The Watermill Theatre and Associate Company Wildcard have announced details of the four companies that will be supported this year by LAUNCHPAD, a new artist development programme, that will provide mentorship, professional support and free rehearsal space as well as a cash investment of up to £2,000 to put towards developing a new piece of work.
The four successful companies are: Power Play Productions (telling women’s stories of social injustice, using theatre, activism, and visual art), Produced Moon (creating work at the intersection between theatre and technology, making interactive work for the digital age), Chuchu Ngwagu Productions (an independent black-led theatrical and live entertainment production company based in London) and FlawBored (an emerging company made up of three 2020 Central Graduates creating socially provocative devised work with creative access at its core).
The successful companies will have the opportunity to undertake a week of research and development with free rehearsal space at Wildcard Studios in central London or at The Watermill Theatre near Newbury between May and June 2021.
Through LAUNCHPAD, The Watermill and Wildcard teams will provide support before and after the development week, offering dramaturgical and artistic guidance where required. Producing support and networking opportunities will also be key components of the programme, helping companies to establish future opportunities and an onward life for their new pieces of work.
James Meteyard, Artistic Director for Wildcard, said, “It’s been an incredible process meeting so many talented companies through LAUNCHPAD. We’re really excited by the four organisations we’ll be supporting over the next year. The diverse range of artistic approaches and company objectives is very inspiring to see and has reminded me of the extraordinary breadth of our industry. As the programme is intended to be bespoke, and designed around the needs of each company, it really is starting to feel like the beginning of a journey for all of us and already the conversations are extremely exciting. I have every faith that these organisations have an extremely bright future ahead of them and I’m so pleased that Wildcard and The Watermill are able to support the projects and companies to help take the next step in their respective journeys.”
Abigail Pickard Price, Associate Director (New Work and Artist Development) for The Watermill, said, “The Watermill and Wildcard are thrilled to be joining forces with these four brilliant companies to assist them in the creation of new work and see them through the next stage of their company’s development. As we emerge out of this impossible time for theatre the energy, innovation and ambition that we have seen from huge numbers of emerging companies through the LaunchPad application process has served to demonstrate what an exciting future there is for theatre.
Further information available at www.watermill.org.uk or www.wildcardtheatre.co.uk
