DORCHESTER has a rich history, and one of its most recent important contributions not only to the town, county and country has been its community plays. It has staged seven – the greatest number of community plays anywhere in the world. The most recent, Spinning the Moon, was due in 2020 and was scuppered by the pandemic. But it was so far along that it just couldn’t be abandoned, so it was “revived” in 2023.

Now the efforts of all those involved over the years since the first play, Entertaining Strangers in 1985, are bearing fresh fruit. A community play is a very different animal from other dramatic productions, creating its own kinships among all those (often hundreds of people) involved. Many participants have been inspired not only by the stories that have been discovered and re-animated, but by the experience of creating the plays. They include not only performers but researchers, costume and set designers and makers, fund raisers, publicists, musicians and singers, organisers – and of course loyal audiences. Over 40 years, generations of Dorset families have got involved, and the community play has become part of their lives.

Now a new venture is taking shape, this time spreading its wings across Dorset and delving into women’s stories. Like every other project in the arts field, funding is tight, but the newly-formed collective Women of Dorset is taking the first research steps to create what is described as “a fierce new play about historical Dorset women.”

On Monday 10th March, the project was launched at Dorchester Arts by playwright Stephanie Dale and director Penny Levick, who will be joined by Visible Women UK’s Anya Pearson (who championed the Mary Anning statue at Lyme Regis) to talk about the plans.

A group of researchers will be working at the Dorset History Centre, learning how to make the best use of the collections to discover more about Dorset women through history.

The first of five workshops will be held at Dorchester on 17th March, followed by Bridport (18th), Poole (19th, Weymouth (20th) and at Shaftesbury Arts Centre on Friday 21st March. These workshops will explore previously untold stories of women, both historical and personal.

It’s free, but booking is essential. If you would like to take part, telephone 01305 261538 and leave a message. You can find out more on the Facebook page of Women of Dorset, too.