Charlene James

Asa Haynes, Joe Kerridge, Melis Aker, Rachel-Mae Brady and Shona Bukola Babayemi are announced as the 503Five, Theatre503's pioneering programme for early career playwrights. Established in 2009, the 503Five is a scheme for UK-based writers who have developed their craft to a high standard but are not yet professionally produced.

The Royal Court Theatre and Jerwood Arts will continue their longstanding partnership with Jerwood Arts committing new funding to support the theatre's work developing writers over the next two years. 

Talawa Firsts is 10 years old; providing a stage for some of the freshest new voices in Black British theatre, the festival includes exciting double bill stage readings, online Q+As with writers and theatres and in-person workshops for writers and theatre makers.  

Dare Aiyegbayo, Tabby Lamb, Sorcha McCaffrey, Martha Reed and Kaamil Shah were today announced as the 503Five, Theatre503's pioneering programme for early career playwrights. Chosen from 548 applicants, they receive a £2,000 seed commission to write their full-length professional debut, as well as creative support from Theatre503 over 18 months. The 503Five is made possible through the support of the Carne Trust and The Orseis Trust.

A director with a reputation for developing new writing, Holly directed Headlong's Hedda Tesman by Cordelia Lynn at Chichester Festival Theatre and The Lowry, Salford. She was an Executive Producer on Unprecedented, the BBC Four, Century Films and Headlong critically acclaimed drama anthology, directing House Party by April De Angelis and Penny by Charlene James for the series.

Alan Stacey has today announced that he will be stepping down as Executive Director of Headlong in March 2022 after six years with the company. During his tenure Stacey has helped bring some of Headlong's most critically acclaimed work to over 900,000 people in theatres across the UK.

Daniel Ward has been announced as the winner of the 51st George Devine Award for his debut play The Canary and the Crow, picking up a prize of £15,000. The Canary and the Crow is the coming of age story of a working-class black kid accepted to a prestigious grammar school.

The George Devine Award today announces its 2020 Shortlist of nine plays. Founded in 1966 in memory of the Royal Court's founding Artistic Director George Devine, the Award is recognised as one of the most prestigious in new writing and seeks to shine a light on a playwright of promise.

A week before lockdown was announced, some of our greatest playwrights were asked to write stories exploring every aspect of human life and interaction during the coronavirus pandemic. As part of BBC Arts' Culture in Quarantine initiative, all plays were filmed and produced during lockdown, with all fourteen plays now available on the BBC iPlayer. Episode One takes three very different situations and begins with the most successful of the three; James Graham's Viral.

For the last four years, the Royal Court Theatre's Participation team have been championing the use of current and representative texts and practitioners in the classroom. Working closely with exam boards, and in collaboration with Hamlett Films, the BBC Bitesize GCSE Drama resources were created.

BBC Arts has joined award-winning theatre company Headlong and BAFTA winning Century Films, as broadcast partner for Unprecedented: Real Time Theatre from a State of Isolation, a series of short, digital plays written and performed in isolation, which will be broadcast across the nation during lockdown as part of Culture in Quarantine.

Award winning theatre company Headlong, in association with the BAFTA winning Century Films, have today announced a new creative response to the current global crisis, Unprecedented: Real Time Theatre From a State of Isolation.

With the Thirteenth Doctor, played by Jodie Whittaker, and her friends well on their way to landing back on our screens, BBC AMERICA today announced an exciting host of new directors as well as both new and returning writers for the next season of Doctor Who.

Theatre503's Artistic Director Lisa Spirling announces the 503Five - recipients of the company's pioneering writers' residency, supported by the Carne Trust and Orseis Trust, alongside forthcoming highlights at the venue including:

Under Sarah Frankcom's Artistic Directorship the Royal Exchange Theatre has been redefined, reimagined and reframed. It has explored classic texts in new and radical ways, celebrated the vitality and significance of new writing, embraced new ways to talk to audiences and engage communities and supported theatre makers to challenge their own practice.

Theatre503 has announced ERIN DOHERTY and SOPHIE MELVILLE as the cast for 503Five playwright Ross Willis' debut play Wolfie. Erin was recently featured by the Evening Standard as a 'rising star' and plays Princess Anne in the forthcoming series of Netflix hit The Crown. Sophie's credits include Iphigenia in Splott, for which she received The Stage Award for Acting Excellence and Wales Theatre Award for Best Female Performance, and nominations for Evening Standard Award for Best Actress and Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Solo Performance.

The Gift Theatre is pleased to present TEN 2019, the company's annual season kick-off festival of ten world premiere ten-minute pieces by The Gift and guest artists, curated by Artistic Director Michael Patrick Thornton and Associate Artistic Directors Paul D'Addario and Emjoy Gavino. TEN will play January 10 - 20, 2019 at 4802 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago's Jefferson Park neighborhood. Tickets for TEN are free for Gift subscribers and $10 for the general public. Tickets are currently available by calling the Gift's box office at 773-283-7071 or visiting thegifttheatre.org.

Danusia Samal is announced as the winner of the third biennial Theatre503 International Playwriting Award at an event at The Bridge Theatre hosted by 503 Chair Erica Whymanand Artistic Director Lisa Spirling on Thursday 22 November.

BBC AMERICA will air Snatches: Moments From Women's Lives, a short film series featuring an all-female line-up of actors and writers, in the current events time slot on Sunday, November 4 at 9:00 am ET.  Snatches: Moments From Women's Lives airs in partnership with Jezebel and features an introduction by Jezebel Editor-in-Chief Julianne Escobedo Shepherd.

BAFTA-nominated John Fitzpatrick's brand new play Reared will debut at Theatre503 this April. With unfailing humour, Reared tackles intergenerational conflict, postnatal depression, and the role of the Irish mother in the 'sandwich' generation caught looking after both their children and their parents.