I agree it doesn't sound like the easiest sell but it's an incredible piece! And today I am pleased to announce that the kickstarter campaign for Pandora's Locker is LIVE!

Please support if you can in two ways: 1) share this through word of mouth, social media, email, etc 2) donate if you can. THANK YOU! …

So in addition to the performing arts things I do (mainly in music, opera and theatre), I also have a track record of working with an artist called Micah Purnell, in Manchester and now in Cardiff. He's a visual artist; specifically a street artist; specifically a flyposter artist. I was a fan before I helped him with producing his work and now I'm glad to be able to say I support him. 

SAVE THE DATE - Thursday 10 July, 6pm-8pm 

I'm currently working hard to get ready to launch my Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign for Pandora's Locker. we are going to doing some R&D for an incredible youth opera that blends biomedics with issues of identity, power and gender. It's just getting its own Twitter account going off the back of my own: www.twitter.com/pandoraslocker

And in doing so I've been collating other people's and reflecting on my own top tips for a…

If you're already into or getting into festivals, I'd highly recommend this intensive seven day experience. I'm just back from the one in Edinburgh, but I think Poznan at the time of the Malta Festival would be an incredible opportunity: …

You're welcome to join us any/every week for What Next? at WMC, Fridays 8.30am for 1hr. This week: we're considering responses to ACW Inspire strategy consultation. 

There's also a group on here: http://community.nationaltheatrewales.org/group/what-next ;

And a once-a-week email list if you let me know that you want to be added to that. 

Find out more about What Next? via:…

A handful of cast. Several vans. Four shows. Length and breadth of the UK. Audience of thousands. More than 20 years experience. No subsidy. One season. 

Can I absolutely and wholeheartedly recommend you book to see one of Illyria's FOUR shows this year? Best outdoor entertainment ever, and they're everywhere from Land's End to John o' Groats! http://www.illyria.uk.com/

I can honestly say I learnt more from producing two seasons with…

I wrote a blog post for the EFA Festival Bytes blog about my Atelier experience, asking myself (and others) 23 key questions that we've explored. http://www.festivalbytes.eu/what-will-be-different-now/

I can't recommend the week-long residential enough - if you work on/ in/ for festivals, do seek out the next editions and ask ACW or your employer to give you some training monies to attend! Next one is at…

So it's been a really intense time at the EFA Festival for Atelier Managers in Edinburgh - we're basically working 9am - 10pm every day for seven days! We have had some incredible moments of dialogue and debate, with some wonderful mentors, most notably Heiner Goebbels about Ruhrtrienniale and Mark Ball about LIFT. I guess when there are 52 participants from 28 countries all talking festivals festivals festivals, then basically anything can happen and it has.We've also done some amazing site…

Next week, I'll be packing a bag and heading northwards for the EFA Atelier for Festival Managers.

It is an incredible gathering of 51 festival makers (producers, directors, managers, programmers, etc) from 30 countries in a seven day residency with some world class mentors, including Robyn Archer, Jonathan Mills and Mark Ball. You can see more about the event here: …

Thrilled that the next Producers Place meeting, we are joined by Nick Sherrard provoking us to think about audiences: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/producers-place-with-nick-sherrard-tickets-10628749877

A SYMPOSIUM ON THE ROLE OF ARTS AND CULTURE IN A WORLD WHERE THERE IS NO NORMAL

The cultural map is being re-drawn… by new behaviours, new technologies, new models of funding and new local, national and global thinking. No Boundaries is an open symposium on the role of culture in 21st century society bringing…

We were already up to capacity on this https://producersplace.eventbrite.co.uk/ but we've just added another 10 places - book now!

Last year, Lucid hosted a couple of events for producers in order to exchange ideas and share experiences. Change is always a part of theatre and the role of producer is very much contributing to some major shifts in how things are happening at the moment. But many people who are producers don’t have that title. And many people who call themselves producers find that their experience and skill-set limits their ability to perform all aspects of the role. And what is a producer anyway?…

This June/ July take your twice-a-decade chance to see Chester's theatrical extravaganza - aka the greatest hits of the Bible retold for our times by a cast of hundreds!

I'm looking forward to joining colleagues from across the UK on Monday for What Next? They will be live streaming the event from 1pm here: www.whatnextculture.co.uk 

There's a move afoot to try to engage even more (and better) with families - and as part of that the ITC, TMA and other artform lead organisations (like VAGA and ABO) have joined together to form a consortium. They're going to do several things:

- share headline information from their research around triggers to and barriers for engagement by families in the arts

- co-ordinate a programme for a Family Friendly Arts Festival later in the autumn (Oct/ Nov 2013, and again in…

What Next? - a national conversation on new ways to champion the arts/ culture - is back on - 29/04/13 in London - http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/event/5590960714/estw 

What Next? 

A national conversation on new ways to champion the arts and culture



The What Next? Conference

Monday 29th April 2013

The Palace Theatre,…

Last night, I was at the most amazing show - so visually rich with an incredible score to accompany an epic and distressing storyline about the most amoral of women.

There were film references galore (Alice In Wonderland; Clockwork Orange; Psycho; to name a few) and the production itself was costumed and lit in every shade, from monochrome to technicolour. An absolute feast for the eyes with a cracking set. It had animal heads, corpses, nudity, Jack The…

Tomorrow is a lie.

Tomorrow I will start saving.

Tomorrow I will run.

Tomorrow I will start my diet.

Tomorrow I will quit my job.

Tomorrow I will write my book.

Tomorrow I will launch my company.

Tomorrow is a lie you tell yourself to make you feel better about not doing the thing that matters most to you. So is ‘next week’.

And so is ‘next month’,

And then there is ‘one day’.

The ultimate lie.

Thanks for the reminder David Hieatt, Hiut Denim…