Today, we have announced four new RTYDS Assistant Director opportunities hosted by partner theatre companies: Octagon Theatre Bolton, Open Clasp Theatre Company in Newcastle, Pilot Theatre Company in York and Queens Theatre Hornchurch.

These four new projects are part of the ten RTYDS Assistant Director opportunities we are offering in 2021-22, alongside Eastern Angles, Freedom Studios, Mind The Gap and Wise Children, which were announced in summer 2021. One more project will be announced in the coming months.

These Assistant Director opportunities were created in direct response to the Covid-19 pandemic, providing more assistantships across a year, with many of them advertised to make opportunities accessible.

Octagon Theatre Bolton will recruit an assistant director to work on An Adventure, by Vinay Patel, directed by Kash Arshad, himself a former RTYDS Three-Month Placement alumnus.

Open Clasp will recruit a female assistant director who can inspire and make great and urgent art with those who experience barriers to accessing it. The assistant will work on three devised productions, collaborating with women who share their collective experiences.

Sirazul Islam will assist Esther Richardson at Pilot Theatre on The Bone Sparrow, a mid-scale theatre production for young adult audiences. This award-winning book by Zana Fraillon has been adapted by the award-winning playwright S. Shakthidharan.

Finally, Danielle Kassaraté will assist Douglas Rintoul at Queens Theatre Hornchurch on a large-scale inclusive production of Arthur Miller’s All My Sons.

RTYDS Artistic Director, Sue Emmas commented; “We are always looking to expand the range and number of theatre companies we are working with and are delighted to welcome Pilot Theatre as a new RTYDS partner in this round of projects, alongside former RTYDS theatre partners. These productions represent an exciting range of opportunities for early career directors to develop their directing skills on devised work, new writing and powerful classic texts.

Early career directors and theatre makers interested in the opportunities with Open Clasp and Octagon Theatre can join the RTYDS newsletter or follow our social media accounts to receive information about when the opportunities go live and how to apply.