Our Values
We are a youth-led organisation who create work we are passionate about, using art forms that are not commonly associated (inc. world carnival music, movement, and spoken word poetry) as well as the passions of our creatives to devise political and expressive pieces which champion youth voice.
We have formed a close-knit community of dedicated and driven young people, which we believe shines through in our work, linking to our core values of expressive creativity, connection, and a sharing of culture.
We provide opportunities for the local community, with the aim of allowing young people to see the arts as a viable career through our ethos of paying creatives fairly for their work.
core Team
Chloe Gorrod - Artistic Director
I am a creative, performer, and producer with a passion for all art forms, particularly how they can be used for expression and connection, focusing on the process and experience of creativity as well as championing individual identities.
This project is informed by my lived experiences, not wanting to move away from the North to pursue the arts and guided by my desire for the arts to be seen as a ‘real’ job. Our amazing team of driven and talented young people has allowed this idea to become a beautiful celebration of connection, youth voice, and the joy we find through the arts!
Credits include: The Party Within (dancer - Chameleon Youth), Feed your Soul (performer - IPAN), The Den (Local Ambassador - The Royal Exchange Theatre), The Hundred Years (actor - Oldham Theatre Workshop), Northern Youth (producer/young creative - Northern Roots)
Joseph Horrocks - Managing Director
I am a musician and producer with a passion for accessibility to the arts. This project has shown me how valuable it is to connect young creatives of different artforms and allow them to explore their passions and feelings all together. I believe that everyone should be able to access a space where they can create freely, challenging and honing their creative practices and learning from one another, so as an organisation we want to make this possible for a many people as we can.
Credits include: Jubacana (youth leader), The Den (local ambassador - The Royal Exchange), The Queens Platinum Jubilee Pageant (musician – Global Grooves), Juba do Leão (percussionist), Shed Seven tour 2025 (percussionist – Global Grooves Youth Bloco)
Martha Ritchie - Lead creative
I am an actor with a passion for spoken word and physical theatre. I love devising and performing in new, thought-provoking theatre. This project has proved to me that I can form my own career as a young creative, through collaborating with other artists who appreciate the beauty of sharing their unique talents with others.
Credits include: Chasing The Wind (actor - Oldham Theatre Workshop), The Hundred Years (actor - Oldham Theatre Workshop), Oldham Theatre Workshop Street Theatre Company (performer), National Youth Theatre (performer)
Alex Lane - Safeguarding Lead
I am a passionate filmmaker, actor, and facilitator. I love comedy and making others laugh and I often find that filmmaking is an interesting and irreplaceable way to do this. I can’t wait to use my role as safeguarding lead to make sure all of our cast and crew can have a safe environment, allowing them to put all of their creative energy into the amazing projects we create.
Credits include: The Not Forgotten (actor - Oldham Theatre Workshop), Sleepoverdose (Sound and editing - Salford Uni), The Wizard of Oz (actor - Oldham Sixth Form College), The Hundred Years (actor - Oldham Theatre Workshop)
Sienna Rathbone - Lead performance artist
I am a creative performer who loves all forms of performance, particularly singing, spoken word and movement. I especially love pushing the boundaries of these art forms and seeing how they can be combined to complement each other.
Being able to express myself through art is extremely important to me which is why I am so excited to be able to work with this incredible team of creatives as we redefine what it means to be performers.
Credits include: Stagecoach school of performing arts (Actor/Teaching Assistant), Musical Medley on West End (MT Performer), Anything Goes (MT Performer - Almost Famous Theatre Company), Based on True Story Tour (Performer - Will Smith), Technical Theatre course (National Theatre)
Harvey Jones - Lead engineer
I’m a music producer / sound engineer and a percussionist. One of my biggest passions is to show people the diversity and incredible sound of world music, whether that’s hitting a drum for hours on end, or helping to teach about the significance of where a form of music may originate and get influence from and why it is important to know that. One of the main things that drew me to BEAV was how it really hits peoples emotions. This is a massive indicator to a well produced and thought out performance and truly gets people thinking as well as bringing out emotion which is an incredibly rewarding experience. Through this, we can all do our best to bring forward our passions, place them into the spotlight and all whilst raising awareness of the things we care about.
Credits include: Jubacana (Youth Leader), Juba do Leão (Percussionist), Global Grooves (Production & Operational Support Technician), Shed Seven Tour 2025 (Percussionist - Global Grooves Youth Bloco), Beginning EP (Producer - HVY)
Nicole Lee - Movement director
I am a dancer, choreographer, teacher, and producer who loves moving and creating and using dance as a way of making others feel seen. I love working on BEAV as I’ve always felt art cannot be put in a box or simply told what is acceptable and what is not and this project has this cause running through its veins!
Credits include: Chameleon Youth, Lowry CAT, NYDC X Wayne McGregor, Global Grooves, Will Smith, Matthew Rawcliffe, Night People Events, Phoenix Dance Theatre Platform, London Contemporary Dance School
Abz Knaggs - Musical director
Hi, I'm Abz! I'm a guitarist, percussionist and songwriter who will hit and strum anything I can get my hands on. I am very passionate about giving young people musical opportunities through my work in a number of projects. During my time so far with Between Earth and Voice I have been able to connect with lots of massively talented people and it has also introduced me to the world of spoken word and physical theatre which has been a fun challenge to work with. Everyone having the ability to express themselves creatively is something that is very important to me and BEAV is the perfect place for this.
Credits include: Jubacana (youth leader), National Orchestras For All (percussionist, youth board), The Vale (Friends of The Vale Board), The Queens Platinum Jubilee Pageant (musician - Global Grooves), Juba do Leão (percussionist), Shed Seven tour 2025 (percussionist - Global Grooves Youth Bloco), Feverdream band (drummer, vocalist)
Mally Harley - Apprentice dancer
I am a dancer with a love for carnival and various Brazilian styles along with other art forms and all things creative and especially how they bring people together. I value this project because it really shows connection and encourages sharing of creative ideas, proving that the arts are special and not to be undervalued.
Credits include: Global Grooves (performer), Juba do Leão (dancer), Jubacana (dancer and drummer), Great Garden Carnival Event (dancer - Global Grooves)