January kicked off the year with creativity, collaboration, and a strong focus on artist development at ARC.
We opened the year with a residency from our Associate and Tees Valley Artist of the Year, Umar Butt, developing his new play JOLT. An innovative theatrical piece, JOLT draws inspiration from the rich and diverse communities of the Tees Valley with experiences from the 2024 riots influencing the piece throughout. Umar will continue developing this piece with us throughout the year as part of his Artist of the Year development plan.
Our next residency was Faye Atkinson, winner of the ARC Award 2025, as part of our partnership with Northern School of Art. Faye used her residency to begin developing her solo show Back in My Day into a full-length piece, alongside ongoing artistic support. We’re proud to support emerging local talent and look forward to the continued development of her debut play.
Previously supported by ARC, Emily Haldane spent a week rehearsing her solo show Identity Kaleidoscope before its international tour. Emily is an interdisciplinary performance artist, theatre maker, director, and workshop facilitator whose work is rooted in amplifying marginalised voices and using theatre as a tool for social change.
We also supported Maryam Ali and Umar Butt at our January Venues North event, alongside six other northern artists who presented their work to venues from across the region. Venues North is a network of over 35 venues in the North, dedicated to developing artists. See more about Venues North here: Venues North – ARC | Stockton Arts Centre
January concluded with Rendez-Vous Dance launching their spectacular tour of The Monocle here at ARC. Inspired by a secret lesbian club in Paris between the wars, the production is a beautifully staged and breath-taking dance performance, we highly recommend going to see this show as it tours national over the coming months. See more here: https://www.rendez-vousdance.com/ontour
Looking Ahead to February
February continues our commitment to supporting local artists:
- Elen Brody, winner of the ARC Award 2023, has begun her residency developing The Tale of the Star and the Dragon
- Resound Theatre are in rehearsing and performing their debut show Carriage before taking it on tour
- Up in the Air, winners of the ARC Accelerator Award, are further developing their modern reimagining of Antigone
We’re also hosting:
- Scratch Night with Scott Turnbull – Book Here: Rough Cut Revolutions: Scott Turnbull presents… – ARC | Stockton Arts Centre
- Our family theatre co-commission with Barnsley Civic, The Last Unicorn Airways by The Blanket Fort Club, during February half term – Book Here: The Last Unicorn Airways – ARC | Stockton Arts Centre
Thank you to all the artists, partners, and audiences who made January such a strong start to the year. We’re excited for what’s still to come!
If you’re an artist, you can find out more about what support we offer here: https://arconline.co.uk/asking-for-support/