Open@TheStudio

The Studio is Open!

We are here for early career artists and new graduates, independent artists and companies, self-producers, mavericks, dreamers, and year-round believers. Over the next six months, we will be trying out different ideas and opportunities to see how we can make The Studio into a home for those who are forging their own way in the industry.

If you want to understand the nuts and bolts of how things work, add new tools and techniques to your own creative practice, connect with new collaborators, or get an idea up on its feet, we have something for you.

From networking events to workshops with visiting companies, R&D residencies to scratch nights, Open@TheStudio is throwing open the doors of opportunity.

Come on in...

Open Floor

Do you have an idea you want to test in front of an audience?

We are looking for theatremakers and companies to take part in our new scratch night, Open Floor, on Friday 17 Feb at The Studio.

Open Floor is an opportunity to get an idea up on its feet in front of an audience and see what does and doesn’t work. It’s about testing, experimenting and getting feedback that can help you take your idea forward in the future.

We’re keeping this quick and dirty so think low tech - basic lighting states, a few sound cues, nothing too complicated – and light touch when it comes to set.

Here’s what we can offer:

• A slot to perform 10-15 mins of material
• £200 for performing plus 1/5^th of the box office on the night
• A feedback session with Claire Swanson, Head of Creative Engagement at Capital Theatres

Here are the dates:

• Closing date: Sun 5 February, 11:30pm
• Decisions shared: Thurs 9 February

Eligibility Criteria

• You must be based in Scotland
• You must have worked on at least one professional production previously. This can include Fringe performances but not university productions or amateur dramatics. You must not be in receipt of RFO funding from Creative Scotland.
• You must be available during your selected residency period
• You must be applying for a new project that has not already been commissioned, produced or coproduced, or staged by another organisation

We will be ringfencing two of the slots for those based in Edinburgh and the Lothians.

How to apply

Here is how to apply:

• Please complete this online application form by Sun 5 February
  You can complete this with written answers or video application.
• If you would like to download a dyslexia-friendly version of the form you can do so here.
• We will let you know whether you are successful or not on Thurs 9 February.

If you have any questions, please feel free to get in touch at engage@capitaltheatres.com

Open to Ideas

Do you have an idea you want to explore? We are offering three R&D residencies to support Scottish theatremakers to test out new ideas this spring.

We don’t expect you to hold a sharing at the end of the week (though you can if you want to) and we aren’t promising to programme the work in the future. Instead, it’s a genuine offer for you to experiment, explore and get an idea up on its feet.

We’re excited by ideas that have something to say about contemporary Scotland, new musicals, devised work, family work, and total theatre stuff with big heart and low tech. We’re less interested in script development, adaptations or remounts of existing texts, abstract academics and magic shows

Here’s what we can offer:

• Five days of rehearsal space in The Studio, Edinburgh
• Two days of technical support if you need it
• £2000 in seed funding
• A session with our Head of Creative Engagement to talk about your idea and how it might develop in the future

Here are the dates we have available

• 20 to 25 February 2023
• 13 to 19 March 2023
• 3 to 7 April 2023

Eligibility Criteria

• You must be based in Scotland
• You must have worked on at least one professional production previously. This can include Fringe performances but not university productions or amateur dramatics. You must not be in receipt of RFO funding from Creative Scotland.
• You must be available during your selected residency period
• You must be applying for a new project that has not already been commissioned, produced or coproduced, or staged by another organisation

We will be ringfencing one of these residencies for someone based in Edinburgh and the Lothians. We’ll also be aiming to support theatremakers at different stages in their career so are interested in applications from both new and more experienced applicants.

How to apply

Here is how to apply:

• Please complete this online application form by Monday 30 January, 11:30pm.
  You can complete this with written answers or video application.
• If you would like to download a dyslexia-friendly version of the form you can do so here.
• We will let you know whether you are successful or not on Tuesday 7 February.

If you have any questions, please feel free to get in touch at engage@capitaltheatres.com

Open Workshops

Explore new creative techniques with some of the companies touring work in The Studio.
Cost: £5, booking essential

The Storytelling Body

With Ad Infinitum
Fri 3 March, 11am–1pm
How can we create stories, spaces, and characters full of intensity using only our bodies and an empty space? In this workshop that shares Ad Infinitum’s Lecoq-based theatre-making disciplines, you will learn how to push the physical limits of storytelling and your own skills as a creative theatremaker to realise an abundant world of characters, colours, emotions, and atmospheres. Making full use of your body, empty space, and a physical-gestural language, you will explore your own individual storytelling style, empowering and enabling you to surprise and captivate audiences.
Book now

Open Floor

Come along to our new scratch night, Open Floor, and see new ideas being tested out for the first time. We’ll be launching the call out for companies looking to perform in the next Open Floor event in January 2023 – sign up here to be the first to hear.

Friday 14 April, 7:30pm
Cost: £5
Book now