Jay Gao has today (29 June) won both an Eric Gregory Award and a Somerset Maugham Award this year for his thrilling debut poetry collection, Imperium (Carcanet Press). Through reimagined episodes from Homer’s Odyssey, Imperium asks questions about diaspora and how past lives permeate the present. It was described by judge Wayne Holloway Smith as ‘the work of a poet mind shot through with intellect and cultural capital’.
A new report released today by Freelancers Make Theatre Work (FMTW) highlights key issues facing the freelance theatre workforce. Conducted in March-April 2023, this year’s survey highlights a pay-gap between the male and female workforce of 37.4%, and reports of an industry rife with ageism and sexism are further corroborated by data which reveals that the pay-gap widens to 47.7% for freelancers with 21-30 years’ experience in the industry. Third in a series of surveys by FMTW, the 2023 findings indicated that overall, average earnings for freelancers in the industry are 17.5% below the UK national average salary, and that many are leaving – or being forced out of – the industry resulting in skills shortages across the sector.
tiata fahodzi, the UK’s leading British African heritage contemporary theatre company, today announces a new season of theatre including a major tour of a new production;welcomes a new wave of six artists and creative associates to the tiata fahodzi family; and commissions a new Triple Bill of explosive short plays showcasing theatre’s most exciting new voices, all slated for autumn 2023/Spring 2024.
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society is delighted to announce the launch of the inaugural Edinburgh Festival Fringe emerging critic’s programme. Reviews are a critical tool for Fringe artists, for both raising their profile and encouraging audiences to seek out their work. Over the last few years, the level of arts coverage delivered by media titles across the UK has reduced dramatically compared to pre-pandemic. The Fringe Society’s new pilot project aims to promote arts journalism as an attractive and viable career choice for emerging talent.
Kensington and Chelsea Festival is delighted to announce that it is set to return for a third consecutive year. Spanning the summer – from Saturday 1 July to Thursday 31 August 2023 – the festival will take place across the borough in a reimagining of its spaces. From the best-known cultural venues to the less discovered areas and outdoor spaces, Kensington and Chelsea Festival will make use of every inch of the borough to host a multitude of live art performances, large and small, showcasing exceptional established artists alongside the very best emerging talent.
The Mackintosh Foundation is delighted to announce the inaugural Regional Theatre Technical Apprenticeship Programme in association with thirteen venues across the United Kingdom, offering young people a stepping-stone into the theatre industry and supporting the next generation of technical theatre professionals.
The Society for Theatre Research has awarded An Actor’s Life in 12 Productions by Oliver Ford Davies (Book Guild) the Society for Theatre Research Theatre Book Prize for 2023. The Prize was given to Davies on Thursday 15th June as part of a prestigious ceremony at the Actors’ Church, London celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Theatre Book Prize and the 75th anniversary of the Society for Theatre Research.
President of the STR Timothy West awards Oliver Ford Davies the Theatre Book Prize at the Actors’ Church, 15th June 2023.
Today, Netflix announces the five filmmaking teams who will receive funding and professional support to make a short documentary on the theme of “Connection,” as part of the second year of the Netflix Documentary Talent Fund. Following a rigorous application process and thousands of applications, a shortlist of twelve filmmaking teams were invited to Netflix’s UK HQ to pitch in front of a panel of industry experts.
British productions took home seven awards from the 76th Tony Awards, which took place last night at the historic United Palace in New York City’s Washington Heights.
Jodie Comer, star of BBC’s Killing Eve, won the award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Playfor her role in the one-woman show Prima Facie (Lead Producer: SOLT member Empire Street Productions). Jodie won an Olivier Award earlier this year for the same role in the production’s 2022 London run. Collecting her Olivier Award in April this year, Jodie said, “Don’t let anybody tell you it isn’t possible… It might take the stars to align and for you to be met with such generous, kind, and nurturing people, but it is possible.”