The Performance Ensemble

The Performance Ensemble is a Leeds based ensemble theatre company of performers aged 55 years and older. We work with people from various cultural backgrounds; creating contemporary theatre for audiences of all ages. The Ensemble works in the space between professional, community and amateur arts. We wish to inspire and excite a wide range of audiences across ages, Creating art with the experience of age. We make performances in theatres, on the streets and within community settings. When we create together we are all artists.

We believe older people should be able to participate freely in the cultural life of the community; that everybody is creative and has a story to tell, whatever their age. We believe that older people have valuable contributions to make to society, but that as we age, we become invisible to others, and that must change.

Up to April 2023 we have collected 1001 Stories … we premiered these at the same time as our latest production – Sinfonia – as part of our takeover of Leeds Playhouse for Leeds 2023. We continue to develop creative hubs across the city in collaboration with geographically based and interest group partners sharing 1000 stories across a range of platforms.

‘The work was beautiful, moving, witty – and it found a language that celebrated each person on stage, whatever their age, shape, experience, training, culture. Irrelevant differences fell away leaving only the presence of each person’s essential and individual humanity – the best of us.’

François Matarasso, Community artist, writer and consultant. Author of ‘A Restless Art’.

We are part of Arts Together because we can only achieve our ambitions through collaboration, co-operation and working with others in a generous and open-minded way.