English Touring Theatre announce TRAILER STORY – a touring outdoor performance space
Photo credit: Tina Torbey
ETT (English Touring Theatre) has today announced Trailer Story, a travelling outdoor performance space touring across the UK presenting national and local artistic programming and community events, finding a safe, joyous, and locally focused way to bring people together in public spaces to celebrate theatre.
Inspired by ETT’s origins as Century Theatre, who toured the UK in a pop-up space, the project will tour to Newcastle and Keswick in July and August 2021, in partnership with Northern Stage and Theatre by the Lake.
Trailer Story will present weekend-long programmes of events, performances and community happenings across the UK, beginning with a residency in Newcastle city centre from 30 July – 1 August, and Crow Park in Keswick from 5-8 August. Performances will be housed in a touring truck, usually used to tour production sets around the country, but reimagined as a space for artists and audiences to meet, built with sustainability at its core and allowing for socially-distanced performances.
Artistic Director Richard Twyman and Executive Producer Sophie Scull today said: “Trailer Story sits at the heart of our plans for 2021. It's a project that harnesses ETT's rich history, transformed and re-invented for the present day. Our touring truck is inspired by the company's origins – when Century Theatre toured to towns and cities in a fleet of trucks converted into a performance space called ‘The Blue Box’ - but responds to the impact of the pandemic on our communities. We want to provide a safe and joyful space to come together and celebrate live arts, and the immense diversity and talent of our country's artists. We hope to make Trailer Story an annual platform for national and local theatre-makers, performance artists and musicians to share their work with audiences outdoors - empowering communities and celebrating imagination.
Trailer Story is designed by Jon Bausor with Tina Torbey. Programming and full list of artists involved will be announced in due course.
