Bristol Old Vic announces autumn/winter programme

Bristol Old Vic has announced it’s autumn season, featuring a diverse programme of work that is in large part the fruit of new conversations and relationships with theatre-makers and audiences, from Bristol and beyond.Buzzard and The Tragic and Disturbing Tale of Little Lupin are the first of five new theatre pieces,co-commissioned by Bristol Old Vic and Theatre Bristol; before September is out, BOV will also have showcased Escape to This, and the world premières of Muscle and My Green Your Grey– two exciting new plays developed though the theatre’s writers’ room initiative.Other highlights this autumn include new work from leading South West writers Nell Leyshon and Carl Grose, physical comedy from the inimitable Spymonkey, political drama from Jenny Davis and Carib theatre; two new productions of classic plays – a new production of Rupert Goold’s 6 Characters in Search of An Author and Shakespeare at the Tobacco Factory’s Uncle Vanya, a new version of Our Country’s Good by the BOV Young Company and a Christmas theatre-feast for audiences of all ages with Kneehigh in the Theatre Royal and Travelling Light in the Studio for younger ones.As the first performances of the new season unfold Bristol Old Vic’s new Artistic and Executive Directors, Tom Morris and Emma Stenning, will be joining the theatre. Marking their arrival Tom and Emma have created Bristol JAM – the UK’s first festival of improvised performance, taking place in October. Speaking about the festival they said:bq. “Dick Penny has set Bristol Old Vic on course for a journey of exploration and experiment. He has set us a very clear challenge: to discover what a truly engaged regional theatre might do for Bristol by making work which inspires our artists and audiences to new heights of achievement and understanding.bq. Honouring the spirit of this challenge we are pleased to announce the first Bristol JAM – a tiny riot of improvised performance in some of the art forms which flourish across Bristol. There will be drama, music, dance, games, jazz, film, beat- box and other things which as yet have no name, all in the spirit of exploration which Dick has set as our watchword.”