We are delighted to announce five artists who have been awarded the Big Imaginations Artist Imagination Fund. The fund is designed to contribute towards Artist Development, R&D or anything that supports an artist and their practice. Below are the selected artists and details of the work that the fund will support: 

Artist Name: Blah Blah Blah 

What will the fund support? GUERRILLA GARDENING is a new small-scale touring theatre show for children age 5+ and their grown-ups. It explores migration and food poverty, climate change, reclaiming public space and growing as activism. We will support Blah Blah Blah with their R&D and engaging with children & families. 

Artist Name: Dora & Jane  

What will the fund support? Dora and Jane are performers & facilitators who want to create an interactive theatre & circus show, by, for, & with families from our region. We will support them with their R&D and mentoring and advice on what could come next for their theatre circus show. 

Artist Name: Oliver Sykes 

What will the fund support? An adaptation of a short story Oliver has written. Fishing for Rainbows is a fast-paced, funny, and heart-warming story about family, grief, and empowerment. We will support Oliver with rehearsal space, mentoring and connecting with a young audience.  

Artist Name: Ria Meera Munshi 

What will the fund support? A magical children’s theatre play called The Dancing Elephant, which aims to reflect the diversity of a modern family, celebrating the uniqueness of Indian culture in an entertaining and engaging way, targeted at 8-13 year olds. We will support Ria with financial assistance to develop her concept into a broad storyline, by working with a dramaturg over a period of 8 days. 

Artist Name: Audrey Albert & Rory Aaron  

What will the fund support? A new piece of theatre that will look at ocean plastic and pollution through poetic storytelling and shadow puppetry. We will support them with space, mentoring and getting feedback from children & families.  

“I’m delighted that we have been able to support such a range of artists in bringing their ideas to fruition,” says Lyndsey Wilson from Spot On Lancashire. “Every artist is on their own unique journey, at different stages of their career. Funding to support these artists in the development of new ideas is vital, giving them the space, safety and time to play and explore. The opportunity to bring these artists together to share learning as well as fostering new potential partnerships and increasing the quality and offer of performance for our venues is really exciting and I can’t wait to see the outcome.” 

We can’t wait to work with these artists to support the development of their exciting projects!