Bursary
ABOUT THE BURSARY AWARD
The Stage One bursary award is a unique award in that, unlike other arts funding, we are predominantly focused on your progression as an independent commercial theatre producer.
Stage One’s Bursary scheme exists to support independent commercial theatre producers. Unlike other grants or funding, its primary aim is to help develop you and your commercial producing career, rather than only supporting production and project costs.
The Bursary is a grant awarded to independent commercial theatre producers who have proven they are on a clear trajectory of development within the industry.
The Award consists of:
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Financial Award of up to £20,000
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Mentoring from an experienced producer or professional
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Access to a shared central London office space
How Does it work?
When applications are open, you will need to submit an application to Stage One to be considered for a bursary award. We open application rounds twice a year - usually in the spring and the autumn. Find out how to apply here.
If successful, you will be awarded up to £20,000 to support yourself during this period of development of your independent commercial producing career.
You will also work with the Stage One team to find an experienced professional to mentor you during the time you are receiving support from Stage One. The mentor will be available for consultation and advice, they will also sign off on your monthly report and invoices to Stage One. Further training through Stage One is also provided free of charge on specific topics relevant to your practice, as well as access to a central London office space for free for one year.
Application Guidance Documents
For more information on the Bursary, you can view our guidelines here.
- A screen-reader compatible version of our guidelines is available here.
- An audio version of the guidance will be available soon.
Top Ups
Top Ups are subsequent awards which follow your first bursary award. If you have not received the full £20,000 for your initial bursary, you will be eligible to apply for a Top Up at a later date. You can apply for a Top Up as many times as you like. The total amount you can be awarded is capped at £20,000*.
*Note: If you received a bursary or top up before Autumn 2023, you may only apply for up to £15,000 for your bursary or top up.
For example: Ben applies for and receives £8,000 for his initial bursary. In subsequent bursary rounds, he is then therefore eligible to apply for up to £12,000. He applies for and receives a £7,000 Top Up. He then applies again for a £5,000 Top Up. The total money he has received from Stage One has now hit £20,000, so he cannot apply for a Top Up again.
Applying for a Top Up The application process is similar to the main award: we will ask you to tell us what you will use the money for and how it will positively impact your commercial producing career.
Top Up applications open and close on the same dates as the main bursary award. The Stage One team will review all top up applications after the main bursary awards are confirmed, so it may take a little longer for you to receive the outcome.
Contact us on [email protected] to receive the Top Up Application form, or head to the ‘Resources’ tab in our Members Area.
"The bursary has been so beneficial for me this year.
As I went on to produce my biggest and most ambitious project to date, I knew that I needed time to focus and not get distracted by other jobs. Having the financial support meant I could spend time building my company, the production and more importantly my network."
Liam Gartland
Bursary Recipient Spring 2022
Gartland Productions
Stage One and Perfect Pitch are delighted to be continuing their partnership working together to award outstanding emerging producers an increased level of financial support for both the producer and the project to allow meaningful development of new British musicals to take place. Producers whose application is successful for the initial Stage One Bursary award and whose projects align with the aims of Perfect Pitch will be considered for additional financial support of up to a further £20,000 which will also include:
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Access to low-cost development opportunities
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Additional musical mentorship (alongside the support provided by Stage One)
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Access to musical focussed networking events
- Access to industry pitching days to be the first to hear about new musicals in development and meet the creative teams involved.
- Bursaries to attend BEAM, the UK's leading industry showcase of new musicals in development
"Perfect Pitch are absolutely delighted to partner with Stage One and to offer additional value to their already brilliant work identifying and supporting the producers of the future.
As a recipient of the bursary in 2005 I know the value of Stage One first hand and it is a testament to their early career support that we are now able to offer our own support and work together to ensure the producers of future new musicals represent the wide breadth of communities they come from, and are supported in telling new, cont
Andy Barnes
Producer
Pitch Perfect