Theatre in the Mill appoints Stand and Be Counted Theatre as first resident company of 2020

Bradford’s Theatre in the Mill, rings in the new decade by appointing SBC Theatre, the UK’s first Theatre Company of Sanctuary, as their first Theatre Company in Residence. From January 2020 SBC Theatre will develop projects across Bradford featuring theatre, live music, poetry, dance and live performances over the next two years, focusing on participants and audiences who have migrated to the UK. SBC Theatre will continue to deliver their ground-breaking Creative Skills for Employment programme for Syrian families, to develop participants skills, confidence and employability in the UK.

Rosie MacPherson, Artistic Director, SBC Theatre said: “We’re delighted to be working with Theatre in the Mill to develop this programme of work and for the company to find a home there. Bradford is a thriving city that is going form strength AAto strength in terms of its cultural offer and we’re excited to be part of that. Theatre in the Mill is a place for artists, for community and for innovation – we’re inspired by the team and can’t wait to join them!”

Rich Warburton and Jyothi Giles, Artistic Director and Senior Producer at Theatre in the Mill, added: “SBC’s practice is innovative, exceptional and full of warmth and integrity, and we are so glad we can support them as they develop. We strive for our work to be socially responsible and to engage with the world around us, and they fully embody those principles in their creative practice. We couldn’t be more delighted with SBC joining us and making a home here at Theatre in the Mill.

Theatre in the Mill, part of the University of Bradford, will work with SBC Theatre to develop their creative practice and deliver work as part of its commitment to being a University of Sanctuary. They previously hosted SBC’s production of ‘TANJA’ – a play and a campaign to end detention of Asylum Seekers, led by Emily Ntshangase-Wood, a former Yarl’s Wood detainee. Theatre in the MIll then commissioned SBC’s follow up production of ‘Where We Began’ – a piece about the Home Office’s Hostile Environment policy, led by Tafadzwa Muchenje, an artist fighting for his right to remain in the UK.

SBC’s appointment as Theatre in the Mill’s first resident theatre company follows the company’s successful Arts Council funding grants for organisational development and participatory projects across Yorkshire.