About Us

Theatre Orchard Project is bringing imaginative new theatre productions to North Somerset and beyond. Our shows bring together a wide range of performing artists - actors, storytellers, writers, musicians, visual artists and dancers – to create fresh, passionate, thought-provoking theatre for people of all ages and backgrounds. Inspiration often comes from personal testimonies and from timeless stories hidden in the landscape, while our shows can be small-scale or epic. You are more likely to see our work performed in an ancient building, traditional pub or community orchard than in a theatre. Theatre Orchard Project ‘seeds’ projects which are performed locally in North Somerset before being toured independently in Somerset and the South West.

Mission statement
To make and enable innovative, surprising theatre in unexpected places, informed and inspired by people & place, using a range of performing arts media. To build a performing arts infrastructure for North Somerset that attracts new audiences and engages local communities, whilst providing professional development opportunities for regionally based performing arts practitioners. To develop a touring scheme for North Somerset to bring live performance to rural and urban community venues.

Aspirational & inspirational
Theatre Orchard Project also work in aspirational and inspirational settings with local communities, giving people from all walks of life a chance to learn performing and writing skills, and to make their own voices and stories heard - people from rural farming communities, young parents, Romany travellers, new migrant groups and vulnerable adults. We will be producing work with communities in North Somerset as part of our 'community cohesion through the performing arts' programme ROOTS.

We will also be working alongside Find Your Talent to help enrich young people’s cultural experience in North Somerset.

People
Artistic director Rina Vergano started out at the Round House Theatre in London, then lived in Amsterdam where she worked in around the theatre for twenty years. She is a writer, director and dramaturg with a European style, a member of the Bristol Writers Room, and translator of over 50 leading Dutch & Flemish plays, many for young people. Rina has recently been commissioned by Trestle Theatre to adapt Beverly Naidoo's book Burn My Heart for a tour in the autumn of 2010.

Creative producer Fiona Matthews has worked on a number of major national and regional arts projects across the art forms, having previously managed Sainsbury's Arts Sponsorship programme which included such initiatives as 'Check Out Theatre' for young audiences and 'Pictures for Schools' in conjunction with BBC Education. She has recently worked as Arts Development officer for North Somerset Council developing a number of performance-based projects with a strong community-focus. Fiona also freelances in the public art field.

Board of Trustees: David Fairclough, Katie Keeler, David Lane, Liz Milner, Sue Pearce and Bob Walton.

Theatre Orchard Project would like to thank Liz Milner for use of visual images and photos from Festival of Eight.

Theatre Orchard Project is supported by Arts Council England, Quartet Fair Share, North Somerset Council and Find Your Talent.