The first of YTAS’ brand new training events will include workshops and networking for youth theatre practitioners around the Dumfries area.

Our Regional Hubs have been designed to upskill artists, share practice, support emerging artists, spark ideas for future partnerships, and create stronger working relationships within regions. And it’s good news for practitioners in the Dumfries area, because we’re starting off these brand new, multi-day training events in your neck of the woods! Join us at the Theatre Royal Dumfries from Friday 3 – Sunday 5 November 2023 for workshops, networking activity and lots of lively discussion!

Practitioners attending our Dumfries Hub may choose to join for all workshop and networking events across three days, for all workshops and networking on only one or two of the days, or just for the networking parts (which are free). The choice is yours! Take a look at our full agenda and ticketing section below for more information.

What’s On: Friday

We’ll kick off our first ever Regional Hub weekend on the Friday evening, and what better way than with a spot of Speed Networking to get to know other local practitioners? This networking session is exactly what it sounds like – a chance for you to connect, and to share projects ideas and contacts. We’ll start with a discussion about the challenges (and the benefits) of working in rural communities, and with your help YTAS will be able to create a map of opportunities for you to take away.

What’s On: Saturday

On Saturday, we’ll dive into the world of dramaturgy with National Theatre of Scotland Dramaturg Rosie Kellagher, and a workshop designed to help practitioners and educators think about generating material and narrative for performances. Rosie will introduce you to her dramaturgical practice, and share some simple tips and tricks for turning an idea into a concept and then into a show.

While we’re thinking about turning concepts into a show, we should also consider how we’ll stage it, right? For our Saturday afternoon workshop, we’ll be joining Katherina Radeva to think about your productions from a visual perspective. You will work with simple design tools to help elevate your work and to give your young artists the opportunity to create worlds with impact… all while working from a youth theatre budget!

What’s On: Sunday

On Sunday, we’ll wake ourselves up with a YTAS favourite… everyone loves a Games Exchange! We all know that the games we use to start our workshops are integral to our practice, but it’s so easy to get stuck delivering the same ones over and over again. Bring your favourite warm-up game, and come away with a list of new activities learned from others, a refresh on the games you’ve forgotten, or maybe even some twists on the classics.

For Sunday afternoon, we’ve lined up a practical workshop focusing on developing tools, rehearsing exercises, and swapping ideas to help leaders make creative spaces more accessible for neurodivergent young people. Ink Asher Hemp will invite artists to explore their own practice, share experiences, and update their toolkits. Drawing from their own experience as an artist and facilitator, Ink will ensure that all participants leave this session with greater confidence in their ability to support young people with diverse needs in their home youth theatre, classrooms, and clubs.

Agenda

Day One: Friday 3 November

• 4pm: Working in Rural Places: Networking Speed Dates! (Networking)

Day Two: Saturday 4 November

• 10.30am: Arrivals/Welcome
• 11.15am: Dramaturgy 101: Telling Stories with your Community (Workshop led by Rosie Kellagher)
• 1.30pm: Lunch Break
• 2.30pm: Designing Worlds… On a Budget! (Workshop led by Katherina Radeva)

Day Three: Sunday 5 November

• 11am: Arrivals
• 11.15am: Swap Shop Games Exchange (Networking led by YTAS)
• 12.30pm: Lunch Break
• 1.30pm: Supporting Neurodiversity in your Youth Theatre (Workshop led by Ink Asher-Hemp)

Who is it for?

The event is for everyone who uses drama and theatre in their work with young people. This could include youth theatre leaders, drama teachers, youth workers, community learning professionals, theatre practitioners, students, and emerging young leaders (aged 16+).

1-2-1 Business Development Surgeries

Looking for business support with a project or your organisation? Why not take this opportunity to catch up with YTAS’ Membership Support Coordinator, Anthony, to talk about the important work outside of your creative practice.

Anthony will be able to take you through YTAS’s MOT checklist for organisations and introduce you to our support portal which covers topics such as safeguarding, governance, policies, business development and fundraising.

Anthony will be available throughout the events on Friday and Saturday. You’ll be given the opportunity to book in advance or sign-up on the day.

Ticketing info

Practitioners attending our Dumfries Hub may choose to join for all workshop and networking events across three days, for all workshops and networking on one of the days, or just for the networking parts. The choice is yours!

The ticket options are as follows…

• YTAS Members: £10 per day or £15 for the full event
• Non-Members: £30 per day or £50 for the full event

When you go through to book, you’ll have the option to chose which day you’d like, or to book for the full weekend. You can also indicate if you’d like to book a surgery session with our Membership Support Coordinator at this stage.

Networking events are free, but please still book a space if you only want to come to these. This is so we can plan activities in advance.

We’ve tried to keep costs as low as possible to enable more practitioners to attend, so we won’t be providing catering during the event, other than refreshments.

Bursaries

Thanks to funding from Creative Scotland, the Gannochy Trust, the Macrobert Trust, the Foyle Foundation, the People’s Postcode Trust, the Stafford Trust, the Hugh Fraser Foundation and the JTH Charitable Trust, we are delighted to be able to offer bursary places to attend our Regional Hubs. 

Bursaries are available to any YTAS Member, who requires financial support in order to attend a Regional Hub event, and will cover any fees and/or expenses associated with the training. You are welcome to submit an application for multiple sessions at a time.

Read more and apply here.

YTAS Membership

Our membership is made up of independent youth theatres, arts organisations with their own youth theatre provision, volunteer-run charities, freelance practitioners of youth theatre arts, and many more. If you’re interested in joining a national network of like-minded people, be sure to read more at on our membership page.

This is a safe space and all identities are welcome

YTAS have a zero-tolerance policy against any bullying. This includes but is not limited to: transphobia, homo or biphobia, racism, ableism, sexism, or class discrimination.