About Us
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Artists in Residence
Playhouse Plays Out
Artistic Vision
Oxford Playhouse is a theatre for everyone.
Oxford Playhouse and its Burton Taylor Studio present and produce a wide range of live performance. The programme includes the best of British and international drama, family shows, contemporary dance and music, student and amateur shows, comedy, lectures and poetry.
We also create live performance here in Oxford. The Playhouse produces and tours its own shows, hosts Artists in Residence and presents Playhouse Plays Out, an ongoing series of off-site events which happen at locations across the county.
Our Learning team work with over 15,000 people each year through post show discussions, workshops, work experience, a resident young people’s theatre company and holiday schemes.
Oxford Playhouse Productions
2010
Our home-grown production for the under 5s - Bath Time -premieres in our studio in July. It has been directed by Toby Hulse, and devised by Toby and the actors, John McGrellis and Jim Rastall. We hope to bring the show back to the studio for a Christmas special in December.
In September, Oxford Playhouse will mount a world premiere of Von Ribbentrop's Watch by Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran, Olivier award nominated and renowned theatre and tv writers. It plays here from Tuesday 9 to Saturday 18 September before undertaking a UK tour.
Tuesday 21 to Saturday 25 September
Watford Palace Theatre
01923 225671
www.watfordtheatre.co.uk
Tuesday 5 to Saturday 9 October
Richmond Theatre
020 8332 4500
www.richmondtheatre.net
Tuesday 12 to Saturday 16 October
Salisbury Playhouse
01722 320 333
www.salisburyplayhouse.com
In 2010 One Small Step has played Australia, Singapore, Dubai, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia, Palestinian Territories, Egypt, Sri Lanka and the UK. We hope to hit at least one more continent before the year is out but first up, the show returns to our Burton Taylor Studio where it was made and premiered. Find out more about the show on its worldwide travels in 2010: One Small Step on tour 2010
Our Christmas production will be Cinderella with all the fun, magic, music and dance you've come to expect from a Playhouse family panto.
Oxford Playhouse co-produced an adaptation of Graham's Greene's The Ministry of Fear with Theatre Alibi and The Northcott Theatre, Exeter. This exciting new stage version is has completed its extensive UK tour. For more information, see www.theatrealibi.co.uk
We also presented our co-production with Unlimited Theatre of The Ethics of Progress; a fast-paced, informative theatre lecture about quantum physics, inspired by conversations the performer and writer, Jon Spooner, had with University of Oxford's Professor Vlatko Vedral, Professor of Quantum Information Science. It is touring the UK and internationally throughout 2010
Our first off-site show in 2010, To and Fro was a home-made piece, created by our 16|22 young people's company, with professional directors, designers and support. It was inspired by T S Eliot's Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock, and was a promenade performance at The Rookery in Old Headington.
2009
2008
- Molora, adapted and directed by Yael Farber (co production with The Farber Foundry)
- Spies, by Michael Frayn, directed by Nikki Sved (co production with Theatre Alibi)
- One Small Step written by David Hastings, directed by Toby Hulse.
- Sleeping Beauty, written and directed by Peter Duncan
2007
- Molora, adapted and directed by Yael Farber (co production with The Farber Foundry)
- Aladdin, directed by Peter Duncan
2006
- Three Tall Women, directed by Irina Brown
- Dick Whittington, directed by Peter Duncan
2005
- Cinderella, directed by Ian Talbot
- The Importance of Being Earnest, directed by Erica Whyman
2004
- The Dumb Waiter and Other Pieces, directed by Douglas Hodge
- Amajuba, directed by Yael Farber (co-production with The Farber Foundry)
- Peter Pan, directed by John Doyle
2003
- Amajuba, directed by Yael Farber (co-production with The Farber Foundry)
- Jack and the Beanstalk, directed by Christopher Scott
2002
- Spot’s Birthday Party, directed by David Wood
- SeZaR, directed by Yael Farber (co-production with Arc Productions)
- Mother Goose, directed by Michele Hardy
2000
- Spot’s Birthday Party, directed by David Wood
- Aladdin, directed by Michele Hardy
The current season sees three new Playhouse Plays Out Shows. First up is the Mark Bruce dance company at Oxford's O2 Academy. This is a great chance to see dance with an indie soundtrack in a dark and intimate space. The audience will be in a circle around the performers so up close and personal.
Then we present Henry and Elizabeth, which is going to take place in audience members' homes. You can book the show and invite your friends over to watch. Even more intimate!
Finally for this season, we return to the wonderful surroundings of the Bodleian Library, where the Globe will perform A Midsummer Night's Dream in the Quad. It should be unmissable.
Having artists in residence at Oxford Playhouse is one of the ways we're making the theatre a home. Opening our doors to local artists, and offering them space, support and opportunities helps their development, and also benefits the theatre and our audiences. These artists have a long-term connection to the Playhouse, which means their creative minds are here to inspire us all.
Idle Motion
Idle Motion has recently been made Artists in Residence at the Playhouse.
Idle Motion is a physical theatre company based in Oxford. Devising their ensemble shows from scratch the team uses workshops, play and improvisation. Their filmic style is highly visual, creating bold images on stage with an innovative use of props and movement. Strong narratives and a sense of storytelling result in rounded and dynamic pieces of theatre.
Recently made Artists in Residence at Oxford Playhouse, and with the support of Juliet Stevenson as patron, Idle Motion is a small company with big ideas and a huge passion for creating exciting and beautiful new work. Nominated by Total Theatre Awards as ‘Best Emerging company 2009’ for their production Borges and I, Idle Motion is currently working on its new show The Vanishing Horizon.
Idle Motion is an incredibly exciting young theatre company, which is already making work of real distinction. As an ensemble who devise and perform together, they are a committed and talented group who deserve to be seen by a wider audience. Their work is visually beautiful and emotionally engaging; they have a great talent for story-telling. Michelle Dickson, Director, Oxford Playhouse
Michael Gabriel
Michael Gabriel has been drawing from live performances at the Oxford Playhouse for over thirty years.
He has made hundreds of quick sketches and paintings of actors, rehearsals, and performance moments.
As honorary visual Artist in Residence he continues to draw and exhibit at the Playhouse, and aims to create a body of work celebrating the experience and magic of theatre and the excellence of theatre in Oxford.
Michael's first exhibition of work, Between the Lines, was exhibited throughout the Playhouse in the autumn of 2009 and more recently Michael exhibited work with sculptor Alison Berman during Art Weeks 2010.
Theatre is a transient art-form, and often shows live on only in our memories. So how wonderful it is to have the talented Michael Gabriel on hand to record some of those treasured images from the stalls of the Playhouse. The drawings and paintings capture both the moment and the spirit of the productions, and are a fine accompaniment when we look back at our past. Michelle Dickson, Director, Oxford Playhouse
Walker Park
We are working with contemporary dance and music company Walker Park who have been Artists in Residence at the Playhouse since 2006.
Artistic Directors Fin Walker [choreographer] and Ben Park [composer] have both been evolving their streams of work independently of each other for the past 2 years. Ben is currently writing an opera; a work in progress showing of which took place at Tete a Tete's Opera Festival, last summer. Fin has been working primarily in Theatre; most recently on The Globe Theatre’s As You Like It. The duo are working on a research project with Sadler's Wells Theatre in London. The team were joined by director, Thea Sharrock, designer John Napier, actor Patterson Joseph and musician Steven Gibson.
I invited Walker Park to join us as Artists in Residence, as I am a huge admirer of their work and wanted to help them make a base in Oxford. Together Fin and Ben create dance and music, which challenges the mind whilst stimulating the senses. They work with incredibly talented dancers and musicians, and seeing the work take shape over weeks and months in our rehearsal space is a revelation and a privilege. To then share that work on the main stage with Oxford audiences is a joy.
The Playhouse supports Walker Park through providing free rehearsal space, sharing resources and expertise, and through commissioning. Michelle Dickson, Director, Oxford Playhouse
The Opera Group is a new type of opera company. At the company's heart is the development and presentation of brand new musical storytelling. Their aim is to merge the best of contemporary theatre and music. For over ten years they have been touring two new productions, both new commissions and fresh revivals of classics per year across the UK and Europe, and in 2010 on Broadway.
The Opera Group works with a variety of partners who share a passion for reaching the widest possible audiences through touring, site specific and participatory projects.
I’m really excited to have The Opera Group as our newest Artists In Residence. They are a great match for the Playhouse; inventive, challenging, innovative and at the forefront of their artform. I hope we will be able to make the most of their visits to Oxford, deepening the relationship with audiences and exploring opportunities to work together collaboratively on supporting education and development projects. Michelle Dickson, Director, Oxford Playhouse
They have been visiting the Playhouse for many years, most recently with The Enchanted Pig(15-18 April 2010) and The Lion's Face (23 May 2010).