%20their%20hands.

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