Exciting initiative to support emerging theatre producers

A new partnership, between Galway’s Town Hall Theatre and the Dublin-based Irish Theatre Institute will offer mentoring, strategic planning, exchange and training opportunities for six emerging producers from next January,

The six will be supported by administrative and infrastructural resources in two Producer Hubs, one in Dublin and one in Galway.  Participants will be provided with a stipend to allow them to see work by other artists and engage with networks in the partner city.  The scheme is designed to help them develop their expertise, skills and networks at a crucial point in their careers.

This new initiative, entitled ELEVATOR, is funded by the Arts Council.  Irish Theatre Institute (ITI), is a national resource organisation for the professional Irish theatre sector led by two experienced producers – Siobhán Bourke and Jane Daly. It offers training, advice and support to practitioners at all stages of their careers.

In recent years ITI has delivered a programme of resource-sharing and mentoring opportunities for artists and companies, often with an emphasis on producing and strategic planning.  Last November, at the invitation of Galway 2020, ITI provided a two-day self-producing artist training workshop at the Town Hall Studio.  ELEVATOR is a further development of this relationship with the Town Hall Theatre, one of the country’s busiest touring and producing venues. It offers exciting new opportunities for six emerging producers – three of whom will be in Galway and three in Dublin.  It will use an open call and application process to recruit the future producers for a 12-month scheme. The successful applicants will have existing relationships with artists and companies or existing projects to participate in the scheme, beginning in January.

The six successful candidates be announced in December.

The Manager of the Town Hall Theatre Fergal McGrath expressed his delight that the theatre involvement in this initiative “at such an exciting time for Galway. It is critically important that emerging producers here in Galway have the opportunity to develop sustainable careers and we look forward working with ITI on this and future developmental projects”.