Furnace

Furnace is the Playhouse's ongoing programme to develop new work, where artists work with us to trial and test out new projects. This October, we're inviting you to see some of the works we've been nurturing or supporting begin to take shape. Catch works in progress, be a part of new collaborations, and be the first to catch a glimpse of new projects in development.

At the end of both evenings there will be music and discussion in the Playhouse bar. So stick around, have a drink, and meet the artists.

Friday 26 October

8pm: RashDash & Alice Birch Sharing

We've been working with Leeds based physical theatre company RashDash, and playwright Alice Birch, to begin to develop a new piece of work based around women in the military. The project is still at its early stages of development, but we're excited to bring audiences into the conversation. At the end of this period of development, the company would like to invite you to see some of their work in progress and to become part of a dialogue about women in the military.

Saturday 27 October

2pm - 5pm: UNinspire

An afternoon of UNinspiration
• meet new people
• learn new ways of working collaboratively
• develop your early stage idea into a new kind of monster.

We're teaming up with our Resident Company Unlimited to run an afternoon of randomly inspired match making and idea development. It doesn't matter if you're a writer, director, performer, lighting designer, stage manager, emerging, mid-career, emerged, professional or amateur... if you'd like to share your ideas, learn how to collaborate better, meet new people and devise a brand new (lo-fi, down and dirty) show together in one afternoon then this is for you. It's going to be fun too.

We'll be breaking up the afternoon with four (short) new pieces of work by local artists - you can read more about them here.

6pm: Invisible Flock Sharing

We've teamed up with Leeds company Invisible Flock to begin to explore the front of house and public areas within the theatre. What do these spaces mean to us and who uses them? How can the exterior spaces within a theatre building be a creative environment where discussions are had, performance is seen, and where ideas can begin to take shape? Invisible Flock have spent three days developing a public art work designed to urge you to see the space differently. They'll be presenting their findings, and inviting you into that process.

7pm: Summer Sublets Showcase

During the summer we piloted Summer Sublets a new scheme as part of Furnace, designed to bring West Yorkshire based artists into our spaces to develop new work. From July through to September we hosted seven residencies and saw seven exciting new projects begin to take shape. As part of Furnace, we're inviting you to see some of these early stage pieces; you can read more about the ones we've selected here.