Venues
Once you have decided on a production you would like to stage, the next step is to choose a venue and put together a bid for the venue. There are a number of choices of many different sizes: the Burton Taylor Studio Theatre, seating 50 people; the Michael Pilch Studio, seating up to 70; the Keble O’Reilly Theatre, seating around 175; the Oxford Playhouse, seating around 600 people; and many more. On this page you can find a guide to each venue and the process of applying for a performance slot at each.
Applying to perform at a venue is often described as a ‘bid’. As each venue runs its own bid process, each will ask for slightly different information and have its own deadline. The majority will ask you to submit a ‘bid document’ (a document that describes the project and why it should be performed) alongside a proposed budget. However, the required format and content of a bid document is different from venue to venue, so make sure to check the information provided by each one.
Burton Taylor Studio
The Burton Taylor Studio is a black-box theatre that seats 50 people, referred to as the BT for short. It is run by The Oxford Playhouse on behalf of the University of Oxford and hosts professional touring productions in the university vacations. There are usually up to 14 slots for student shows per term, with an early and a late slot most weeks. Every production at the BT runs from Tuesday to Saturday evening, with three types of slot offered:
Early Slot: the production begins at 7.30pm, max run time 90 minutes.
Late Slot: the production begins at 9.30pm, max run time 60 minutes.
Double Slot: begins at 7.30pm, no max run time.
Uniquely for student venues, the theatre has its own dedicated Studio Manager, Robert Bristow, who can guide groups through the production process. This makes the BT an ideal venue to stage your very first production. It is also used by many more experienced teams, popular for its intimacy and good technical capabilities for a studio space.
How to Apply
Applications will be advertised by the University Drama Officer, most often posted at the start of 4th week with a deadline two weeks later. Bids to perform at the BT are submitted the term before the proposed production (so if you want to stage a production in Trinity Term, you need to submit a bid in Hilary Term).
You will be asked to complete an application form plus a draft budget for the production. No bid document or further information is required, though it can be provided. Upon application, you will be asked to sign up to a bid interview. The interview is held a few days after the application deadline and will be run by the Studio Manager and University Drama Officer. They are very relaxed and conducted with new production companies in mind. You will be asked to talk about your vision, budgeting, marketing and may be asked to explain your choice of performance week. Contact the University Drama Officer at [email protected] for more information.
Michael Pilch Studio
Like the BT studio, the Pilch is a small studio space, with a maximum capacity of 90 people, but usually seating somewhat fewer. The Pilch as a space lends itself to non-standard configurations, with a thrust staging most common. Based in Balliol College Accommodation on Jowett Walk, it is run by a committee of students from the college.
While its technical stock offered in the studio is less than that of the BT, only having one slot per week means that the space can be set up exactly how you want it throughout the week without the need to reset scenery and staging between slots every night. Bear in mind that there is significantly less support offered for first-time teams, so you will need to be able to programme and operate the studio tech yourselves across the week. There are six or seven slots offered to student productions every term.
How to Apply
Applications will be advertised by the Pilch Committee mid-way through each term. Like with the BT, you will need to apply the term before your intended production date. You will be asked to send in a proposed budget and a bid document outlining your collective vision for the production. That bid document will need to include a written statement from the main crew members of the production (director, producer, designers, marketing manager). Each production is then interviewed by members of the Pilch Committee. As there are less slots available than the BT, the application process will often be more competitive, but the number of productions applying varies from term to term.
Contact a member of the committee or the [email protected] for more information.
The Keble O’Reilly Theatre
The O'Reilly theatre is the largest student-run performance space in Oxford, seating a maximum of nearly 180 people. Within Keble College, it is run by a committee of students called the Martin Esslin Society (MES). Its scale and technical capacity means that it isn’t suited to new production companies; a degree of producing and technical experience is recommended. The theatre offers three slots to student productions in Michaelmas and Hilary terms.
How to Apply
Bids should be submitted to the MES Committee, including statements from key crew members, followed by an interview to discuss the production further.
The Oxford Playhouse
The student slots at the Playhouse are designed for qualified and experienced teams with creative visions to bring exciting theatre to the biggest venue in Oxford that is routinely available to students. The venue generally seats around 650 people, depending on the show, and offers an unmatched opportunity to work alongside professionals in an outstanding space to create productions that can
often be approaching professional standard. Putting on a production in this professional theatre is no mean feat, requiring an ambitious, committed and experienced team.
The deadline for applications is near the end of every term and will be advertised by the University Drama Officer. You need to apply two terms before your planned performance date (so a production staged in Trinity Term will need to apply in Michaelmas Term). Before submitting your application, you should discuss your proposed title with the University Drama Officer: this is to check its commercial viability and to avoid any clashes with other programming at the theatre.
How to Apply
To apply, you will be asked to fill in an application form asking you about your proposed title and vision. You will also need to complete a planned budget for the production, alongside any images showing your planned set or technical design. You will be interviewed by staff from The Oxford Playhouse, including their Head of Programming, Marketing Manager and Technical Director, alongside the University Drama Officer. Contact the University Drama Officer at [email protected] who can support you with your application and answer any questions.
The North Wall
The North Wall Arts Centre is a large studio space in North Oxford, seating up to 191 people. It is a professional space but one slot is offered to Oxford students every year, usually in the second half of Trinity term. The slot is reserved for works of new writing or devised theatre, and offers mentoring for a production team looking to gain experience in a professional space.
Applications for the North Wall slot will be announced by the University Drama Officer in Michaelmas Term. A full bidding team is not expected: you will be asked to write a brief outline detailing the proposed project alongside extracts from the proposed script. You will then be interviewed by the team at The North Wall, who above all will want to hear about the creative ideas behind the script and how the rest of the team plan to bring it to the stage. Most successful applicants for The North Wall display an ambition to work professionally in theatre, and many productions staged here have gone on to have successful runs at The Edinburgh Fringe. Contact the University Drama Officer at [email protected] for more information.
The Schwarzman Centre
Opening in late 2025, the University’s new Centre for the Humanities will include multiple new performance spaces, including a 250-seat theatre. Though plans are still are in development, the first student production to take place in that venue is scheduled for HT26. More information will be announced later this year, but look out an exciting new venue on the Oxford Drama scene.
Other Venues
There are many other venues across Oxford that frequently see student theatre put on. Examples include college chapels and auditoriums, college gardens during Trinity Term, Oxford University Parks and The Old Fire Station. Applications to colleges are usually made on an individual basis and it is generally advisable to have someone from that college on the team so that they can help secure the venue.