This week, our cohort of Playmaker Later participants and Playhouse Playmakers took to the Burton Taylor Studio for their end-of-year showcases. Across two evenings, audiences were given a glimpse of the original full-length plays developed over the past year, with extracts performed by professional actors for the first time.

The aspiring playwrights on our Playmaker Later scheme were the first to debut their work in the studio. The later-in-life participants had been working with local playwright Carolyn Lloyd-Davies over the past year to craft their scripts through workshops and dedicated tuition, leading up to the showcase.

Kicking off the thought-provoking evening was Mary Tapper with her new work, Touch the Flame - a protest play following three women as they confront sexism and institutional barriers while working in a library. Colin Davies then presented 12 Green Bottles, a play centred on Caroline, who, after 25 years of putting others first, questions whether she can pursue her own ambitions, as a new neighbour sparks fresh possibilities. 

Chris Trengove brought a comedic portrait of an old-school rock band's reunion in Rock and a Hard Place - thrown back into the limelight, will they be able to overcome their long-buried resentments? This was followed by Across the Pond by Theresa Black which followed a TV reporter's heart-warming journey to reconnect with her family's history in Canada. The evening ended with Deirdre Shields'Quiet Man - the story of two real-life brothers who became star actors with Ireland's new, national theatre, The Abbey.   

The script-in-hand sharings concluded with the Playhouse Playmaker Showcase. Audiences were given the exclusive chance to see six extracts from brand-new plays written by our Playmaker cohort.

Varying in theme, form and genre, each script was brought vividly to life by a brilliant troupe of actors under the direction of Playhouse Resident Director Ben Newman, offering a compelling introduction to these emerging playwrights. 

The showcase began with Beth Mullen's moving play Ulcers - an arresting portrayal of a marriage under strain as a couple navigate their child's chronic illness. Sid Sagar brought Male Patterns to the studio, a story of changing bodies, set against the backdrop of war in the Middle East. Closing the first act was Conor Patrick Carroll's led astray - an exploration of a mother's relationship with her daughter as they try to uncover the truth of their family history.

After the interval, Clare Bayley introduced Reece Connolly's piece, an absurdist sci-fi comedy, MEAT RAFFLE, inspired by the events of the Kentucky meat shower in 1876. Set in a greasy spoon, Chakira Alin then presented her funny and heartfelt play about marriage and identity, Sunny Side Up. The showcase drew to a striking close with Hannah Ali Khan's Talluq- centred on three strangers brought together in an Urdu class. Each is navigating the world differently, yet united by a shared search for belonging.

The Playmaker scheme is led by award-winning playwright Clare Bayley, who provided year-long mentorship to these six early-career playwrights. Meeting monthly, the group developed their scripts through dedicated sessions, with each playwright finalising their first drafts in the spring ahead of the showcase.

Applications for our next Playmaker Later scheme, running from September 2026, are now open. To find out more and fill in an application, click the link below. 

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