The Chatham Witch – an open-air theatre show at Fort Amherst

The Chatham Witch is an open-air community theatre show at Fort Amherst taking place on the 19th, 20th, 21st September from 7.30 pm.  It is suitable for those aged 8 years+.

This is a FREE event but booking is essential’ this will open shortly on Icon Theatre’s website.  Food and drink will be available on site from 6 pm.

The production is being brought to the community by Icon Theatre who will be creating a large-scale theatre show in Fort Amherst’s stunning newly restored areas – previously closed to the public for many years.

In 1755, as the foundations of Fort Amherst are being dug, the ancient body of a young woman is uncovered for the first time in over a thousand years.  Next to her body lies a beautiful necklace of glass and amber beads.

In 2019, some 300 years later, a young historian visits Fort Amherst to complete her research on with burials of the Anglo-Saxon period.  Was the Fort Amherst discovery a witch’s grave or does it tell a different story?

The Chatham Witch explores the extraordinary history of women in Medway through the ages, from the Anglo-Saxon burial on Chatham Lines, to the 19th century Chatham Scandal and the ARP women at Fort Amherst in WWII.

The production features 150 actors, dancers and singers from the local community and newly commissioned music specifically for the performance, a large-scale visual installation created by  local artists and residents projected on the historic bricks of the Fort.  The Chatham Witch brings alive the powerful, true and untold stories of Medway’s most untamed women.

This event has been commissioned by The Command of the Heights Project (funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund) in partnership with Fort Amherst and Medway Council Arts Development Team.  The Chatham Witch is funded by Arts Council England.

For further information take a look at Icon Theatre’s website.