Bristol Old Vic becomes one of first partners in SHIFT - a commitment to decolonise storytelling in the UK
15 Dec 2024
Bristol Old Vic, alongside Belgrade Theatre Coventry and SW theatre company Beyond Face, have become the first organisations to join as partners in SHIFT, a groundbreaking commitment from Tamasha to rebalance a Eurocentric approach to dramaturgy across the UK, funded by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation.
What is SHIFT?
SHIFT’s goal is to make theatre more anti-racist and accessible for Global Majority artists and embed long term decolonial systemic change. A call to collective action, SHIFT recognises global perspectives and form as vital to the evolution of British theatre narratives.
SHIFT aims to create deeper inclusive practices and to decolonise existing traditions of commissioning, programming, dramaturgy, producing and governance, whilst developing audiences for new work. Over the past year, Tamasha has led a process of in-depth discovery and dialogue with theatre-makers across the UK. Now, the partners will collaborate to shape and deliver SHIFT. Recruitment of further partners - organisations demonstrating a commitment to decolonising their own structures and practices - continues.
SHIFT will directly support Global Majority Theatre-makers through development and support, which will include dramaturgy roundtables, peer exchange opportunities with international artists, a series of workshops and labs, networking, and research and development, and bursaries. Tamasha’s successful TELL DEM podcast series, produced in association with the Roundhouse, will be relaunched this month to discuss and share themes related to SHIFT with the wider industry.
Pooja Ghai, Artistic Director of Tamasha:
“SHIFT is committed to crucial work in our industry – work that needs to take time and have the right support and partners to be effective, long-lasting and genuinely game-changing. We have a sector that produces overwhelmingly through a Eurocentric lens, which in its very essence both disadvantages and demoralises Global Majority artists. This is an opportunity for us to work collectively, to look at our organisational processes and how we cultivate a space where Global Majority artists can do their best work, celebrate the cultural lens and lived experiences they wish to explore and have the right dramaturgical support to do so. We are delighted to announce the first of our partners on this journey – Bristol Old Vic, Beyond Face and Coventry Belgrade are already demonstrably committed to change and willing to do the hard work needed. We look forward to the next steps of SHIFT’s journey with them, to welcoming more partners, and to making this change happen.”
Nancy Medina, Artistic Director, Bristol Old Vic:
“We are so thrilled to be partnering with Tamasha and colleagues in the South West and across the UK on SHIFT. The principles of SHIFT align so brilliantly with the way we aspire to work at Bristol Old Vic and we would like to be a part of any wave of work that begins to rewire and reframe the conversation around dramaturgical practice through a truly global lens. This is a vital changemaking initiative and the work starts here; we can't wait to get going.”
Corey Campbell, Creative Director, Belgrade Coventry:
"Inclusion, community and telling stories that haven’t been heard before are all central to Belgrade’s ethos and ambition, so we are beyond excited to be among the first partners for SHIFT. We are looking forward to taking this journey, learning more about ourselves, our peers, and our audiences, and affecting real, long-term change."
Alix Harris, Artistic Director and CEO, Beyond Face:
“We are really excited to have been asked by Tamasha to be involved in this important and vital project. What SHIFT seeks to do aligns with the values and ethos of Beyond Face’s work. As an organization, we are constantly reviewing and exploring ways in which we can continue to reframe the lens through which theatre is made and we are particularly interested in how we support the artists working in South West and their relationship to practices globally.”
TAMASHA Tamasha is a dedicated home for both emerging and established Global Majority artists. A powerhouse of new writing, talent development and digital innovation, we platform and invest in stories that celebrate our rich shared histories and cultures. Proudly both artist and audience driven, we’re disrupting, dismantling, and inspiring through bold and imaginative storytelling, providing a place to explore our lived experiences and unique perspectives.
We support theatre makers in gaining the skills, knowledge and creative community to create innovative, new work. Our Developing Artists Programme includes masterclasses, showcases, training programmes and networking opportunities, informed by and responsive to the evolving demands of the creative industries.
We collaborate with partners to commission and produce an artistic programme interweaving live and digital productions, such as audio dramas, walking adventures, magazine-style podcasts and annual touring productions. All staged within and beyond traditional spaces.
Productions over the company’s history have included East is East by Ayub Khan Din, Blood by Emteaz Hussain, Approaching Empty by Ishy Din, Does My Bomb Look Big In This? by Nyla Levy, I Wanna Be Yours by Zia Ahmed, 10 Nights by Shahid Iqbal Khan, Made In India and Lotus Beauty by Satinder Chohan, Hakawatis: Women of the Arabian Nights by Hannah Khalil, STARS by Mojisola Adebayo and Great Expectations by Tanika Gupta.
Tamasha.org.uk / @tamashatheatre
BRISTOL OLD VIC Bristol Old Vic is the UK's longest continuously running theatre and has welcomed millions of people through its doors since opening nearly 260 years ago.
Led by Executive Director Charlotte Geeves and Artistic Director Nancy Medina, and with investment from Arts Council England, the organisation is committed to platforming and creating opportunities for the multitude of stories that Bristol and the UK have to offer.
Bristol Old Vic offers a year-round programme of inspiring, original new work – recently including the European Premiere of Matthew Lopez’s Reverberation, Nkenna Akunna's cheeky little brown with tiata fahodzi, and the new musical Starter for Ten. It also has one of UK theatre's biggest learning and engagement programmes; and has recently relaunched its artist development programme, including a five-year commitment to new writing which includes working with Legacy writer, Winsome Pinnock. Plus, through Bristol Old Vic On Screen, audiences across the world have seen its productions live or on demand.
“We will make a theatre which is for our whole community. Not a passive place but one of activism. Not one voice but many. We will ask questions of ourselves and of Bristol. We invite you to come on in and help us make this building sing with possibility.” Nancy Medina. Artistic Director.
BELGRADE THEATRE
As the largest theatre in Coventry and a leading regional producing theatre, the Belgrade has a broad, varied programme.
Popular musicals and entertainment sit happily alongside progressive, critically acclaimed new drama. Our two spaces, B1 and B2, stage exciting productions and events for families, couples, individuals, first timers and confirmed theatregoers.
As a publicly subsidised independent charitable trust, we also support health and education and build skills and talent in the region. Everything we do is with, by and for our local communities.
Some of our productions are fresh takes on well-loved stories. Others explore new ground – and have never been told before. To them all, we bring warmth, openness and collaboration, creating new community connections and encouraging different perspectives. By sharing the city’s diverse stories, the Belgrade brings people in Coventry together. We call this co-creation.
Led by CEO Laura Elliot and Creative Director Corey Campbell, the Belgrade is realising its ambitious plans to build on the Theatre’s rich history of inclusion. Born out of the post-Second World War spirit of peace and reconciliation, and named with gratitude for the Serbian capital’s gift of timber to build a new theatre, the Belgrade has offered a warm welcome to visitors since 1958.
Whether you’re visiting the Belgrade for a show, a business event, or simply for tea, cake and a chat with friends, this unique sense of welcome is still unmissable.
Belgrade.co.uk
BEYOND FACE
Beyond Face CIC is a South West-based theatre company founded in 2015 by Alix Harris. Beyond Face's vision is to lead the South West into becoming a recognised region that amplifies and celebrates Global Majority people in the arts and cultural sector. They do this through creating productions, an artist development programme, creative offers for young people and Regional Voices, a space for people who yet don’t see themselves as artists but have stories to tell. Beyond Face’s productions have toured regionally and nationally and their future work aims to continue to bring focus to the region.
Beyondface.co.uk
PAUL HAMLYN FOUNDATION
Paul Hamlyn Foundation (PHF) was established by Paul Hamlyn in 1987. He died in 2001 and left most of his estate to the Foundation, creating one of the largest independent grant-making foundations in the UK. PHF use their resources to support social change, working towards a just and equitable society in which everyone, especially young people, can realise their full potential and enjoy fulfilling and creative lives.
phf.org.uk
ARTS COUNCIL ENGLAND
Arts Council England is the national development agency for creativity and culture. We have set out our strategic vision in Let’s Create that by 2030 we want England to be a country in which the creativity of each of us is valued and given the chance to flourish and where everyone of us has access to a remarkable range of high-quality cultural experiences. We invest public money from Government and The National Lottery to help support the sector and to deliver this vision. www.artscouncil.org.uk.
Following the Covid-19 crisis, the Arts Council developed a £160 million Emergency Response Package, with nearly 90% coming from the National Lottery, for organisations and individuals needing support. We are also one of the bodies responsible for administering the Government’s unprecedented Culture Recovery Fund, of which we delivered over £1 billion to the sector in grants and loans. Find out more at www.artscouncil.org.uk/covid19.
