Zest Theatre

Zest exists to make space for young people to be heard, using creativity to amplify their voices through theatre and cultural experiences.

Zest is a youth-led arts organisation creating theatre and cultural experiences in public space and festivals. Our work centres young people’s lived experience, using creativity to amplify their voices and place them at the heart of cultural life.

We work in highly visible public locations, responding to the absence of youth-centred spaces and the increasing regulation of where and how young people can gather. By placing young people at the centre of public space, our work challenges negative narratives, reclaims shared environments, and creates moments of joy and agency.

There is no single ‘Zest style’. Each project is shaped by place and people, but innovation, accessibility, and empowerment run through everything we produce. Young people are involved not only as participants, but as collaborators and leaders. This includes our youth advisory board, Future Proof, who help shape artistic decisions, organisational priorities, and the long-term direction of our work.

The Zone is an award-winning, free, pop-up youth arts space for 11–18-year-olds, designed to sit directly in town centres, squares, and public spaces. It offers welcoming environments where young people can hang out, create, and connect without pressure or expectation. The Zone is artist-led, with professional artists working as Youth Arts Workers who shape the atmosphere, support participation, and build trust with young people. The project has become a flagship model for reclaiming public space for youth through high-quality creative practice.

Sound Board is an interactive, headphone-based live performance designed for public settings. Part conversation and part game, the show has multiple possible endings and is shaped live by the audience each time it is performed. In every location we tour to, local Youth Hosts join the professional cast, bringing their perspectives into the work and ensuring each performance reflects the people and place it is made with.

Refresh is a series of public art installations that bring young people’s words and perspectives into the public realm. Using bold visual statements in public locations, the work embeds youth voice directly into everyday spaces, making lived experience visible within the fabric of place.

Based in Lincoln, Zest works locally and nationally, collaborating with artists, communities, and partners to create high-quality public-facing work that is welcoming, relevant, and rooted in place.