Write to Play teams up with North West Theatres for Second Year

Graeae announces the second year of new writing programme in the North West, in partnership with the Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse, the Royal Exchange Theatre Manchester and the Octagon Theatre Bolton.

Write to Play develops the skills and experience of Deaf and disabled writers. Over the course of one year, five writers will each aim to create a full-length play through collaboration with some creative minds in the industry.

The project will bring together Graeae, the UK’s foremost disabled led theatre company, with these three North West venues. The first year of Write to Play developed five playwrights: Sean Burn, Amy Bethan Evans, Rosaleen McDonagh, Tom Wentworth and Nicky Werenowska, in partnership with three London theatres: the Royal Court, the National Theatre Studio and the Soho Theatre.

The year-long Write to Play programme includes Playwriting 101 (an intensive course in the art of playwriting), specialist workshops, mentoring sessions and opportunities to have short pieces of work performed in front of an audience.

The writers selected for the second year of the Write to Play programme are: Helen East, Karen Featherstone, Jackie Hagan, Helen Martin and Danni Skerritt.

The Write to Play programme (incorporating Play Labs and Creative Think Tanks) is funded by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, the Arts Council England and Backstage Trust.