We are proud to work with industry partners on development and touring opportunities.
We continue to build relationships with world-class visiting companies like Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures, Welsh National Opera, Birmingham Royal Ballet, and Dance Consortium, as well as partnering on development projects with excellent venues and organisations.
These companies bring their own artistic development projects to the city – head over to our Get Involved page to sign up and receive updates on when we have new opportunities available.
Tour the Writer with Paines Plough
We asked writers, directors and producers what they might need to support their development and many of you said ‘fellow collaborators’.
In response, Paines Plough and Theatre Royal Plymouth joined forces to offer a ‘speed networking’ event as part of our joint Tour The Writer programme, bringing together writers with producers and directors from across Plymouth and the wider region.
Edinburgh National Partnerships Programme with Pleasance Theatre
We have regularly partnered with Pleasance Theatre as part of their Edinburgh National Partnerships programme to support one southwest artist or company looking to take work to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
The Pleasance works with partner theatres across the UK to identify and support exceptional local artists and companies wishing to present work at the Fringe.
Applications for 2026 are now open! Find out more below
Edinburgh National Partnership Programme 2026
The Edinburgh National Partnerships Programme is back for 2026! We are delighted to be partnering with Pleasance Theatre for our 5th year to support one South West artist or company to take their work to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2026.
Pleasance are working with theatres across the UK to identify and support exceptional artists and companies who are local to the partners, and who want to take work to the Fringe.
Working with Pleasance, we are looking for dynamic artists who are looking to take their work to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The focus of the scheme is to amplify and support companies and artists from the South West, and across the UK, who want to present their work at the Fringe but have not had the chance to do so… yet!
This year, we are calling out to artists and companies who are creating bold, new theatre that is at a completed 1st draft stage (or further along in the process) and is written/devised for 1-4 performers.
Key dates
Deadline: Monday 12th January 2026, 5pm
Outcome: w/c 12th January 2026
Interview: Wednesday 21st January 2026
Outcome: w/c 26th January 2026
Are you?
· A company/artist with a link to Plymouth or the wider South-West.
· A company/artist who understands the technical demands and logistics of the theatre work they are creating.
· A company/artist with a clear target audience and understanding of why your show would stand out within a highly populated festival.
· A company/artist with a robust fundraising plan that would be complimented by the partnership.
The partnership is about supporting new work that is on a journey towards the Edinburgh Fringe. We are not able to consider projects that have already played for 3 or more public performances. An existing relationship with TRP is not required to apply.
Previous partnership artists/companies include Laura Horton (Breathless), Ben Fensome & Scott Le Crass (Buff), Babs Horton (In The Lady Garden), Maybe You Like It (Down To Chance)
What do you get?
From Pleasance:
· Guaranteed inclusion within the Pleasance Edinburgh Festival Fringe programme.
· Up to £1000 financing towards the costs of presenting your show at the Fringe.
· PR delivered by Michelle Mangan.
· Marketing package including outdoor advertising, online advertising and potentially some hand-to-hand.
· Accessible performance provision consisting of a captioned performance delivered by Claire Hill or a contribution to existing accessible performance plans.
· A programming option in our London transfer season following the Fringe.
· Mentorship, support, and advice.
From Theatre Royal Plymouth:
· Additional financing of up to £1000 financing towards the Fringe presentation of the show.
· Support in sourcing accommodation. With subsidy towards the total accommodation cost (to be confirmed at time of partnership offer).
· Edinburgh Fringe registration fee covered.
· Development and guaranteed Rehearsal space in The Lab w/c 13th July
· A festival preview run at TRP in The Lab w/c 20th July (previews Weds-Fri)
· Mentorship, support, and advice from our artistic, marketing, media and communications, technical, producing and production teams.
Deadline: Monday 12th January 2026, 5pm
Before, I had a box of Lego that I didn’t know how to put together. Through mentorship I finally see the bigger picture and what piece was missing. The Artist Development programme, especially PROJEKT ELEVATE, gave me the foundations I needed to grow
Jung Borthwick, Theatre Maker and Local Artist on the CO-LAB programme
Previous CO-LABs include
PROJEKT ELEVATE with PROJEKT EUROPA
We have partnered with PROJEKT EUROPA to offer a new opportunity for migrant artists based in the southwest to develop co-created work.
PROJEKT ELEVATE awarded three migrant theatre makers a paid development opportunity to produce an original idea for a co-created project in collaboration with their local communities. The programme culminated with the artists presenting ideas to Theatre Royal Plmouth’s artistic leadership team, who will consider the proposed project for further development.
Take Flight with New Adventures
In 2024 New Adventures visited with the pioneering production of Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake.
To coincide with this 30th anniversary UK tour, we partnered on the Swan Lake Take Flight project, led by Plymouth’s Regional Dance Ambassador, Sapphire Sumpter. Sapphire supported relationships between venues and local community groups and bring new audiences into the theatre.
The activities that made up this project were inspired by Swan Lake and engaged young people in dance, focussing on how connecting, creating, and moving together can improve wellbeing.
New Adventures Placements
In 2024, New Adventures and TRP partnered to create 3 placements opportunities to provide training and paid experience in Stage, Crew and Wardrobe during their visit with Swan Lake.
The Wardrobe placement, Clare Duckett, then took to the road, touring with the production to three other venues.
Mudlarks Residency with Complicité
Mudlarks is Complicité’s ideas development programme, dedicated to providing space and resources for exceptional early-mid career artists to interrogate their ideas. It encourages creativity without the constraints of rigid methodologies and target-driven pressures.
A core part of this programme, the Mudlarks International Residency is a week-long residency for both UK and International artists who are supported by Complicité and its nominating partners to spend the time journeying to the hinterland of an idea.
In March, Malaika Kegode was invited to attend the 2025 residency on behalf of Theatre Royal Plymouth.
Explore all the strands of our Artist Development programme
