Elemental is our exciting artist development programme, supporting early-career artists in developing their craft, expanding their industry insight and strengthening their practice. Our applications for our 2026 cohort are now open.
Over the course of a year, Elemental artists gain hands-on experience working on a Watermill production, connect with leading industry professionals and benefit from networking and ongoing professional development opportunities
Our first cohort of artists have had first-hand experience working alongside the creative team on Watermill productions through the year, including The King’s Speech, Pinocchio, Piaf and Jesus Christ Superstar. Beyond the Watermill, the programme has exposed Elemental artists to unique opportunities and cultivated meaningful connections within the wider sector, including shadowing the lighting designer for Starlight Express, meeting Elle While Pentabus’ Artistic Director and observing technical rehearsals for My Neighbour Totoro.
Elemental is a paid programme, with support for travel and access costs to help remove barriers for participating artists.
We welcome artists from all theatre disciplines, including Lighting and Sound, Movement Directors, Set or Costume Designers and Musical Directors.
Elemental is now entering its second year and applications are now open. Please apply by 5pm Monday 27 October and see the application pack below for further information on the programme and how to apply.
If you’re aged 18-25 with an interest in creating theatre and performing, this group meet weekly on Thursdays from 7.30pm-9.30pm.
Sessions are guided by our team of professional artists to give you the opportunity to develop as a performer. You will explore techniques and creative processes that can contribute to a future career in the arts.
This activity is free and no previous experience is needed!
Want to know more and meet the team? Come to our Open Day on Tue 28 Oct, 3.30pm-6pm.
Applications are now open for our annual development lab for new work from solo (or duo) theatremakers.
Working alone or in pairs can be hard. Starting Blocks helps with that.
Starting Blocks connects and supports artists who have new, experimental ideas that need development. It invites artists to make a home at CPT for ten weeks, introduces them to others on the same journey, and supports them to realise their creative ideas as ambitiously, and in as supportive and fun an environment, as possible.
In recent years, Rachel Mars’ hit show The Way You Tell Them, Louise Orwin’s Pretty Ugly, Haley McGee’s The Ex Boyfriend Yard Sale and 2018 Underbelly Untapped Award-winner Queens of Sheba by Nouveau Riche have all started life on Starting Blocks and gone on to national and international tours, four and five star reviews, with extended runs at CPT and beyond. Some of our last cohort have now been programmed for longer-running shows this autumn season.
We will support 5 or 6 solo artists, or pairs of artists, across the programme. Each project will receive:
Financing your studies may seem daunting at first, but help is at hand. Bristol Old Vic Theatre School will provide all the support you need to take control of your finances.
For fees purposes, Bristol Old Vic Theatre School classifies students as UK or International. Your residency classification determines the amount you pay in tuition fees as well as the financial support available to help towards tuition fee costs and living expenses.
This programme aims to provide the vital support necessary for students to overcome the financial barriers they face to access and complete our training, allowing students to focus fully on their course without the burden of financial strain.
We currently provide scholarship support to 28% of students across our student cohorts. Applicants will be contacted about scholarships when they receive an offer to train at LAMDA, however some scholarships can be applied for externally.
All scholarship applicants must possess the means to fund their training costs at LAMDA before applying for scholarship support. This includes applying for applicable undergraduate or postgraduate loans in the UK, US or home countries.
There is always a greater need for scholarships than what we can currently provide, and we are working to increase the number of scholarships available to ensure that finance is not a barrier to students from under-represented groups who wish to access LAMDA’s training.
LAMDA’s scholarships usually range between £3,000 - £15,000 and are funded through grants from trusts and foundations, companies and individual donors and are reviewed on an annual basis.
We believe that talent and potential should be the only requirements for entry, and that a person’s circumstances should never prevent them from embarking on a successful career in theatre. Every year, Mountview awards a range of scholarships and bursaries to support students with the costs of study.
Scholarships are awarded on the basis of talent, potential and financial need and designed to ensure that cost is not a barrier to study. Mountview’s scholarships are generously provided by a variety of supporters including the Leverhulme Trust, The Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation, Elaine Paige OBE, Crossroads Live Ltd, The Champniss Foundation, The Christina Smith Foundation, Jamie Lonsdale and many more.
The School is deeply committed to equality of opportunity and students are admitted solely on the basis of merit. In light of this, the School does its best to ensure that no student offered a place is prevented from enrolling on the grounds of financial hardship.
The School offers a wide range of scholarships to students regardless of domicile. These scholarships are supported by a variety of generous donors including City Livery companies, grant-making trusts and foundations, businesses and individuals.
A scholarship award may be made to cover either the full or partial costs of tuition fees, and may also include support for maintenance costs. Awards are made to individuals on the basis of their talent, potential and personal financial need. The School allocates in excess of £2million per annum to such eligible students.
RADA was founded on the principle that all students with talent can train regardless of their background and circumstances. Our Scholarship fund ensures that the most talented students can train here by reducing the economic barriers many students face when pursuing their training.
Tuition fees for UK (Home) undergraduates are currently £9,250 per year, and we estimate that students also incur maintenance costs of approximately £14,000 (over 10 months) to cover standard living expenses such as rent, food, travel and course materials.
The Wayne Sleep Foundation Awards are medium to large sized grants given to individuals who have obtained a place at a higher education Arts Institution, and are specifically to be put toward accommodation and living costs.
In previous years, the Foundation has supported students who have gained places at: Academy of Live and Recorded Arts, Central School of Speech and Drama, Dance for All, Elmhust School for Dance, Hammond School, Laine Theatre Arts, London Studio Centre, Northern Ballet School, Rambert School, Royal Academy of Music, Royal Ballet School, Royal College of Music.
The Foundation has also supported organisations and projects, including those organised by: Central School of Ballet, Circus Arts, British Ballet Organisation, Dance Forward Summer and Easter Schools, Dance Northern Ireland, Dance Teachers’ Benevolent Fund, English National Ballet School, Fertile Ground, Liverpool Theatre School, National Ballet of Cuba, One Dance UK, Peter Darrell Trust, Rambert School, Royal Academy of Dance, Urbana Academy, and Yorkshire Ballet Seminars.
Call out for writers based in East Midlands
The Alfred Fagon Award is offering a one-day writing workshop to ten new and emerging Black British playwrights based in the East Midlands. We encourage all playwrights no matter their experience, age (18+), or background to apply.
10 writers will be invited to attend a day’s workshop at Nottingham Playhouse on Saturday 15 November 2025.
This will be free to attend, and we’ll pay for your rail/bus travel to the venue.
What you will get out of the workshop:
Additional opportunities:
All eligible scripts will be entered in the 2026 Alfred Fagon Award.
What we’d like from you:
Interested but not based in the East Midlands?
