The search is on for a new piece of touring theatre from a South West based company or artist as part of national arts project, Create Tour Connect.
Applicants much be based in the region and available to develop a new show relevant to rural adult audiences. The chosen piece will be toured across the country in Autumn 2026. Three other new shows will be touring between 2025-2027 as part of the project.
Create Tour Connect is led by Applause Rural Touring and supported by Arts Council England. It aims to address the growing lack of multi-hander touring drama and theatre, relevant to contemporary rural audiences, that has been seen over recent years.
The project involves 17 arts organisations from across the country, all working together to share local knowledge, resources and expertise on rural touring and developing new work. Create Tour Connect is expected to reach more than 12,000 people in rural communities by touring to community venues such as village halls, libraries and pubs. It will be the first time that four new theatre shows have been toured to rural areas on this scale nationwide with 140 touring dates over two years. Rural and underserved communities will have access to this high-quality professional theatre enabling them to experience cultural events they may otherwise have difficulty reaching due to social and economic barriers.
Rural touring scheme Artsreach will lead on the selection process for the South West, in partnership with Carn to Cove (Cornwall), Beaford (North Devon), Villages in Action (Devon), Take Art (Somerset) and Air in G (Gloucestershire).
The deadline for applications is 29 August. More information can be found at Create Tour Connect | Artsreach
