Literary Programme
We want Bristol Old Vic to feel like a home for writers, and for the production of new plays in both our theatre spaces to be a part of our DNA.
Through our Literary Programme we support writers and their collaborators to develop their craft, build a sustainable practice & commission work for development and presentation here at Bristol Old Vic.
PROJECTS
The Five Year Commitment
The South West & the rest of the UK continues to produce amazing writers whose work can be seen on stages & screens all over the country; however, there are challenges when it comes to consistent and long-term commitment in a landscape where often writers are working in the short-term; we want to give writers the opportunity to build their craft and their voice over time and within the holding of a singular place.
Thanks to the support of the Genesis Foundation Prize, we are able to kickstart The Five Year Commitment. Inspired by the long-term commitments made by residencies in theatres such as Signature Theatre in New York, Bristol Old Vic will in 2024 commit to three writers at three different levels of experience for a period of five years. Over this time, we’ll use our resources and expertise to allow these writers the time and space to develop their craft by writing full-length plays putting their work into a dialogue with audiences. Additional to that, we’ll use our resources to support the space between those commissions, connecting the writers with each other and ensuring they feel embedded and at home in our theatre.
We feel this sort of long-term commitment and support is needed at all stages of a writer’s career and so we will support three artists using the following criteria:
- Early Career Writer (1 – 5 years of experience)
- Mid Career Writer (5 – 15 years of experience)
- Legacy Writer (15+ years of experience)
We’re excited about how these writers might develop a long-term exchange with each other, allowing them the space to connect meaningfully and deeply with each other’s practice and experience over the five years of support.
We’ll be sharing more details about the programme, including the process through which we plan to find our writers, in Summer 2024.
I’m incredibly honoured to receive the 2024 Genesis Foundation Prize which enables us to begin this work in earnest
Nancy Medina
Peggy Ramsay / Film 4 Playwrights Award
Bristol Old Vic are delighted to be working with Florence Espeut-Nickless as a 2024 recipient of The Peggy Ramsay Film4 Playwrights Awards. This long-running scheme celebrates and supports emerging British writing talent. The 2024 initiative is awarding six bursaries to new theatre writers, each worth £10,000. Four bursaries are supported by The Peggy Ramsay Foundation (one is dedicated to the memory of literary agent Tom Erhardt) and two by Film4.
Florence has embarked on a one-year attachment to Bristol Old Vic, joining our team to make new connections in the industry and gain first-hand experience of a working theatre. Florence’s main task in the 12 month attachment is to write at least one full-length play, supported by the Bristol Old Vic literary team.
Alongside Florence, the other recipients of the 2024 bursaries are:
- Babirye Bukilwa - Clean Break & Soho Theatre
- Shahid Iqbal Khan - Paines Plough
- Martha Loader - New Wolsey Theatre
- Marek Horn - Hampstead Theatre
- Morna Young - Traverse Theatre
Commissioning & Grants
We want to continue to develop & commission new work at Bristol Old Vic, working locally and nationally to support writers and writing; currently we have three ways of doing this:
Commissions: we commission writers to work on plays and adaptations, with a view to developing and producing this work on one of our stages.
Co-Production Grants: we partner with independent artists & companies to offer a financial contribution to their budget, a programmed slot in one of our theatres & bespoke in-kind support that helps them to build & produce an ambitious show as part of our programme.
If you have an idea that you think would be a good fit for some commissioning support from Bristol Old Vic, read our guidance and submit your idea to be considered by our team.
Residencies
We understand the value & impact that residencies can have on artistic processes & particularly on writers; time and space away from the day-to-day to rest, nourish yourself and your practice and explore new ideas or ways of working. We are beginning a new partnership with our friends at Hawkwood CFT to offer writing residencies throughout the year.
We’ll be sharing more details about residencies, including the process through which writers can apply for one, in Summer 2024.
Early Career Writers Programme
We want to encourage and support early career writers to take bold next steps with their practice. As part of our literary programme, we will be inviting a group of early career playwrights to take part in a new free programme hosted by Bristol Old Vic and lead by industry professionals, scheduled across several weeks in Autumn/Winter 2024.
There will be no age restriction on who can take part in this programme and writers will be selected via an open submissions process, with further details coming in Summer 2024.