“Luton is a global town with local roots” – Lizzy Fretwell
Having moved back to Luton four years ago, local writer, director and producer Lizzy Fretwell works with local community and heritage to find ways of connecting people through art-based activities. Lizzy got back into the Luton creative scene with her project, We’ve Chosen Here.
She explains:
“It’s about places in Luton that remind people of lost loved ones, with eleven written workshops in Luton Library that built to a podcast series. The stories were also available online.”
After finishing university, Lizzy found herself at NGYT, a local theatre company for 14–25-year-olds in Luton, where she now works as assistant director. NGYT collaborate with local talent through workshops, providing the ‘Next Generation of Youth Theatre’ with the chance to shape their creative theatre ideas.
A bustling creative theatre scene, Lizzy is constantly involved in projects with local individuals in the town centre.
“The town centre is full of exciting independent places popping up all the time. It is so nice to go into somewhere see a creative person you know.”
Passionate about collaborating with local creatives, Lizzy is currently working on a new project with filmmaker Thomas Young under their new company ‘Holding Space Collective’.
‘Who Are You… Really?’ is a project the duo started in the summer of 2020 and is an exhibition running in the Hat Factory from the 5th – 7th May 2022.
“The exhibition will display videos of Luton residents under 25 and over 60, talking about their identity, who they are, what’s born that identity, people and places and events that hold it. It will be an immersive experience to make it a real grassroots piece.”
