This season has been extended to November in response to COVID-19. Please note that dates may no longer be accurate and the team are working with artists to reschedule/reshape each commission. Stay connected to our mailing list to be the first to hear.

Mansions of the Future is pleased to announce Lincoln Live – the second season of activity in the project’s final, legacy year (2019 – 2020).

Working with artists and local citizens Mansions of the Future is an arts and cultural hub and unique public programme which privileges social, site-specific and collaborative ways of working.

Situated in Lincoln, an ancient city that holds manuscripts of the Magna Carta and Charter of the Forest – key texts in the articulation of human rights, the project addresses the relationship between culture, power and democracy through national and international artist’s commissions.

Departing from Lincoln’s rich entertainment and theatre history[1], Lincoln Live features a series of new commissions which exist at the intersections of disciplinary boundaries.  The programme is a celebration of performative ventures that stand resolutely marginal to both the history of English theatre and the often exclusive, disciplinary rhetoric of contemporary performance art.

In March self-taught London based musician and producer Haich Ber Na is creating an ambitious new short film and supporting photography series, set against the backdrop of recently transformed, vacant commercial sites in Lincoln city centre. Open to the public, the set-like installations draw inspiration from 70’s experimental film, sci-fi futures and modernist interior design – marking an aesthetic continuation from the artist’s 2019 release Everywhere’s Home; which explored autobiographical notions of alienation and isolation.

In an ongoing partnership with The Justice Arts & Migration Network artist Natasha Davis will lead a 12 mile walk on Saturday 28 March from Lincoln Castle (Lincoln’s Victorian Prison) to Morton Hall Immigration Removal Centre in Swinderby, Lincolnshire. It Takes a Decade is a collective action in response to the policy of detention without trial and for the livelihoods contained within the Centre. Defined by solidarity and collaboration, the event will feature further creative contributions from local poets, artists and residents responding to themes of involuntary institutional detention, structural violence and immigration.

2020 marks 200 years since Antarctica was first sighted. In April, as part of Antarctica In Sight – a national programme of activity supported by the UK Antarctica Heritage Trust, independent curator and researcher Linda Rocco will deliver a performance and talks programme exploring groundbreaking intersections of arts and STEM subjects with a focus on climate change and the uniquely precarious position of Antarctica in today’s sociopolitical climate. The week long programme will feature contributions from artists Rhine Bernadino,  Lula Mebrahtu,Aidan Moesby and Josefina Nellimarka.

As a commitment to local creative professional development Mansions of the Future is also working with Lincoln-based Moldovan playwright and theatre director Olga Macrinici to develop Lincoln – a Story About Home, a series of community led sessions exploring contemporary experiences of immigration.

Artist Ruth Beale has been working with inmates at HMP Lincoln to develop a radio play inspired by futuristic and speculative genres. The workshops have been supported by Sonia Rossington and departed from discussions surrounding civic engagement and responsibility. The play will be aired on National Prison Radio and media outlets across the UK.

In partnership with The Collection, Lincoln Live will culminate with a site-specific performance led by artist Laura Wilson which has been inspired by Lincoln’s history, heritage and objects from The Collection’s displays and archives.

Further contributions include an exhibition of new work by Newcastle based artist Calum Bayne, bold interpretations of Mansions of the Future’s free, monthly Communal Lunches programme by artist’s Wingshan Smith, Beth Kettel and Arianne Churchman and artist talks with Dr Ruth Charnock, Chris Hinojosa and Sam West.

[1] For decades Lincoln has boasted a rich theatre and entertainment offer. The Theatre Royal built in 1893 presented popular plays, musicals, music hall stars and film and in this century has operated as a design and production facility for various UK theatre pantomimes, national tours and cruise-ship shows. It is a continuing venue for amateur dramatic companies and touring shows. Lincoln Drill Hall is now a multipurpose arts and theatre centre with a seated 365 capacity and a tradition of hosting touring theatre shows and and supporting community theatre companies. Lincoln Performing Arts Centre (LPAC) which opened in 2008 is part of the University of Lincoln and hosts live art performances, conferences and screenings.