Bristol Old Vic to Tour Free Theatre to 19 Secondary Schools

Bristol Old Vic will take two brand-new plays directly into 19 secondary schools across Bristol this autumn, in a groundbreaking free programme designed to tackle the growing lack of access to theatre and creative arts education for young people.

The Theatre's MIB260 company of young theatre-makers will tour schools with two new productions, A Brit?ish Museum and Dead Air, alongside workshops exploring the themes of the plays and the creative and technical process of making theatre.

The programme comes at a time when financial pressures are making it increasingly difficult for schools to provide arts experiences or bring pupils into theatres. National theatre leaders have described the situation as an “emergency” for access to theatre (The Stage, 2025), while a decline in new work being created specifically for schools means some young people risk going through their entire education without experiencing live theatre.

Bristol Old Vic is responding by taking the theatre directly to young people, rather than waiting for young people to be able to come to them. The schools tour will make high-quality theatre accessible to over 1000 young people across Bristol at no cost to the schools.

The two new productions have been created by Sam Parker and Muneera Pilgrim, part of Bristol Old Vic's Five Year Commitment writers. Both plays were developed following conversations with young people in schools, ensuring their experiences, concerns and ideas are at the heart of the work.

A Brit?ish Museum, by Muneera Pilgrim, is aimed at Years 7–9 and explores friendship, belonging and what it means to be British, as two friends visit the Brit?ish Museum.

Dead Air, by Sam Parker, is written for Years 10&11. It follows a group of teenagers in Bristol who have created a guerrilla radio station in an abandoned school in a world where adults have disappeared and children vanish when they turn 18. When lead presenter MIC turns 18, the group prepares for one final broadcast…

The project also provides a vital professional development opportunity for the MIB260 company, a group of young theatre-makers gaining hands-on experience of creating, touring and performing new work for young audiences.

Rebecca Dawson, Executive Director of Bristol Old Vic, said, “This tour is about ensuring a young person's opportunity to experience theatre is not decided by their postcode or the pressures on their school budget. Schools are facing extraordinarily difficult choices, and creative subjects, trips and live performance can be among the first things to disappear. If young people cannot come to us, we have a responsibility to take exceptional theatre to them.