About
Vita Nova

Established in Boscombe in 1999, Vita Nova has been working with people in recovery from addiction ever since. We use theatre and the expressive arts to support well-being, to educate, promote health and to challenge the stereotypes of addiction.

Get in Touch

Past Events

Education and Outreach Offer

Our outreach and education offer takes our message into schools, treatment centres and prisons, using theatre and frank dialogue to communicate a message of hope and prevention through recovery and the value of local communities.

We currently offer two programmes: ‘The Nest’ and ‘The Wasps Nest’. For full details click on the button below

Theatre & Expressive arts
to support wellbeing

The authenticity of our work is communicated through the voices of lived experience and a shared understanding of the power of community arts. At the heart of our creative process lies co-production, placing our members’ voices at the centre of everything we do, be that the development or delivery of new work, leading workshops, or representing us both locally and nationally within the recovery and health sector. Our work with Bournemouth University, National Drama, and Hope University, extends our practice and reputation right across the UK.

We’re an active member of the local arts community across Boscombe, contributing to the ongoing development of the area through our partnership work with BCP Council and festivals such as Increase the Peace. We are extremely fortunate to have the support of other local arts providers, creatives and our diverse team of facilitators.

Who benefits from our work?

Vita Nova works holistically, actively supporting members with their ongoing recovery through providing purpose, focus and friendship. Our offer to the recovery community is one tool that works to prevent the ‘revolving door syndrome, that often sees those in recovery back in treatment centres, mental health institutions or prison.

Education and Outreach

We offer meaningful engagement through our theatre-in-education and outreach, using the safety of fiction to enable our participants to share their stories with students, teachers, and other people in recovery.

IN 2024, Public Health Dorset supported the development of a new play, ‘The Wasps Nest’ which also enabled our work to extend across the whole county. Subsequent funding from the Police and Crime Commissioner for Dorset, SNG (formerly Soverign Housing), and the George Temperance Trust meant almost 3000 students saw the play last year. We will continue to seek additional funding to enable us to take our message of prevention and resilience to even more schools across Dorset this year.

Meet The Team

Dr Sharon Coyne

Applied theatre practitioner, playwright and Artistic Director of Vita Nova.

Sharon founded the organisation with a small group of recovering addicts in 1999. Originally a short project emerging from Bournemouth Theatre in Education (BTIE) where she was co-director. She has also been Artistic Director of The Poole Passion and lectured at Winchester University in Applied Drama, TIE and Theatre for Development. Her work with marginalised communities has included refugees, Gypsies and Travellers and excluded young people. She sees theatre as a way of celebrating those who have often been left behind. She is also Theatre Officer for National Drama.2025

Jasmine Brown

Arts Administrator

Jasmine’s background is in classical music, having studied both BMus and MA degrees in Music Performance, on violin. She has a wide range of experience performing in concerts, and at weddings and events, as part of orchestras, ensembles, and as a soloist. Additionally, she has experience in musical outreach and is passionate about the incredible power of music and the arts to make a positive impact within society. Through her work at Vita Nova, she hopes that she can contribute to making a positive difference through the arts.

Jordi Robert

Marketing Officer

His career started in Barcelona working for many video production companies on corporate, advertising, fashion, documentaries, TV and artistic productions. Jordi moved to the UK 20 years ago and Bournemouth became his home.

Recently he has obtained a Masters degree on Fine Art and won several international awards in film festivals and exhibitions.