A Platform
to Thrive
Our vision is for live performance and performance makers to thrive; to be valued, resilient, and deeply connected to more people’s lives.
AboutTheatre Bristol is currently transitioning out of Arts Council England's National Portfolio meaning that we are not able to deliver our usual programme of support. We hope to be resuming our programme of delivery later in the year but please complete this form or sign up to our newsletter for further information. Thank you for your patience.
We exist to support and
improve the live performance sector
Our vision is for live performance and performance makers to thrive; to be valued, resilient, and deeply connected to more people’s lives.
About
Gill Simmons @bravebolddrama shares her reflections on meeting with Olivia Tetlow and Paul Lawless as part of Test Run.
Alt Text
Slide 1: Theatre Bristol logo. Test Run Reflections.
Slides 2-5: Audio recording of Gill`s reflections with captions in the video.
Gill Simmons @bravebolddrama shares her reflections on meeting with Olivia Tetlow and Paul Lawless as part of Test Run.
Alt Text
Slide 1: Theatre Bristol logo. Test Run Reflections.
Slides 2-5: Audio recording of Gill`s reflections with captions in the video.
Join us next week for our monthly coffee morning - a great opportunity to get to know a little more about Theatre Bristol, as well to introduce or reintroduce yourself and meet others working in live performance in Bristol or the wider SW. No agenda. Plenty of biscuits.
Wednesday 14th June 10-11am drop in (arrive and leave at any time throughout the hour)
Location: TB Office, St Anne’s House, Brislington
Media Description: Photo of a cup of coffee with text that reads: Join us for monthly coffee mornings. St Anne`s House, Bristol
Join us next week for our monthly coffee morning - a great opportunity to get to know a little more about Theatre Bristol, as well to introduce or reintroduce yourself and meet others working in live performance in Bristol or the wider SW. No agenda. Plenty of biscuits.
Wednesday 14th June 10-11am drop in (arrive and leave at any time throughout the hour)
Location: TB Office, St Anne’s House, Brislington
Media Description: Photo of a cup of coffee with text that reads: Join us for monthly coffee mornings. St Anne`s House, Bristol
As part of our A/W Programme, we set up Test Run for an artist/company and producer to test a new relationship. We love hearing how these went and the work that came out of them. Here’s reflections from: Stevie Thompson @flibbertigibbettheatre, Corinne Harragin @corinneharraginstorytelling, and Evan Lordan @conflictedtheatre.
Alt Text:
Slide 1: Theatre Bristol logo. Test Run Reflections
Slide 2: Test Run Artist. Flibbertigibbet Theatre. “Having another person to work with has given me the ability to tether down the practicalities, whilst staying ambitious to a project. We are currently writing a funding application for "what we need", rather than squashing a budget to the point where I would not be able to pay anyone properly and I would be working for free, just to try and make it happen. That shift in mindset is a big step forward for me and I would have been too scared to attempt this on my own!”
Slide 3: Test Run Artist. Corinne Harragin. “The seed funding and support from Test Run helped me secure a relationship with Alice Massey, a Bristol producer who has since supported me to write an Arts Council Project Grant for a tour and outreach project: Tam Lin Retold. Her connections with venues has meant that we have 19 venues booked this summer/autumn and another leg in Spring 2024. I wanted to express how grateful I am for Theatre Bristol facilitating this relationship with Test Run Funding - we couldn`t have achieved what we have at this point without it!”
Slide 4: Test Run Artist. Conflicted Theatre. “Me and my company, Conflicted Theatre, have been based in Bristol for over 5 years now and have produced numerous shows in London and Edinburgh, but due to a lack of relationships and resources, we have only performed one show in Bristol. Practically and creatively it doesn`t make sense to have to leave your home city in order to produce work. Through working with Bristol based producer, Tom Bevan, and getting access to his contacts and networks, my hope is that this will be the catalyst for developing many new professional relationships within Bristol, producing more work for Bristol audiences and employing more Bristol performers and collaborators.”
As part of our A/W Programme, we set up Test Run for an artist/company and producer to test a new relationship. We love hearing how these went and the work that came out of them. Here’s reflections from: Stevie Thompson @flibbertigibbettheatre, Corinne Harragin @corinneharraginstorytelling, and Evan Lordan @conflictedtheatre.
Alt Text:
Slide 1: Theatre Bristol logo. Test Run Reflections
Slide 2: Test Run Artist. Flibbertigibbet Theatre. “Having another person to work with has given me the ability to tether down the practicalities, whilst staying ambitious to a project. We are currently writing a funding application for "what we need", rather than squashing a budget to the point where I would not be able to pay anyone properly and I would be working for free, just to try and make it happen. That shift in mindset is a big step forward for me and I would have been too scared to attempt this on my own!”
Slide 3: Test Run Artist. Corinne Harragin. “The seed funding and support from Test Run helped me secure a relationship with Alice Massey, a Bristol producer who has since supported me to write an Arts Council Project Grant for a tour and outreach project: Tam Lin Retold. Her connections with venues has meant that we have 19 venues booked this summer/autumn and another leg in Spring 2024. I wanted to express how grateful I am for Theatre Bristol facilitating this relationship with Test Run Funding - we couldn`t have achieved what we have at this point without it!”
Slide 4: Test Run Artist. Conflicted Theatre. “Me and my company, Conflicted Theatre, have been based in Bristol for over 5 years now and have produced numerous shows in London and Edinburgh, but due to a lack of relationships and resources, we have only performed one show in Bristol. Practically and creatively it doesn`t make sense to have to leave your home city in order to produce work. Through working with Bristol based producer, Tom Bevan, and getting access to his contacts and networks, my hope is that this will be the catalyst for developing many new professional relationships within Bristol, producing more work for Bristol audiences and employing more Bristol performers and collaborators.”
Two artists reflect on their Test Run experience, where an artist/company and producer were funded by Theatre Bristol to test a new relationship.
“We`re so grateful for your support - it`s been brilliant for me and Martin to form a new relationship in creating our show Ghost Sonata. Essentially, your support has allowed us to bed in a valuable working relationship, test ideas and find how each other works. It`s been a valuable discovery space.” - Tom Bailey @_mechanimal_
“The test run seed funding enabled me to have some initial planning meetings with producer Laura Knight and begin working together on a new show for family audiences which I’ve been developing. I’m delighted that Laura would like to continue working on this show with me, and having her producing support has already kick-started the next stages of the project - so thank you for enabling this partnership to be tested out!” - Kate Pasco @kepasco
Alt Text
Slide 1: Test Run Artist. Tom Bailey. Photo from Mechanimal’s Ghost Sonata showing a performer in white clothes in front of a length of white folded fabric which is held up by a metal frame and draped across the floor.
Slide 2: Test Run Artist. Kate Pasco. Laura Knight and Kate Pasco smile at the camera. Between them is a table covered in books and papers.
Two artists reflect on their Test Run experience, where an artist/company and producer were funded by Theatre Bristol to test a new relationship.
“We`re so grateful for your support - it`s been brilliant for me and Martin to form a new relationship in creating our show Ghost Sonata. Essentially, your support has allowed us to bed in a valuable working relationship, test ideas and find how each other works. It`s been a valuable discovery space.” - Tom Bailey @_mechanimal_
“The test run seed funding enabled me to have some initial planning meetings with producer Laura Knight and begin working together on a new show for family audiences which I’ve been developing. I’m delighted that Laura would like to continue working on this show with me, and having her producing support has already kick-started the next stages of the project - so thank you for enabling this partnership to be tested out!” - Kate Pasco @kepasco
Alt Text
Slide 1: Test Run Artist. Tom Bailey. Photo from Mechanimal’s Ghost Sonata showing a performer in white clothes in front of a length of white folded fabric which is held up by a metal frame and draped across the floor.
Slide 2: Test Run Artist. Kate Pasco. Laura Knight and Kate Pasco smile at the camera. Between them is a table covered in books and papers.
One of the things we often hear about the most from artists at Theatre Bristol is how hard it is to make the first step when looking to develop a relationship with a producer. So we developed Test Run, offering an artist/company and producer £400 to test out their relationship.
Here are the reflections from two Test Run artists following their initial `test` - Chris Reed @thepapercinema and @igne.barkauskaite
Alt Text
Slide 1: Theatre Bristol logo. Test Run Reflections.
Slide 2: Test Run Artist, The Paper Cinema. Reflection on meeting Polly Eldridge (Sound UK). "I`m so happy that this has come about the way it did and that we finally have a sense of moving forward again - which was lost through the pandemic." - Chris Reed.
Slide 3: Test Run Artist, Igne Barkauskaite “Test Run is an excellent initiative. It enabled me to connect with a producer and explore the possibilities of this new relationship. [This grant] helps to ground your ideas into practice and learn about producing - a skill which not every artist can easily access without specific training. I don’t aim to work as a producer in the future but knowing the context is vital for anyone working in the industry. I feel nourished, more connected to a wider community and excited about what’s to come in my practice.”
One of the things we often hear about the most from artists at Theatre Bristol is how hard it is to make the first step when looking to develop a relationship with a producer. So we developed Test Run, offering an artist/company and producer £400 to test out their relationship.
Here are the reflections from two Test Run artists following their initial `test` - Chris Reed @thepapercinema and @igne.barkauskaite
Alt Text
Slide 1: Theatre Bristol logo. Test Run Reflections.
Slide 2: Test Run Artist, The Paper Cinema. Reflection on meeting Polly Eldridge (Sound UK). "I`m so happy that this has come about the way it did and that we finally have a sense of moving forward again - which was lost through the pandemic." - Chris Reed.
Slide 3: Test Run Artist, Igne Barkauskaite “Test Run is an excellent initiative. It enabled me to connect with a producer and explore the possibilities of this new relationship. [This grant] helps to ground your ideas into practice and learn about producing - a skill which not every artist can easily access without specific training. I don’t aim to work as a producer in the future but knowing the context is vital for anyone working in the industry. I feel nourished, more connected to a wider community and excited about what’s to come in my practice.”
Our Test Run seed fund offered £400 for an artist/company and producer to test a new relationship. We asked the Test Run Artists to share their reflections with us following their `test`. Here, @lucamacchimusic and @eatthewolftheatre tell us about their experiences.
Alt Text
Slide 1: Theatre Bristol logo. Test Run Reflections.
Slide 2: Test Run Artist Luca Macchi. "Test Run helped me greatly to investigate a working relationship with a producer. In a time of financial struggle for many people, in the Arts and not, these small grants are essential for the development of new work which can be very useful as a contribution to the economy and more importantly to the well being of the community.”
Slide 3: Test Run Artist, Eat The Wolf Theatre. “The Test Run Grant has been so beneficial! As we are a new theatre company starting up, we are filled with creatives and artists, but not many of us have any experience in the production and administration that goes on behind the scenes. We used the grant money to set up 2 meetings with a Bristol based producer, who gave us some amazing advice and help in terms of where to go to for funding, how to create strong applications, and creating a social media presence for our show and theatre company. It has been wildly helpful, and we are just waiting on the decision back from ACE, to hopefully secure funding and bring our lovely producer in for more time during the show dates!" Chloe Thurlow
Our Test Run seed fund offered £400 for an artist/company and producer to test a new relationship. We asked the Test Run Artists to share their reflections with us following their `test`. Here, @lucamacchimusic and @eatthewolftheatre tell us about their experiences.
Alt Text
Slide 1: Theatre Bristol logo. Test Run Reflections.
Slide 2: Test Run Artist Luca Macchi. "Test Run helped me greatly to investigate a working relationship with a producer. In a time of financial struggle for many people, in the Arts and not, these small grants are essential for the development of new work which can be very useful as a contribution to the economy and more importantly to the well being of the community.”
Slide 3: Test Run Artist, Eat The Wolf Theatre. “The Test Run Grant has been so beneficial! As we are a new theatre company starting up, we are filled with creatives and artists, but not many of us have any experience in the production and administration that goes on behind the scenes. We used the grant money to set up 2 meetings with a Bristol based producer, who gave us some amazing advice and help in terms of where to go to for funding, how to create strong applications, and creating a social media presence for our show and theatre company. It has been wildly helpful, and we are just waiting on the decision back from ACE, to hopefully secure funding and bring our lovely producer in for more time during the show dates!" Chloe Thurlow
Join us tomorrow morning for our monthly coffee morning - a great opportunity to get to know a little more about Theatre Bristol, as well to introduce or reintroduce yourself and meet others working in live performance in Bristol or the wider SW. No agenda. Plenty of biscuits.
Time: 10-11am drop in (arrive and leave at any time throughout the hour)
Location: TB Office, St Anne’s House, Brislington
Media Description: Photo of a cup of coffee with text that reads: Join us for monthly coffee mornings. St Anne`s House, Bristol
Join us tomorrow morning for our monthly coffee morning - a great opportunity to get to know a little more about Theatre Bristol, as well to introduce or reintroduce yourself and meet others working in live performance in Bristol or the wider SW. No agenda. Plenty of biscuits.
Time: 10-11am drop in (arrive and leave at any time throughout the hour)
Location: TB Office, St Anne’s House, Brislington
Media Description: Photo of a cup of coffee with text that reads: Join us for monthly coffee mornings. St Anne`s House, Bristol
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Theatre Bristol exists to support and improve live performance, championing inclusion, independence and the role of art and artists in society.
Our vision is for live performance and performance makers to thrive, to be valued, resilient and deeply connected to more peoples’ lives.
We combine open and generous grassroots support with strategic, collective action to make our theatre industry more exciting, more relevant, and more accessible to people in our city.
We offer a radical support service for artists – it’s completely free, open to anyone, and run by practising professional artists who offer their experience, knowledge and skills to others. This creates a strong network of independent artists, ensuring Bristol remains a brilliant place for people to make and see live performance.
Our support service helped director Selina Thompson create the award-winning show Salt.
Theatre Bristol made a hugely ambitious project happen when it was little more than a big idea from a very, very small fish of a company. I guess you could say that the key drivers behind this support were trust, space and guidance.
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We need your help to keep our services, like artist support, free to those who need it.
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