Middle Child have today announced the full programme for Fresh Ink, a new annual playwriting festival coming to Hull’s Fruit Market from 20-21 July.
The festival will include performances of work-in-progress plays, commissioned for Fresh Ink, by Rosie Race, Hannah Scorer, Grace Waga Glevey, Marc Graham, Prince Kundai and Andrew Houghton.
There will also be rehearsed readings of scenes by the Middle Child Writers’ Group, Play and a Plate events (which offer guests a free meal accompanied by a reading of contemporary new writing) and writing workshops led by Olivier award-winner Amy Trigg, Travis Alabanza, Yolanda Mercy, the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain, Alan Lane and Luke Barnes.
Tickets are now available through the Middle Child website.
Paul Smith, artistic director of Middle Child, said: “Fresh Ink is a timely intervention at a time when producing new plays feels more challenging than ever. We’ve worked hard to create a space that feels hopeful, that supports writers to dream big and which invites audiences to feed directly into the creation of new work, made with their city in mind.
“There is something for everyone at this festival, from seasoned theatre lovers to those who want to peek behind the curtain for the first time and see how new plays are developed.
“Our workshop programme is led by some of the most exciting voices in the UK new writing scene, and the six featured new plays are testament to the incredible quality that exists in this city.
“We can’t wait to welcome Hull along to this first iteration and are delighted to work alongside co-founders Wykeland to bring Fresh Inkto life, together supporting talent development in the city.”
Dominic Gibbons, managing director of Wykeland Group, said: “Wykeland are delighted to be the co-founders and sponsors of the new Fresh Ink: Hull Playwriting Festival.
“We approached Middle Child following their highly successful production There Should Be Unicorns, which we sponsored and they performed at Stage@TheDock in the summer of 2022, to see if we could work together to create something that would have a deep cultural impact on the city and the people in it.
“Fresh Ink gives the opportunity for writers of all levels to expand their skill set and have their work performed at Stage@TheDock, a venue we opened in 2016 with the aim of it being used as a platform to develop new and exciting work.”
The six new commissions were selected from 130 entrants, who responded to an open call in November 2023 for writers with “a meaningful connection to Hull”.
