Evolving is defined as developing slowly. Jane Barnard, Gordon Close, Victoria Garland and Caroline Hughes are using this slow development as the basis for their exhibition.

Open 10am to 4pm daily. Free admission.

Seven-time BAFTA Award-winner Steve Coogan plays four roles in the world premiere stage adaptation of Stanley Kubrick’s comedy masterpiece Dr. Strangelove. 

This explosively funny satire, about a rogue U.S General who triggers a nuclear attack, is led by a world-renowned creative team including Emmy Award-winner Armando Iannucci and Olivier Award-winner Sean Foley.

Filmed live from the Noël Coward Theatre.

Tickets: £15. Members, Friends and under 18s £12.50.

Follow the story of Calamity Jane, a daring frontierswoman, as she tries to bring a famous singer to Deadwood, South Dakota.

Along the way, she navigates her tomboyish nature and growing affection for Wild Bill Hickok amidst misunderstandings and adventures.

Director: David Butler

Featuring: Doris Day, Howard Keel, Allyn Ann McLerie

Details: USA | Language: English | 1953 | 1h 41m

Showings:

22nd April – 2pm Tuesday Matinée

Please note: Our Tuesday Matinées feature subtitles for the hard of hearing and will include an interval.

Tickets: £5.

Contemporary new work in several different mediums.

Open 10am to 4pm daily. Free admission.

In the wings of Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are two minor courtiers awaiting their summons to court.

Principal characters from Shakespeare’s play come and go as the pair muse on the meanings of free will, life and death, whilst being shepherded – and occasionally derailed – by The Player and his Tragedians.

Tom Stoppard’s haunting but brilliantly witty play invites you on a journey into an eccentric, surreal world where the familiar becomes strange and absurd.

Tickets: Adults £12.50, Members, Friends and under 18s £10.50.

In the wings of Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are two minor courtiers awaiting their summons to court.

Principal characters from Shakespeare’s play come and go as the pair muse on the meanings of free will, life and death, whilst being shepherded – and occasionally derailed – by The Player and his Tragedians.

Tom Stoppard’s haunting but brilliantly witty play invites you on a journey into an eccentric, surreal world where the familiar becomes strange and absurd.

Tickets: Adults £12.50, Members, Friends and under 18s £10.50.

In the wings of Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are two minor courtiers awaiting their summons to court.

Principal characters from Shakespeare’s play come and go as the pair muse on the meanings of free will, life and death, whilst being shepherded – and occasionally derailed – by The Player and his Tragedians.

Tom Stoppard’s haunting but brilliantly witty play invites you on a journey into an eccentric, surreal world where the familiar becomes strange and absurd.

Tickets: Adults £12.50, Members, Friends and under 18s £10.50.

In the wings of Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are two minor courtiers awaiting their summons to court.

Principal characters from Shakespeare’s play come and go as the pair muse on the meanings of free will, life and death, whilst being shepherded – and occasionally derailed – by The Player and his Tragedians.

Tom Stoppard’s haunting but brilliantly witty play invites you on a journey into an eccentric, surreal world where the familiar becomes strange and absurd.

Tickets: Adults £12.50, Members, Friends and under 18s £10.50.

In 1961, an unknown 19-year-old Minnesota musician named Bob Dylan arrives in New York City with his guitar.

A Complete Unknown follows Dylan’s meteoric rise as a folk singer to concert halls and the top of the charts – his songs and mystique becoming a worldwide sensation – culminating in his groundbreaking electric rock and roll performance at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965.

Director: James Mangold

Featuring: Timothée Chalamet, Edward Norton, Elle Fanning, Monica Barbaro, Boyd Holbrook, Scoot McNairy

Details: USA | Language: English | 2024 | 2h 21m

Showings:

Tuesday Matinée 29th April – 2pm 

Please note: Our Tuesday Matinées feature subtitles for the hard of hearing and will include an interval.

Wednesday 30th April – 7.30pm

Tickets: From £5.

A collection of bold and beautiful paintings of the natural world by Sara Westaway.

Open 10am to 4pm daily. Free admission.

A collection of bold and beautiful paintings of the natural world by Sara Westaway.

Open 10am to 4pm daily. Free admission.

Martha, suffering from terminal cancer, would like a friend to be with her when she ends her own life.

Ingrid, whom she’s not seen for years, agrees, and the two women attempt to rekindle their friendship. Almodóvar’s first English-language film won the Golden Lion at Venice..

Director: Pedro Almodóvar | Spain | 2024 | 1h 47m
Featuring: Julianne Moore, Tilda Swinton, John Turturro

Tickets: £7.50. Members & Friends £6.50. U18s £5.50. Film Society members free.

See here for details of Film Society membership.

A cynical expatriate American cafe owner struggles to decide whether or not to help his former lover and her fugitive husband escape the Nazis in French Morocco.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest films of all time.

Director: Michael Curtiz

Featuring: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains

Details: USA | Language: English | 1942 | 1h 42m

Showings:

Tuesday Matinée 6th May – 2pm 

Please note: Our Tuesday Matinées feature subtitles for the hard of hearing and will include an interval.

Tickets: £5.

Anora, a young sex worker from Brooklyn, meets and impulsively marries the son of an oligarch. 

Once the news reaches Russia, her fairytale is threatened as his parents set out for New York to get the marriage annulled.

2025 Winner of five Oscars, including ‘Best Picture’ and ‘Best Leading Actress’.

Director: Sean Baker

Featuring: Mikey Madison, Yura Borisov, Lindsey Normington, Paul Weissman

Details: USA | Language: English | 2024 | 2h 19m

Showings:

Wednesday 7th May – 7.30pm 

Sunday 11th May – 5pm

Tickets: £7.50. Members and Friends £6.50.

Anora, a young sex worker from Brooklyn, meets and impulsively marries the son of an oligarch. 

Once the news reaches Russia, her fairytale is threatened as his parents set out for New York to get the marriage annulled.

2025 Winner of five Oscars, including ‘Best Picture’ and ‘Best Leading Actress’.

Director: Sean Baker

Featuring: Mikey Madison, Yura Borisov, Lindsey Normington, Paul Weissman

Details: USA | Language: English | 2024 | 2h 19m

Showings:

Wednesday 7th May – 7.30pm 

Sunday 11th May – 5pm

Tickets: £7.50. Members and Friends £6.50.

After her controlling husband dies, an elderly woman embarks on a trip to fulfil her longtime dream of climbing a mountain in the Scottish Highlands.

83-year-old Edie believes that it is never too late – packing an old camping bag, leaving her life behind and embarking on an adventure she never got to have – climbing the imposing Mount Suilven in Scotland.

Director: Simon Hunter

Featuring: Sheila Hancock, Kevin Guthrie, Paul Brannigan, Amy Manson, Wendy Morgan

Details: UK | Language: English | 2018 | 1h 42m

Showings:

13th May – 2pm Tuesday Matinée

Please note: Our Tuesday Matinées feature subtitles for the hard of hearing and will include an interval.

Tickets: £5.

Through the Garden Gate is my first solo exhibition and takes us through gardens and landscapes.

In his renowned poverty maps of London, Booth observed a paradox: the poorest neighbourhoods often flaunted the most enchanting window boxes. This striking imagery resonates deeply with my own experiences of hardship and resilience.

I am an autistic Dorset-based artist and have a degree in Fine Art. Living with chronic pain and neurodiversity has presented me with significant challenges in navigating life and stepping outside my comfort zone. However, I have been fortunate enough to access food banks and receive free flowers through Olio, which have ignited the inspiration behind this exhibition.

My artistic focus centres on transforming flowers, landscapes, and gardens into expressive works of art. I am captivated by the interplay of colours and textures, the dance of light and shadow, all encapsulating nature’s exquisite beauty.

As a Dorset-based artist, I passionately strive to capture the vibrant hues of the natural world. Whether painting outdoors (en plein air) or in my studio, I utilise bold colours and fluid brushstrokes to infuse my work with a sense of movement and energy. While I primarily work with oil paints, I also explore various other mediums, including mixed media, ceramics, and embroidery, allowing my creativity to flourish in diverse forms.

I graduated with a Fine Art BA (Hons.) in 1991 and have since exhibited extensively, selling my artwork and accepting commissions. One of my notable pieces, Spring Blossom, is part of the Southwark Art Collection and is featured in ArtUK’s catalog. Additionally, I had the honour of recreating a stolen painting of
King Charles I for St. Mary’s Church in Rotherhithe, London.

www.dawnthomsonart.com.

Open 10am to 4pm daily. Free admission.

To join the reading group, the only qualifications required are to enjoy reading and sharing ideas about books, and to be a member of the Shaftesbury Arts Centre.

We meet on the third Thursday of each month from 7.30pm to 9.00pm in the Rutter Room.

Contact Viv Rudd 01747 851619; reading@shaftesburyartscentre.org.uk.

A thriller based on the Robert Harris novel, it follows the covert process of selecting a new Pope, a task Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) must oversee after the unexpected death of the Pope.

Once Church leaders have gathered, a trail of secrets is uncovered, which could shake the foundations of the Roman Catholic Church.

Director: Edward Berger | UK/USA | 2024 | some subtitles | 2h
Featuring: Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow

Tickets: £7.50. Members & Friends £6.50. U18s £5.50. Film Society members free.

See here for details of Film Society membership.

Una Sonrisa (a smile) – an exhibition of bold, bright abstract paintings to raise a smile!

Colour, shape and composition with rhythms of latin, jazz and Afro-Caribbean music that might encourage you to dance a little, as well!

Open 10am to 4pm daily. Free admission.

Step into a sanctuary of art and sound, where ethereal soft tones accompany each painting, inviting you to pause, reflect, and journey inward.

This immersive exhibition is a space to explore your inner world, awaken new perspectives, and connect with the energy of a New Earth through visionary art.

Art that speaks to the soul

Soundscapes that soothe the spirit

A space for contemplation and deep presence

Open 10am to 4pm daily. Free admission.

A collection of retrospective textile and mixed media art pieces from members of this well established group.

A variety of techniques and subject matter will be represented in the work displayed and the artists will be on hand to discuss the work with visitors.

Open 10am to 4pm daily. Free admission.

Painter and printmaker Peter Ursem returns with an exhibition of new, bigger scale works, following his purchase of a new printing press.

Open 10am to 4pm daily. Free admission.

To join the reading group, the only qualifications required are to enjoy reading and sharing ideas about books, and to be a member of the Shaftesbury Arts Centre.

We meet on the third Thursday of each month from 7.30pm to 9.00pm in the Rutter Room.

Contact Viv Rudd 01747 851619; reading@shaftesburyartscentre.org.uk.

Join the Music & Drama Group in an exciting morning of Basic Stage Combat, which is part of our ‘About Drama’ series.

The workshop will be run by MC Combat and will cover basic stage combat techniques, movement and character. This session will be a physical session and has limited spaces available.

Age Restriction 18+

Cost: £10 per person.

Discover the electrifying story of love, adventure and crime that captured the attention of an entire nation.

Starring Tony-Nominee Jeremy Jordan and Olivier-Nominee Frances Mayli McCann, this award-winning production (including Best New Musical – What’s On Stage Awards 2023) re-tells the unbelievable true story of America’s most infamous couple, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow.

Recorded live at London’s Theatre Royal Drury Lane.

Runtime: 2 hours 20 minutes (including interval).

Tickets: £15. Members, Friends and under 18s £12.50.

To join the reading group, the only qualifications required are to enjoy reading and sharing ideas about books, and to be a member of the Shaftesbury Arts Centre.

We meet on the third Thursday of each month from 7.30pm to 9.00pm in the Rutter Room.

Contact Viv Rudd 01747 851619; reading@shaftesburyartscentre.org.uk.

A mischievous character comedy, concerned with shifting social attitudes and cultural standards, as viewed ’n skewed through the eyes of wizards who have been around for ever.

This is a wizard spell of magical naughtiness, and farfetched silliness, not to mention satirical thrusts, an attack by the forces of evil, Merlin, Arthurian legend, Gandalf, love philtres, and charms enough to stop wars or climate change. And a singalong.

Beware: this show contains words that feel unpleasant in your mouth.

Age 14+

Tickets: £7.

Students of Stagecoach Blandford Forum & Shaftesbury present an hour of songs from a variety of musicals old and new for your entertainment.

For more info about Stagecoach Blandford Forum & Shaftesbury, please visit our website here.

Tickets: Free.

Mesmerising, unique, magical bubbleologist, Richard Welsh, brings his comedy bubble show to Shaftesbury Fringe.

Mixing bubbles, music and comedy, Richard engages and delights audiences of all ages. Be amazed as Richard performs some wonderful bubble tricks which will include breathtaking giant bubbles. There will be plenty of interactive entertainment, with the opportunity to stand inside a giant bubble!

Tickets: £8.

A theatre show that explores the biggest question of all – ‘What’s the point?’

Features underpants, pompous man-servants, self-deprecating witticisms, an existential crisis and one giant hangover! King Solomon had it all…

Well described as ‘Blackadder meets the Bible’, Life Under The Sun – Part 1 is a dark comedy based on the Book of Ecclesiastes.

“Startling and ambitious” – ★★★★

Age 14+ – due to mature themes and underpants.

Tickets: £10. Under 18s £9.

Shaftesbury Arts Centre’s Music & Drama Group Youth Theatre return to perform at the Shaftesbury Fringe Festival with something a bit spookier this year.

On a chilling night whilst exploring a dark and creepy attic a group of teenagers find themselves breaking through the thin veil between life and death. The dead will talk, secrets spilled, but what lies behind that veil and who could come through.

Age Restriction 12+

Tickets: Pass The Hat

A comedy dance show about balance.

Stephanie has a history of falling over a lot, accidentally kneeing herself in the face, and falling in love with total kn*bheads. In this show she uses a mixture of stand-up
and dance to talk about bodies, sex, dancing, liking yourself, consent and healing, Also, there are cartoon bears and burlesque.

“Devastating technique… natural comic timing and delivery” – Chortle

“Gloriously silly… wonderfully unpretentious” – Broadway Baby

Age 16+

Tickets: £8. Under 18s £5.

Mesmerising, unique, magical bubbleologist, Richard Welsh, brings his comedy bubble show to Shaftesbury Fringe.

Mixing bubbles, music and comedy, Richard engages and delights audiences of all ages. Be amazed as Richard performs some wonderful bubble tricks which will include breathtaking giant bubbles. There will be plenty of interactive entertainment, with the opportunity to stand inside a giant bubble!

Tickets: £8.

Magical legend The Great Baldini (Maharajah of Mystery) returns to Shaftesbury Fringe.

More Family Magic follows on from his hugely popular 2024 show Family Magic, which played to thousands across the UK. It’s a hilariously chaotic magic explosion with an ever increasingly unruly menagerie of magical beasts. Bigger, sillier, funnier, an all-ages magic show that leaves you happy, exhausted, bewildered and amazed. Age 3+

Tickets: £10. Under 18s £7.

Gillian Anderson (Sex Education), Vanessa Kirby (The Crown), and Ben Foster (Lone Survivor) lead the cast in Tennessee Williams’ timeless masterpiece, returning to cinemas.

As Blanche’s fragile world crumbles, she turns to her sister Stella for solace – but her downward spiral brings her face to face with the brutal, unforgiving Stanley Kowalski.

From visionary director Benedict Andrews, this acclaimed production was filmed live during a sold-out run at the Young Vic Theatre in 2014.

Tickets: £15. Members, Friends and under 18s £12.50.

To join the reading group, the only qualifications required are to enjoy reading and sharing ideas about books, and to be a member of the Shaftesbury Arts Centre.

We meet on the third Thursday of each month from 7.30pm to 9.00pm in the Rutter Room.

Contact Viv Rudd 01747 851619; reading@shaftesburyartscentre.org.uk.

To join the reading group, the only qualifications required are to enjoy reading and sharing ideas about books, and to be a member of the Shaftesbury Arts Centre.

We meet on the third Thursday of each month from 7.30pm to 9.00pm in the Rutter Room.

Contact Viv Rudd 01747 851619; reading@shaftesburyartscentre.org.uk.

To join the reading group, the only qualifications required are to enjoy reading and sharing ideas about books, and to be a member of the Shaftesbury Arts Centre.

We meet on the third Thursday of each month from 7.30pm to 9.00pm in the Rutter Room.

Contact Viv Rudd 01747 851619; reading@shaftesburyartscentre.org.uk.

The show where every child gets a present from Santa! Following last year’s sell-out performances, Honalee Media are delighted to present a brand new show this festive season.

Christmas is the busiest time of year at the North Pole, when Father Christmas makes presents to deliver across the whole world and when everyone gets ready for Santa’s Christmas Party! But this year somebody has been up to mischief…

Dotty the Elf’s decorations have gone missing, Dasher the Reindeer’s party games are broken, and what has happened to Pompom the Penguin’s Christmas music? It looks as though somebody wants to stop Santa’s Christmas Party – and that someone is Jack Frost!

Help get Santa’s Christmas Party back on track in an adventure full of fun, festive songs and party games. Then meet Santa at his home in the North Pole, where every child will receive a special present from him, after the most Christmassy Christmas show ever – HO-HO-HO!

Songs include festive favourites like Jingle Bells, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, The Twelve Days Of Christmas, We Wish You A Merry Christmas and more!

Santa’s Christmas Party is a 45 minute, interactive family show, particularly suitable for 2-8 year olds, after which the adventure continues as each child gets the chance to receive a special present from Father Christmas in our popular meet, greet and treat!

For more info, see www.santashows.co.uk.

Tickets: £11.50 adults, £10.50 under 18s, £42 families of 4 (2 adults and 2 under 18s).

The show where every child gets a present from Santa! Following last year’s sell-out performances, Honalee Media are delighted to present a brand new show this festive season.

Christmas is the busiest time of year at the North Pole, when Father Christmas makes presents to deliver across the whole world and when everyone gets ready for Santa’s Christmas Party! But this year somebody has been up to mischief…

Dotty the Elf’s decorations have gone missing, Dasher the Reindeer’s party games are broken, and what has happened to Pompom the Penguin’s Christmas music? It looks as though somebody wants to stop Santa’s Christmas Party – and that someone is Jack Frost!

Help get Santa’s Christmas Party back on track in an adventure full of fun, festive songs and party games. Then meet Santa at his home in the North Pole, where every child will receive a special present from him, after the most Christmassy Christmas show ever – HO-HO-HO!

Songs include festive favourites like Jingle Bells, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, The Twelve Days Of Christmas, We Wish You A Merry Christmas and more!

Santa’s Christmas Party is a 45 minute, interactive family show, particularly suitable for 2-8 year olds, after which the adventure continues as each child gets the chance to receive a special present from Father Christmas in our popular meet, greet and treat!

For more info, see www.santashows.co.uk.

Tickets: £11.50 adults, £10.50 under 18s, £42 families of 4 (2 adults and 2 under 18s).