Supporting female playwrights in the UK
The Women in Theatre Lab supports female playwrights in the UK via seed and full commissions, advice from leading female playwrights, a business toolkit, a craft toolkit and a showcase
✓ advice from leading female playwrights
✓ a business toolkit
✓ a craft toolkit
The UK version of American and Australian models
The Women in Theatre Lab is inspired by America’s Women’s Project (WP) Lab, which has nurtured a generation of female playwrights, and Australia’s Women in Theatre programme via which, amongst other measures, Australia recently achieved gender parity in its top eight theatres. The programme aims to help address the under-representation of women in UK theatre by creating an ongoing paid pipeline of support from ideas to first drafts to full commissions and productions, building on previous one-off projects.
Our partners
01
Jermyn Theatre Street
Partners include Jermyn Street Theatre, the West End’s Studio Theatre.
02
Her Story Productions
The programme is also run by Her Story Productions, the new company supporting women in theatre, television and film run by Jennifer Tuckett, former Research and Literary Director at Sphinx Theatre, the UK’s longest established women’s theatre company, and Polly Kemp, founder and Director of ERA 50: 50, the equal representation for actresses campaign whose supporters include Emma Thompson and Phoebe Waller-Bridge. The programme draws on Jennifer’s experience of creating the one-off Sphinx Lab for Sphinx’s 30th anniversary, in partnership with 15 leading UK theatres, and Polly’s experience of creating TellHerVision with BAFTA winner Joanna Scanlan.
03
The Writers’ Guild of Great Britain
The Writers’ Guild of Great Britain is also a partner of the Women in Theatre Lab, ensuring best practice is followed at all times and providing support.
Key Features
✓ Stage One seed commissions, Lab sessions and support
✓ Stage Two seed commissions , Lab sessions and support
✓ Stage Three full commissions and productions
Apply to the Women in Theatre Lab
The Women in Theatre Lab offers 3 stages of support:
Stage One
Receive a £1000 seed commission to develop an idea, as per Writers’ Guild best practice guidelines, plus receive 4 Lab sessions comprising of advice from leading female playwrights, advice from leading women working in theatre on business skills, a craft toolkit, dramaturgical support plus a showcase at the end of the project. Lab sessions will be a mixture of in person and online to ensure that all can attend.
Stage Two
Receive a second £1000 seed commission to develop a first draft of your idea, following Writers’ Guild guidance on best practice for seed commissions. Whether you want to write a full first draft or section will be decided in agreement with the writer.
Stage Three
Stage Three will run in future years and will offer the opportunity for full commissions and productions, completing a paid pipeline of support from idea to first draft to full commission and production.
How to Apply
The Women in Theatre Lab is open to emerging and mid-career female playwrights based in the UK.
We are delighted that the first cohort for the Women in Theatre Lab has just been announced on Friday 19th April and more information can be found here
To apply in future years, please sign up to our mailing list via our Contacts page to be kept informed of when the application window opens.
Funded by Arts Council England
To apply
✓ A 10 page theatre writing sample
✓ Your writing CV (if you have one) and a paragraph on why you would like to take part in the Women in Theatre Lab
✓ If you are a mid-career female playwright who would like to be considered for Stage Two please also submit a one page maximum outline of an idea you would like to develop
✓ Email applications to [email protected] by 15th January 2024 (please note: applications for this year are now closed but will open again next year and please sign up to our mailing list for future updates).