Published : Tue 3rd May
Penrhyn Castle has a dark, gritty past. The legacy of the estate is punctured by a single, angry, damaging event; the Great Strike, one of the largest disputes ever seen in the industrial history of Britain, which changed the local community forever. The three year long strike created huge divisions within the quarrying community greatly impacting many lives and families along the way, which still echoes today.
We don’t show this side of the Castle. But we want to. And we’ve got funding – thanks to a pioneering programme within the National Trust – to completely re-create the visitor experience here. We’re moving on from the experience you’d expect with facts and ropes and want to create emotional engagement, something all-encompassing, immersive and interactive, by giving our visitors the whole truth about everything that’s happened here, brought to life through drama and theatricality. Emotional engagement is the pinnacle of every visitor’s experience and that’s what we’re aiming for.
We want to change the way people interact with our heritage. This project will certainly do that. We’ve got a hugely important story to tell about Penrhyn Castle and we’re not sharing it. This is the one opportunity we have to change that. And do it in a radical, innovative and exciting way. This will revolutionise our visitor experience and, hopefully, transform our perception amongst the local community.
We need a Creative Project Manager to bring the multi-layered stories here to life, populating the castle with lives and stories, not just facts. You’ll use lighting, sound, scriptwriters, graphics, construction, innovative presentation – whatever you need and whatever you want to ensure the rich history here is expressed through a range of voices and perspectives, starting debate and dialogue, and above all connecting with our visitors.
We’re looking for someone artistic and creative to bring this controversial story to life in a way that allows visitors to draw their own conclusions about what’s happened here and why. An inspirational leader that gets colleagues, volunteers and the local community on board with what we want to achieve. Attracting new audiences, but better serving our existing ones, too. Speaking and working with the local community to get real perspectives. And it’ll be an experience that can evolve and develop, we don’t want it to remain static, we want it to stay fresh, something that can be visited time and time again.
“You’ll turn everything we have currently on its head, creating a mind-blowing experience for our visitors,” says Nerys Jones, General Manager at Penrhyn Castle. “You’ll confidently bring the project from conception, through research and design to production – ensuring every single detail is met with flair and attention.”
This is a chance for you to make your mark, leading the way for future projects just like this one across the National Trust.
Feel inspired? Find out more about this creative challenge here.
