FREE workshops for children aged 9+ and their families are taking place in Leicester over the Easter holidays, giving people the chance to be part of something really big!
From Easter Monday (21 April) until Friday 25 April, celebrated visual artist Olivier Grossetête will be creating an enormous cardboard reconstruction of the entrance to Leicester’s Roman forum for the city’s Old Town Festival – and he needs your help.
Olivier will lead a series of free workshops at the Highcross shopping centre, running from 10am-1pm and 2pm-5pm each day. The drop-in workshops take place in the former Topshop unit on the lower mall of the centre.
No experience is needed, just lots of enthusiasm! Workshop participants can help Olivier to make the arches, balconies and roofs required for the giant structure.
People of any age are then invited to drop in to the Old Town Festival at Jubilee Square on Saturday 26 April to help the artist tape the cardboard sections together – returning on Sunday 27 April to take part in the artwork’s dramatic dismantling.
The design for Leicester's cardboard Roman forum
Destroying a structure in Newcastle! Image: TyneSight
Assistant city mayor for leisure and culture Cllr Vi Dempster said: “The Old Town Festival is a new event for 2025, bringing together our traditional St George’s Day celebrations and Leicester’s rich 2,000-year history and Roman heritage.
“Ahead of the festival on the 26th and 27th April, we’re really pleased to be offering these free workshops. They’re a great chance for families who are out and about in Leicester over the Easter holidays to do something free and creative together, as well as learning more about the city’s fascinating Roman history.”
Michelle Menezes, centre director at Highcross Leicester, said: “We’re delighted to be playing host to the Old Town Festival workshops here at Highcross. Help us bring history to life as we aim to rebuild a full-scale Roman monument - right in the heart of Leicester - across a series of free workshops, each led by Olivier Grossetête, who is known for his impressive cardboard constructions. We’ll travel back in time together to relive what life was like in the shadow of a Roman forum.”
Graham Callister, head of festivals and events at Leicester City Council said: “With your help, we'll rebuild the grand entrance to the Roman Forum as it may have looked in the 2nd and 3rd centuries. This monumental and unique project combines history, art, and community spirit.
“Over five days, there will be 10 hands-on workshops at the Highcross Shopping Centre. Then, on Saturday 26 April, participants and passers-by will come together to assemble the structure at Jubilee Square, the site of the original Roman Forum. The following day, Sunday, 27 April, festival-goers will help bring the project to a dramatic close by dismantling it. We’re inviting everyone to get involved!”
Centring on Jubilee Square and the Old Town area of the city centre, the free Old Town Festival on 26 & 27 April will also feature an urban mosaic workshop at the Guildhall, a living history Roman camp, an artisan craft market and themed storytelling aboard the children’s bookbus.
Hands-on archaeology, Roman theatre, craft activities and Morris dancing will also be on offer, along with face-painting and a dress-up booth so that young festival-goers can become gallant knights, fearsome dragons or magical maidens!
A fire-breathing dragon will be on the loose in Cathedral Gardens, alongside stilt-walking jesters, magical wizards and a trio of clumsy knights taking on daring quests. Over at Jubilee Square, you can take part in Roman warrior training, where you can learn to march like a legionnaire, wield a sword like a true centurion, or raise a shield to victory.
The Haymarket shopping centre will also be hosting a day of free fun on Thursday 24 April, with a dragon on the loose, mosaic and toga making, and fun arts and craft activities.
Support for the Old Town festival has come from the council’s partners BID Leicester, Global Streets, Arts Council England, Highcross Leicester, Haymarket Shopping Centre and Hidden Histories.
Simon Jenner from BID Leicester said: "The Old Town Festival is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate Leicester’s rich history while bringing exciting, free experiences to the city centre. Events like this create a real buzz, attracting visitors and benefiting local businesses. The festival will shine a spotlight on the city’s Roman past, with an incredible recreation of Leicester's historic Roman Forum by renowned artist Olivier Grossetête, built entirely from cardboard with the help of the public. We’re proud to support a festival that brings our heritage to life in such an engaging and interactive way.”
You can drop in to the workshops, or fill in the form to reserve your free space: https://bit.ly/4j0LAvI
To find out more, see www.visitleicester.info
Watch the video above to see one of Olivier's constructions taking shape at the Galway International Arts Festival in Ireland.
Festival brochures are available from the Visit Leicester information centre, within the KRIII Visitor Centre at 4A St Martins, Leicester, LE1 5DB.
ENDS