Derby Theatre is the only arts organisation in the Midlands to have been awarded a BBC Performing Arts Fund theatre fellowship which it has offered to theatre practitioner and director Lucy Doherty.
The fund, which helps to foster the next generation of performing talent in Britain, has awarded more than £430,000 of funding to 19 fellows and 58 community theatre organisations.
Derby Theatre’s fellowship means Lucy Doherty will be given a year to develop her artistic and leadership skills in a regional producing venue.
She will produce new work and will benefit from a number of assistant directing opportunities. She will also attend key events with artistic director Sarah Brigham.
Originally from York, Lucy Doherty studied applied theatre at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama where she founded the theatre company Milk Presents. She is developing two new works which will premier in summer 2014.
She said, “I’m hugely excited about working at Derby Theatre as the BBC Performing Arts fellow. Derby Theatre is fast becoming a hub for learning and for questioning how theatre is produced and experienced.
“Artists are talking about Derby Theatre and I want to be at the centre of that growth as it happens, feeding into it and being nurtured by it.
“The work I make talks about the representation of gender in stories and popular culture. Therefore it’s fitting that one key focus for Derby Theatre in 2014 is the female voice; it’s an exciting match.”
Meanwhile, Nottingham Playhouse has been awarded £5,000 from the BBC Performing Arts Fund to help set up a youth theatre in Bulwell for 9- to 13-year-olds.