The Wardrobe Ensemble Launches New Festival In Bristol: The Theatre On The Downs

The Wardrobe Ensemble will celebrate their 10th anniversary with an ambitious new theatre festival running from August to October. Pop-up venue The Mix, designed by Studio Three Sixty, will become The Theatre on the Downs at Breaking Bread on The Downs. This new venue in Bristol will celebrate the local theatre scene as The Wardrobe Ensemble strive to create opportunities for South West artists and provide a community-focused hub in the city for audiences to enjoy after a year inside. The first shows are now on-sale with more theatre, circus, poetry, family shows to be announced!

Kicking off the festival will be world premiere of The Wardrobe Ensemble's WINNERS. In their own inimitable style, this exciting new show explores capitalism and tracks the shift of labour in the history of food from farming to fast food. Directed by Jesse Jones (Death Drop, West End) and Helena Middleton (Education, Education, Education, West End), WINNERS is a rollicking and fantastical look at manipulation, monopoly and money, capitalism and currency.

The Wardrobe Ensemble comments, We started talking about this idea at the end of last summer as we imagined what might come next for theatre. We knew that the thing we wanted to do the most was to make a new show and perform it to live audiences, and we thought that other companies in the South West might want that too. So, we created this very ambitious project which has had many different permutations along the way as we tried to wrangle it into being. We are so excited (and a little bit scared) to finally announce it and make it happen.

This is the biggest thing The Wardrobe Ensemble has ever tried to pull off and we still need help. Please do get in touch if you feel able to support us. And if you are a South West artist with something that you think might work at The Theatre on the Downs, let us know - we are still programming the space and want to fill it with as much exciting work as possible!

As part of The Theatre on the Downs, The Wardrobe Ensemble are offering a brand-new commission of £10,000 for an artist or company based in South West England to develop a new piece of theatre. Alongside the commission, the successful artist or company will have the option of a programming slot in September and receive one-to-one sessions with members of The Wardrobe Ensemble to support the next steps. Applications are open here: http://theateonthedowns.co.uk/commission

There are still more opportunities to be part of the programming - for more information, check the website: theatreonthedowns.co.uk.

The Theatre on the Downs is kindly supported by The Wardrobe Theatre, Arts Council England, Backstage Trust and WECA. Ticketing in association with Bristol Old Vic.