Women in Theatre Lab Launched to Support Female Playwrights in UK

The Women in Theatre Lab has been launched to support female playwrights in the UK. The scheme will mirror existing writing schemes in the US and Australia and has been set up to combat gender disparity in the theatre industry.

The programme aims to help address the under-representation of women in UK theatre by creating an ongoing paid pipeline of support from ideas to first drafts to full commissions and productions, building on previous one-off projects.

Funded by Arts Council England and supported by the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain, the Women in Theatre Lab will provide 10 seed commissions and is open to emerging and mid-career female playwrights based in the UK.

The Lab is being created by Her Story Productions, a new company supporting women in theatre, television and film, set up by researcher Jennifer Tuckett and ERA 50:50 director Polly Kemp.

The programme is also being made in partnership with Jermyn Street Theatre.

The Women in Theatre Lab offers three stages of support:

Stage One

Receive a £1000 seed commission to develop an idea, as per Writers’ Guild best practice guidelines, plus receive four Lab sessions comprising of advice from leading female playwrights, advice from leading women working in theatre on business skills, a craft toolkit, dramaturgical support plus a showcase at the end of the project.

Stage Two

Receive a second seed commission to develop a first draft of your idea, following Writers’ Guild guidance on best practice for seed commissions. Whether you want to write a full first draft or section will be decided in agreement with the writer.

Stage Three

Stage Three will run in future years and will offer the opportunity for full commissions and productions, completing a paid pipeline of support from idea to first draft to full commission and production.

In future years, graduates from the stage-one group will receive a seed commission to develop a first draft.

Participants will receive advice from leading female playwrights and industry figures. Funding is available to cover childcare and access costs. Sessions for the labs will take place both in person and on Zoom. 

Find out more information about the project here.