Norfolk and Norwich Festival Announces Victoria Melody as an Artist in Reisdence in Swaffham
Norfolk & Norwich Festival are pleased to announce Victoria Melody as Artist in Residence with the Your Town, My Town, Our Town youth engagement programme, based in Swaffham. The programme is part of a wider High Street regeneration project, Swaffham – A Historic Market Town, which aims to revive the town’s historic high street and champion its rich character, culture and heritage assets.
An award-winning theatre maker and Edinburgh “Fringe legend” (Time Out), Victoria’s blend of playful, human-centred storytelling and community-centred research makes her the perfect candidate for the residency.
Victoria Melody will bring her hilarious and poignant show Trouble, Struggle, Bubble and Squeak to Swaffham on Saturday 28 February at Swaffham Barn and Theatre. The show blends storytelling and stand-up as past and present collide in this tale of high jinks and resistance, which sees Victoria explore the world of historical re-enactment.
Your Town, My Town, Our Town comes to life this May in the Norfolk & Norwich Festival 2026 programme. Victoria will listen to and record stories from children and young people in Swaffham. Having captured their aspirations and dreams, she will develop their stories to co-create exciting public art works in Autumn 2026.
Elsewhere in Swaffham, live art innovators Hunt & Darton are bringing their show Kids Business to Swaffham, also as part of the Festival this year. This ‘pop-up’ public art work will be situated in a high street shop in Swaffham. Working with local budding young entrepreneurs, Hunt & Darton will run a series of workshops to grow ideas, cultivate skills, and bring to fruition the creation of a new business, democratically conjured up through the imagination of a group of kids.
Recruitment for Kids Business will take place in Swaffham on Saturday 18 April. Workshops will be in late April/early May. The shop will be open for business across two weekends during the Festival. For recruitment details, please see here.
As part of Your Town, My Town, Our Town, local young people collaborated with the Swaffham Cultural Consortium and SOUNDYARD, to capture the voices of Swaffham at the August 2025 Artisan Fayre We’re therefore thrilled the stories are being presented and then archived in Swaffham Museum from February 2026 onwards. The Museum has been closed for refurbishment over the winter and will re-open on Monday 16th February.
Full dates for Norfolk & Norwich Festival are Friday 8 to Sunday 24 May 2026. Join the Festival mailing list at nnfestival.org.uk for regular updates.
