Our Youth Theatres are a great place to make friends, explore your creativity, and develop theatre-making skills with professional practitioners and artists.

We hold auditions once a year to join our Youth Theatres.

Youth Theatre 1 (Age 7-9yrs / School years 3 & 4)

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Youth Theatre 2 (Age 9-11yrs / School years 5 & 6)

If you want to make new friends and learn about theatre by playing games and telling stories this weekly groups are a great place to start. Throughout the year, participants develop theatre making skills through imaginative play, and begin to find their own creative language.

Every year the group takes part in Youth Perform! at the New Wolsey Theatre, for which they will create a 10-15 minute piece of theatre to be performed on the main stage alongside other groups.

Saturday mornings during term time

Youth Theatre 1: 10.30am – 11.30am

Youth Theatre 2: 12.00pm – 1.15pm

High Street Exhibition Gallery, High Street, Ipswich, IP1 3QH
Termly cost: £50 / £40 for a second child / £30 if you’re in receipt of means-tested benefits / Assisted (£free) places are available, call us to find out if you are eligible.

Youth Theatre 3 (Age 11-13yrs / School years 7 & 8)

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Youth Theatre 4 (Age 13-15yrs / School years 9 & 10)

If you want to explore your creativity and continue to develop your abilities as a performer, this weekly group gives you the chance to work with industry professionals to develop your skills and understanding as young theatre makers.

Every year the group takes part in Youth Perform! at the New Wolsey Theatre, for which they will create a 10-15 minute piece of theatre to be performed on the main stage alongside other groups.

Participants from this group can also audition to take part in our annual youth theatre production in the autumn term.

Tuesdays during term time

Youth Theatre 3: 5.00pm – 6.30pm

Youth Theatre 4: 7.00pm – 8.45pm

High Street Exhibition Gallery, High Street, Ipswich, IP1 3QH
Termly cost: £50 / £40 for a second child / £30 if you’re in receipt of means-tested benefits / Assisted (£free) places are available, call us to find out if you are eligible.

Youth Theatre 5 (Age 15 -18yrs / School years 10 – 13)

If you want to explore your creativity and continue to develop your abilities as a performer, this weekly group gives you the chance to work with industry professionals to develop your skills and understanding as young theatre makers.

Participants from this group can audition to take part in our annual youth theatre production in the autumn term.

Wednesdays during term time

Youth Theatre 5: 6.30pm – 9.00pm

High Street Exhibition Gallery, High Street, Ipswich, IP1 3QH
Termly cost: £50 / £40 for a second child / £30 if you’re in receipt of means-tested benefits / Assisted (£free) places are available, call us to find out if you are eligible.

Youth Theatre Squared (ages 11-15yrs and 16-22yrs)

If you’re a young person with a disability or additional need who wants to explore theatre making and develop your creativity, come and join us at these weekly sessions. Sessions will allow participants to explore the world around them, build their confidence and develop their theatre making skills.

Every year the group takes part in Youth Perform! at the New Wolsey Theatre, for which they will create a 10-15 minute piece of theatre to be performed on the main stage alongside other groups.

Monday evenings during term time

Group 1 (11-15yrs): 6.00pm – 7.15pm

Group 2 (16-22yrs): 7.45pm – 9.00pm

High Street Exhibition Gallery, High Street, Ipswich, IP1 3QH
Termly cost: £50 / £40 for a second child / £30 if you’re in receipt of means-tested benefits / Assisted (£free) places are available, call us to find out if you are eligible.

Groups are allocated loosely by age, but also take into consideration the level of need and will place each participant in the group we feel they will benefit from the most.

There is no audition for this group, if you’d like to join please contact us: creativelearning@wolseytheatre.co.uk

Taster Sessions

There are open access sessions every season for anyone who wants to see what we do and try it out.

Dates for 2019:

Junior Youth Theatres (Ages 7-11yrs / school years 3 – 6) taster session: 2pm – 3pm on Saturday 7 September

Senior Youth Theatres (Ages 11 – 18yrs / school years 7 – 12) taster session: 3.30pm – 5pm on Saturday 7 September

At High Street Exhibition Gallery, High Street, Ipswich, IP1 3QH

To register your place at any of these sessions, get in touch here

If you’re serious about a career as a professional theatre maker, the acclaimed New Wolsey Young Company is an ideal stepping stone onto University, Drama School or even as a direct route into employment in the performing arts.

Young Company is a place for young theatre makers to develop their skills and understanding of theatre practice through weekly workshops, to work together to present professional standard productions in our Studio Theatre, and to use theatre to change the world for the better!

Ages 16-25
Wednesdays during term time

6.30pm – 9.00pm

With rehearsals on selected Sundays

New Wolsey Studio Theatre, St. George’s Street, Ipswich
Yearly cost: £50 or £25 if you’re living independently

The 39 Steps 2019

Previous productions include; Woyzeck, Our Town, Spring Awakening, Passion, Vernon God Little, The Turn of the Screw, Be My Baby, and The 39 Steps.

Previous collaborations include; Doug Rintoul/Transport, Punchdrunk, Daniel Bye, Gecko, Rich Rusk, Analogue, Nigel & Louise/Shunt, Emma Frankland, Laura Mugridge, Danusia Iwaszko, Company of Angels, and Slung Low.

‘Each performance is astonishing in its detail…’ ***** Whatsonstage.com ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’

‘The next generation has arrived and are determined to make their mark immediately.’ The Reviews Hub ****½ ‘The Elephant Man’

‘Performances are pitched perfectly…’ ***** Whatsonstage.com on ‘Can’t Pay? Won’t Pay!’

‘Brilliantly performed by an all female cast of six budding actresses’ Ipswich 24, Be My Baby

‘I soon forgot I was watching a Young Company show, instead I regarded this as a great evening of theatre and worthy of being in the main house.’ East Anglian Daily Times, The 39 Steps

The Young Company is led by Rob Salmon, Associate Director, as well as other visiting practitioners.

Every year we run free courses for young people age 16-25, who want to develop their knowledge, skills and employability as young directors, writers or technicians. No audition – just register your interest by emailing creativelearning@wolseytheatre.co.uk

Young Technicians

Introductory – you don’t need any previous experience, just come along and get stuck in!
Ages 16-25
Cost: Places are free but limited.

Learn about sound, lighting, set design, prop making and stage management and technical theatre roles.

Introductory session: Thursday 26th September 2019, 6.30pm – 7.30pm

Followed by weekly sessions: Thursdays 6.30pm-8.30pm;  3, 10, 17, 31 October and 7, 14^th November 2019

Register your interest by emailing us at  creativelearning@wolseytheatre.co.uk or call 01473 295930

Young Technicians Intensive Project

Advanced – you’ll need to have taken part in a previous Young Technicians Introductory Short Course, have some experience of technical theatre, and be ready to be challenged!
You’ll work with participants on this year’s Youth Theatre production, Fantastic Mr. Fox, to develop technical elements for the show alongside industry professionals.

There are very limited places for this course, and places will be given on a first come first served basis to those that meet the criteria.
DATES 21st October – 2nd November 2019

Age 16-25. Free, places allocated via application only.

This course is now full.

Register your interest for future courses by emailing us at  creativelearning@wolseytheatre.co.uk or call 01473 295930

Workshops

Our schools engagement programme has bags of opportunities for both students and teachers.

We offer a wide range of one-off and ongoing workshops, backstage tours, industry days, and specialist workshops connected to our main stage productions.

We also offer school groups the opportunity to perform on our main stage as part of our annual Youth Perform! Festival. For more information, please see the Youth Perform! Section below.

You can view our current workshops in our Creative Learning Brochure below, or if you would like something more bespoke get in touch with our Creative Learning Producer, Sian Thomas: SThomas@wolseytheatre.co.uk or phone 01473 295 930

Work Experience

We do not currently have any work experience placements available for 2019 – 2020.

If you are interested in a career in theatre then please take a look at our Youth Theatres, Young Company and Short Courses, all of which are a great way to develop skills and gain insight into the industry.

Arts Award Support

Arts Award is a range of unique nationally recognised qualifications for anyone up to the age of 25. It encourages the growth of artists and arts leaders, and inspires participants to connect with the wider arts world.

We are an Arts Award Supporter – meaning that we don’t run the Arts Award ourselves, but support schools and other organisations who are registered as centres, taking young people through their Arts Award.

Many of the workshops we offer could be part of building your students’ Arts Award portfolios, so do take a look at our ongoing workshop offers in our Creative Learning Brochure (above in Schools & Colleges).

Artsmark

The New Wolsey Theatre is proud to be working in partnership with schools and settings on their Artsmark Award journey. By supporting Artsmark settings, we’re helping put the arts at the heart of education, inspiring young people to create, experience and participate in high quality arts and culture.

Find out more about Artsmark here

We have a long history of producing schools touring productions that challenge young people’s perceptions, encourage them to ask questions and allow them space to reflect on their own lives. We work with professional actors, designers, writers and directors to develop original theatre both with and for schools. Our productions also include engagement opportunities such as post-show discussions and workshops.

We’re currently developing our next touring productions for Primary and Secondary Schools. Check back for an update later this year.

Previous schools touring productions have included:

The Youth Perform! Festival brings young people from all over Suffolk together to showcase their skills as young theatre makers. It is a unique opportunity for schools (KS2-4) to create a 10 – 15 minute piece of original theatre and perform it on the New Wolsey’s main stage.

In 2019 we explored ‘Space, The Final Frontier’.

Check back for 2020 dates and theme, or contact us to register your interest: creativelearning@wolseytheatre.co.uk

Creative Learning Lounge

These events are a chance to have a drink and some nibbles, chat to us and meet the creative teams and companies behind some of our productions. Oh, and see a show…all for free!

Each session includes meeting a theatre company or industry creative who will be bringing their work to us. These sessions may be chatty or practical, or both – but are always informal, and are designed to give insight into a variety of rehearsal processes and theatre techniques, and will give you invaluable tools for use in the classroom or rehearsal room.

“Incredibly interesting with a lovely atmosphere”

“The wealth of opportunities sounds wonderful for our pupils”

“Very relevant and understanding to the needs of teachers”

“Very welcoming session, everyone was approachable”

To register your interest email our Creative Learning Producer, Sian Thomas: SThomas@wolseytheatre.co.uk

We believe theatre is for everyone, which is why we are taking opportunities to explore creativity and develop theatre-making skills into our local community.

We are currently running several projects with local community groups, schools, and other arts organisations to provide a platform for previously unheard voices, boost confidence, and provide access to the theatre.

If you think your community group would like to get involved or work with us, get in touch: creativelearning@wolseytheatre.co.uk or  01473 295 930

Open Season

The Open Season provides access to our venues, facilities and resources for the amateur and community sector in the local area. It’s their chance to display their achievements in a professional environment, celebrate their identity and showcase their talents.

For further information and to apply to perform your show in 2020 (dates June, July & August), please contact: creativelearning@wolseytheatre.co.uk or call 01473 295960.