Join the Royal Shakespeare Company over May Half Term to discover The Tempest, Shakespeare’s magical story of family, freedom and forgiveness.
Calling all budding actors! Spend a day working and training like an actor in an RSC Rehearsal Room. Unlock Shakespeare's language and make the play your own, looking at key scenes and characters from The Tempest. Adults do not need to stay for Acting Masterclasses.
Their workshops are available for a variety of age-groups, please see dates and times per age group below.
Ages 8-11:
Ages 11-14:
Ages 14-18:
Join the Royal Shakespeare Company over May Half Term to discover The Tempest, Shakespeare’s magical story of family, freedom and forgiveness.
Get the whole family involved with a fun, bitesize storytelling session, introducing you to the world of The Tempest, where YOU are part of the story! With this gentle, imaginative workshop, take a journey through the play with a mixture of actor-led storytelling, play, drama games and exercises.
Date: 29 May
Time: 10am or 11.30am
Location: Clore Learning Centre, Stratford-upon-Avon
Are you 18–24 and ready to make something that matters?
£750 to bring your creative idea to life
Work with children & young people
Be mentored by professional artists
Join a Youth Arts Board + shape the future of arts in the Black Country
Are you this type of person?
Got a creative idea you’ve been sitting on
Want to lead your own project
Passionate about theatre, music, dance, digital, or visual arts
Ready to build your career in the arts
🎯 8 commissions available | Up to 8 weeks
Across: Theatre, Music, Visual Arts, Dance, Literature, Digital, Combined Arts + Museums
What you’ll do:
1️⃣ Pitch your idea
2️⃣ Get selected + funded (£750)
3️⃣ Create your project with support + mentorship
4️⃣ Showcase your work + make real impact
🚀 This is your pathway to practice
Not just funding — real experience, real networks, real opportunities
For years, the idea of “making it” in theatre has followed a familiar script: go to university or attend drama school, earn a degree and then maybe you’ll land a job.
But that’s only one version of the story.
The truth is, theatre has never had a single entry route. Many people build careers through practical experience, training on the job, and creating their own opportunities, and crucially, this doesn’t just happen in London.
Apprenticeships are one of the most accessible and structured ways to begin a career in theatre. They combine paid work with hands-on training, allowing you to learn directly from industry professionals.
Major organisations like the National Theatre, the Royal Ballet and Opera, and the Royal Shakespeare Company offer established apprenticeship schemes in areas such as technical theatre, stage management, and costume.
Outside of London, opportunities are just as valuable. Theatr Clwyd and Leeds Playhouse, for example, run programmes that focus on developing local talent and opening doors into the industry.
Apprenticeships offer:
Paid internships in theatre do exist, but they can be harder to find and are often highly competitive. They’re usually offered through specific programmes rather than widely advertised roles.
Masterclass, the Birmingham Hippodrome and Creative Access, for instance, partner with producers and theatres to provide internships that give insight into how the industry operates behind the scenes.
While not as accessible as apprenticeships, internships can still:
Not everyone wants, or needs, to commit to full-time training. Short courses offer a flexible way to develop your skills, whether that’s acting, directing, writing, or technical theatre.
Institutions like the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama offer part-time courses, but similar opportunities can often be found at regional theatres and arts centres across the UK.
These courses allow you to:
It’s easy to think of theatre as London-centric, but the UK has a rich network of regional venues creating high-quality work and supporting emerging talent.
Organisations like the Bristol Old Vic, Royal Exchange Theatre, Northern Stage, Birmingham Hippodrome, and the National Theatre of Scotland all offer development programmes, workshops, and early-career opportunities.
Starting outside London can often mean:
One of the most powerful ways into theatre is to stop waiting for permission.
Write a play. Organise a scratch night. Collaborate with other creatives. Platforms like the Edinburgh Festival Fringe have launched countless careers built on self-created work.
Creating your own opportunities shows initiative and gives you something tangible to build on.
There’s no single way into theatre, and that’s what makes it such an exciting industry to be part of. Whether you choose an apprenticeship, apply for internships, take short courses, or start creating your own work, each path offers something different.
What matters is finding the route that works for you, your circumstances, your interests, and the way you learn best. Theatre needs a range of voices and experiences, and there’s space for more than one way in.
There isn't one fixed pathway. Find the route that suits you, and start there.
With school holidays offering many young people the opportunity to take part in creative activities, it’s often a time when interests grow, and future ambitions begin to take shape.
Whether a young person is already engaged in the arts or just starting to explore, there are many different pathways into a career in the creative industries. However, for many families, these routes can feel unclear or uncertain.
Recent research from Netflix and the National Youth Theatre found that 89% of parents from working-class backgrounds would be unlikely to encourage their child to pursue a career in the creative industries. Building understanding and confidence among parents and carers is an important step in helping more young people feel supported in exploring these opportunities.
Parents Unscripted is a new series from Discover! Creative Careers, created in collaboration with organisations across the creative industries. The series shares the perspectives of parents whose children now work in the sector, offering honest reflections on their journeys.
We’re proud to have collaborated on one of the films in the series, developed alongside Discover! Creative Careers and the National Theatre. In this film, Angela Jumbo, mother of actor and playwright Cush Jumbo, reflects on her child’s journey into the industry and shares her perspective as a parent.
You can watch the other films in the series here!
We know that when parents and carers feel more confident about creative careers, it can make a real difference to a young person’s ability to pursue them.
By sharing these stories, Parents Unscripted aims to open up conversations, challenge misconceptions, and highlight the many routes available across the creative industries.
We encourage teachers, industry professionals and partners to share these films with their networks, whether through newsletters, social media, or conversations with young people and their families.
Helping more families understand the opportunities available in the creative industries is a vital step in supporting the next generation of talent.
Find out more about Discover! Creative Careers here.
Find out more about the National Theatre Skills Centre here.
The Belgrade Theatre is thrilled to open applications for Midlands-based creatives to perform new work as part of See It First 2026, an exciting programme of new work, workshops, and conversations between artists and audiences.
· Two back-to-back evening performance slots in our underground Jag space,
· A paid opportunity to preview work ahead of touring or other performance opportunities in one of the Midlands’ top producing theatres,
· A chance to be part of See It First, a programme of new work, workshops and conversations between artists and audiences,
· The opportunity to take pictures and video of work,
· The opportunity to test work in front of an audience. We will also support with gathering feedback if needed.
· Work made by Midlands-based creatives, ideally with a connection to Coventry and the local area,
· New productions (i.e. never been seen in a full production by a public audience),
· Shows that are ready to meet a public audience, at any stage of their development.
They expect creatives applying to:
· Have already secured funding or be in the process of acquiring funding to support the development of the production,
· Have already assembled or be able to independently assemble a creative team, cast actors, and hold rehearsals,
· Provide us with copy and images for on sale,
· Be going on to further opportunities (e.g. festival or tour) or planning for this in the future.
Fee: £500-£1000, depending on the stage of development the work is currently at (find further details in information sheet below)
Context: Selina Thompson Ltd turns 10 this year and we want to celebrate a decade of art making, writing, being at stuff and our obsession with Birmingham. To do this we are hosting a party! Food! Booze! Bouncy Castles! Party Bags! And of course – performance.
The Party: The party will take place on Friday 11th September, at The Edge, Birmingham. There will be a small stage, some basic tech including access to a project, simple lighting and a sound system. There are also smaller spaces and an outdoor courtyard. Pre-visits can be arranged if useful for artists, but they are not expected. The party will take place from early evening, the STL will plan the programme responsively to the commissioned works. Commissioned artists will be expected to stay for the duration of the event.
Task: To make a ‘party piece’ that responds to one of the following five works from the Selina Thompson archive:
When we say a party piece, we either mean:
Some parameters:
A paid summer work and cultural exchange opportunity for creatives aged 18+.
Camp America offers a paid summer opportunity to live and work at an American summer camp for 9–12 weeks, with performing arts and creative roles available across camps in the USA. This is more than just work experience - it’s a chance to use your creative skills while living the full summer camp life!
Creatives from all backgrounds are placed in roles where they can teach, lead and inspire young people through acting, singing, dance, music, technical theatre and production, while also being part of a wider camp community. Alongside your role, you’ll take part in classic camp activities, build international friendships and experience everyday life in the USA. While we work with specialist theatre and performing arts camps, performing arts roles are available across many different camps, not just specialist ones.
This opportunity is ideal for those who:
Camps generally run from mid-Jun to mid-August – but this can vary by camp and location.
