The Society is delighted to announce the recipients of this year’s Research Grants. We had the impression that many people are not planning much research right now until access to archives and spaces becomes easier since there were fewer than the normal number of applications for the Research Grants. However amongst these were some excellent projects as detailed below, and we applaud all those who have managed to continue their research against the odds.

The Kathleen Barker Grant
Rachel Walker (University of Sheffield)
Creating a database of documentary theatre audio files held at the Victoria Theatre, Stoke [travel]

The Anthony Denning Grant
Felicity Brown (Jesus College, Oxford)  
The uses of Arthurian legend in the Accession Day tiltyard shows of George Clifford, third Earl of Cumberland (1591, 1593): the politics of prophecy, privateering and performance at the court of Elizabeth I. [travel]

The Stephen Joseph Grant
Claire Harding (independent scholar, actor and author)
Charles Vance – the last actor manager [archive access, travel, admin costs]

The Edward Gordon Craig Grant
Natalie Tomlin (Middlesex University and freelance theatre technician)
A Christmas Carol  [constructing and running an immersive installation]

Other awards were given to:

Veronica Isaac (Brighton, New York, freelance) & Jade Halbert (Huddersfield)
Constructing Costume Histories [travel costs for speakers at in-person study day]

Sarah Whitfield (Wolverhampton) and Sean Mayes (New York)
Building a website to disseminate and support the findings of An Inconvenient Black History of British Musical Theatre (#BHBMT)

Jacob Bloomfield (University of Konstanz, Germany)      
Drag – A British History  [image rights]

William Rough (St.Andrew’s)
Sickert’s Music Halls: ‘the dear old oblong Bedford’ [travel ]

Riocárd Huddleson (post-doctoral researcher)
The Covid-19 Epidemic and Irish-language Theatre in Northern Ireland: Crisis or Opportunity? [workshop costs]

Chloé Bradwell (PhD student and theatre practitioner)
Cultural value of performing arts with people living with dementia [project printing costs for materials]

Lauren Auyeung (MFA student Trinity/Laban)
Decolonising UK Dance Theatre [workshop costs]

For more about the Research Grants and their history, see their page here.

Applications for next year’s grants will open later this year, with a new application form available on the website from around November.   Also this year, probably in summer, the Society plans to launch another round of Practitioner Grants to support those planning and researching theatre projects as the industry begins to revive after the lockdowns. so keep an eye on the website for an announcement.