Resident Acting Company to Return to Everyman Theatre

A resident acting company will return to Liverpool's Everyman theatre from January 2017 as the Everyman & Playhouse create a new producing model. This pioneering new structure will genuinely embrace its community and create art with vigour and joy that is as inspirational is it aspirational. The theatres will become a place of change and diversity that welcome people from all backgrounds to enhance and develop their skills aided by world-class facilities.

This new vision is comprised of the Everyman Company, Playhouse Residencies and Young Everyman Playhouse (YEP).

The Everyman will become home to a Company of actors, allowing the theatre to take a new approach to how work is created and seen. The productions will aim to speak to the city-region and create a powerful bond with audiences. As well as creating extraordinary and responsive work on stage, the Company will connect with community groups and help to train YEP. The Company makes a powerful statement about the value of placing multiple voices on stage, with a better gender balance and a high degree of cultural diversity.

The Company season at the Everyman will launch in January 2017 and run until July. This will be followed by an autumn season featuring co-productions with theatre companies who share a similar ethos to the Everyman Company before the rock 'n' roll panto at Christmas. The return of the Company sees a resident repertory ensemble at the Everyman for the first time for

At the Playhouse there will be the creation of a hub for Residencies that can last a number of weeks. This will enable a selection of the finest national and international producing companies to form bonds with audiences, communities, young people and artists in Liverpool. Residencies will also give touring companies a rare and precious base to form inspirational connections as well as time for research and development.

This ground-breaking approach across the two theatres will have a significant impact on the award-winning work with Young Everyman Playhouse. Young people will become even more deeply integrated in the theatres work, with the programme expanding to include traineeships in producing, technical theatre, acting and communications. Exceptional skills development will include the Everyman Company working alongside YEP members, and the traineeships will guide the young people from YEP into employment.

Everyman & Playhouse Artistic Director Gemma Bodinetz said: "This vision is a distillation of all that we hope will make these theatres a passionate, creative engine that responds to our audiences and the artists eager to tell their stories. We want to surprise, dazzle and invigorate everyone that encounters us. This vision is about creating relationships. Our company, our residencies and YEP will form creative bridges to and from each other and together we will strive to make sure the Everyman and Playhouse theatres are relevant, humane and unique places of wonder."

Associate Director Nick Bagnall added: "The return of the Company to the everyman is a fantastic opportunity to work with what I'm sure will be a talented ensemble to tell great stories that matter to the people of this city. I'm excited for what this new approach to our work will mean for audiences, our work in the community and the brilliant YEP and I can't wait to get started."

The theatres will announce the productions that will form the first Company season, and which actors will be performing them, in the autumn. Members of the Company will come from a number of backgrounds to create an ensemble with multiple skills, mixing performers who can sing and play instruments, alongside traditional acting skills.

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