At the end of your course, your work will be included as a rehearsed reading at the ever-popular and industry-recognised Studio Salford Development Week. You work will be performed by professional actors at a week-long showcase of brand new work, along with emerging talent from the region.

 

Development Week isn't just for participants of the courses, though.

 

Have you got a script laying dormant on your hard-drive or gathering dust in a drawer?

Have you always wanted to write something but don't know where to get it staged?

Studio Salford Development Week is the answer!

 

Development Week is free to get involved in. There are absolutely no performance fees, technical fees or any hidden costs. The studio-space is kindly donated by the lovely Kings Arms Theatre - we collect donations during the week to help cover the costs of the event.

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Studio Salford was always an experiment in what can be done with talent, goodwill, energy and determination. It started out as a collection of companies that got off their beautifully proportioned behinds and made things happen. Sometimes it's been rough round the edges - but that was what was exciting about it. We struggled like mad to get our work up on its feet and in front of an audience - not always an easy task, but as the great, late Anthony Wilson put it

 

"...for a big City, Manchester is just small enough. It's true. People know each other, collaborate, cross-pollinate. Ideas can mix and match. It's easy to get things moving."

 

Some of the work that started at Studio Salford with it's "please-don't-let-the-set-fall-apart" way of doing things, became polished and successful and went on to bigger venues, national tours and all sorts - like Nico Icon Play by Stella Grundy, Beautiful House by Cathy Crabb, Miracle by Gerry Potter, The Game of Two Halves by Mike Heath...the list goes on and on and on....

 

Along the way, the work performed at Studio Salford got recognition from established theatres and the industry as a whole. There are plenty of Manchester Evening New Theatre Awards, Manchester Theatre Awards and more under the belt of those who've put work on at Studio Salford and there's been loads of pieces that started off at Studio Salford and The Kings Arms Theatre that have gone on to The Library Theatre's great Re:Play event.

 

And Development Week is an extension of that ethos, keeping the ball rolling for new work.

 

Here are the guidelines

1. Tell us you want to put on a reading / performance of your script. Rehearsed readings work particularly well and they're much easier to put together.

2. Technical requirements (lights / sound etc) MUST be a bare minimum to zero. If you need complicated tech for your show, you need to provide a technician who knows your play, as get-in / get-out time will be very short.

3. You'll need to cast it, direct it and produce it.

4. Plug your performance like mad.

5.  Don't pull out once it's been advertised.

 

Once you've told us you want to be involved, we'll allocate you a slot and then the rest is up to you. Your audience will be given a feedback form that they can fill in at the end of your performance and that feedback goes directly to you - we'll make a copy of it for our records and for ACE evaluation purposes.

 

For rehearsed readings, we don't sell tickets, but there is a donations bucket for your audience. 

 

In past Development Weeks we've had open rehearsals (the audience are invited to watch a rehearsal of a piece), script in hand performances, rehearsed readings... We're also happy to show films, go for the more wild and wacky. It's up to you - you suggest it and as long as it's possible, we'll go with it.

 

We can help - we've got a great network of actors you might be able to approach. We also know directors and producers who might be able to help you.

 

Email Mike at Studio Salford for further details / request a slot