Nurturing the next generation of bold theatre-makers, Pleasance Futures, the artist development strand of the Pleasance Theatre Trust, ensures support for exciting up-and-coming talent from across the UK. For its 41st Edinburgh Fringe, the Pleasance will offer over £100,000 in support of the theatre artists of tomorrow, with 30 shows being directly supported by Pleasance Futures. This unprecedented level of artist support facilitates accessibility and diversity in the arts, ensuring new talent can present work at the greatest arts festival in the world while receiving support and mentoring from the Pleasance.
The Charlie Hartill Fund supports UK-based theatre makers and comedians in bringing their work to the Fringe. Running for over 20 years with generous investment each year, the flagship fund offers unique and unparalleled support to artists through direct cash investment, programming, and mentoring support. Previously, Olivier Award-winning Flesh + Bone from Unpolished Theatre and sell-out smash-hit Public – The Musical have benefited from the fund, highlighting how vital the work of Pleasance Futures is.
In 2025, Charlie Hartill funding recipients will include Bunkum Ensemble’s The Unstoppable Rise of Ben Manager, a dark satire and surrealist physical comedy with live music and songs. After taking a dead man’s lanyard for safekeeping and wearing it on the day of his job interview, Ben Weaver begins his relentless promotion, climbing increasingly higher until a dark truth emerges. Alongside, Global Majority winner Kanpur: 1857 based on historical events, as Niall Moorjani’s explosive new play comically satirises contemporary conflicts around gender, colonial violence, and making art in times of crisis.
To honour its third decade, The Pleasance Comedy Reserve, funded by the Charlie Hartill Fund, has helped launch the careers of Joe Lycett, Brett Goldstein, Roisin Conaty, Jamali Maddix, Lou Sanders, Chloe Petts, Sophie Duker and Jack Whitehall and many more. This year’s line-up highlights four incredible up-and-coming comedy acts. These include: Dane Buckley, Daniel Petrie, Jen Nolan and Maia Tassalini.
The hugely successful Edinburgh National Partnerships programme returns for a seventh year, with the Pleasance partnering with national producing houses to support extraordinary work around the UK and Northern Ireland. Alright Sunshine, supported by Pitlochry Festival Theatre, is a punchy, provocative monologue play written by award-winning Edinburgh playwright Isla Cowan, that will explore gender, power, and the politics of public space. Down to Chance, supported by Theatre Royal Plymouth, offers a heartwarming portrait of a community in crisis in 1964 Alaska, as the protagonists find themselves at the centre of a remarkable relief effort with the whole world listening.
LEI-LDN, supported by Leicester Curve, is a vibrant exploration of identity and belonging, that follows Chardaye, a young mixed-race woman, as she relocates from Leicester to South London to live with her Jamaican aunt. Writer and multi-disciplinary rebel Leila Navabi will return to the Edinburgh Fringe with the Sherman Theatre Wales supported Relay, following a sell-out debut hour with Composition and tour support for Laura Smyth, Jessica Fostekew, and Nish Kumar. Lyric Belfast is supporting Rose + Bud, a heartfelt and heart-breaking queer comedy about self-acceptance.
With soaring ambition and a wellspring of youthful energy, Young Pleasance is truly nurturing the stars of the future, offering opportunities for young people aged 16-21. Past members include Nicholas Galitzine (Mary & George, 2024; The Idea of You, 2024) and Ella Balinska (Charlie’s Angels, 2019). This year, Young Pleasance celebrates 30 years at the Edinburgh Fringe with their love letter to theatre in Ghost Light. The show follows Drury Lane’s costume assistant, Izzy, on a nostalgic journey through costume departments of the past, as she unwittingly evokes the memories of theatre legends Nell Gwynn, Vesta Tilley, Sarah Siddons, and many more.
Anthony Alderson, director of the Pleasance Theatre Trust comments, “At the very heart of the Pleasance Theatre Trust is our development umbrella, Pleasance Futures. We have a deeply held belief that bold, diverse voices deserve not only to be heard but also supported. We take pride in investing not just in shows but in the future of theatre and comedy across the country. The Festival Fringe is where careers begin, and we are dedicated to ensuring they flourish.”
With more shows to be announced over the coming weeks, there will be comedy, theatre, circus, magic, dance, kids’ shows and much more.
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
