In the town, famous for its crooked spire, is a small, redundant church. Opened in 1823 and closed 200 years later in 2023, this building is about to become a new arts centre for the community of Chesterfield. This church, where Arthur Scargill once spoke in the adjoining hall is a stone’s throw from the former North Derbyshire NUM Offices. In 1984, the late Tony Benn, MP for Chesterfield and Dennis Skinner, MP for neighbouring Bolsover, led a march of striking miners past its front doors. Our new arts centre is part of a community built on coal.

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It was in Chesterfield, that Mal Finch’s song, ‘Here We Go For the Women of the Working Class,’ was first performed, and it was here, that one of the earliest Womens’ Action Groups was established. The pioneering railway engineer, George Stevenson, is buried in a churchyard a few streets away, while at the now long closed Markham Works, tunnelling equipment used to bore the Channel Tunnel was manufactured.

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In creating ‘A Northern Requiem,’ we wanted to both celebrate and commemorate the impact our town and its people have had on the world.

Tonight’s performance is both a fundraising concert, and part of what will become our outreach project.

We will work within our community to create unforgettable and moving performances, both now and in the future, which shine a light on the lives of everyday people living amongst us.

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As Chair of the Trustees of Rose Hill Arts Centre, I am incredibly proud of this home-grown work, and the exceptional talents of the performers, but what makes it all so special is that it is based on events that happened on our doorstep. The impact of the closure, not just of the pits

but the heavy industry and manufacturing, and other services that that supported it, is still felt to this day.

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Hilary Leam

Chair, Rose Hill Arts Centre