Studio Salford started by accident in 2004. Founded by Salford University alumni, James Foster, it began as a one-off project (The Weir by Conor McPherson), using the room upstairs at The Kings Arms because it was the only space available. It was popular - very popular - and all of a sudden countless frustrated actors, writers, directors, producers and artists started to come out of the wood-work. Nobody had any work because no-one was hiring - so Studio Salford evolved out of the need for artists to make their own work. And that's what they did and new work literally exploded out of the unique space at The Kings Arms.

 

At the same time, David Slack and Amanda Hennessey had had a similar idea - actors are only actors if they're working - so that need gave birth to the amazing 24:7 Theatre Festival.

 

As luck would have it, Studio Salford (as it was to be known) and 24:7 had tapped into the Zeitgeist. People were literally falling over each-other to get their work produced and performed and the fringe in Salford and Manchester blossomed into the huge creative monster that it is today.

 

Over the years, Studio Salford has hosted work that has won MEN Theatre Awards / Manchester Theatre Awards, been included in The Library Theatre's Re:Play festival, enjoyed runs at The Library Theatre proper, been developed into shows for London's West End, Bolton Octagon studio, The Lowry and Buxton Festival. We've hosted work by writers that have that gone on to enjoy success as writers on attachment at The Royal Court, Bolton Octagon, The Library Theatre and won prizes at Edinburgh festival, BBC Radio,  The Bruntwood Prize - the list of successes goes on and on. Many well-known actors once trod the boards here and continue to do so - including Warren Brown (Luther, Bad Cop, Occupation), Neil Bell (Dead Mans Shoes, League of Gentlemen, Downton Abbey), Robert Collier (Coronation St, Downton Abbey), Steve Evets (Looking for Eric), James Foster (Shameless, Ideal), Jeni Howarth-Williams (Coronation St) and Denice Hope (Northern Lights, Best Little Whorehouse In Rochdale) to name but a few.

 

Embryo, our multi-discipline eclectic cabaret of all things new, was one of the first nights in Salford and Manchester to get the audience to take part in the development of a creative piece by providing feedback, and has become one of the best known development nights in the region. Pieces that started at Embryo have enjoyed massive successes after receiving feedback from our audiences.

 

In 2012, Mike Heath started up the Studio Salford Write For The Stage courses and these have gone from strength to strength, bringing with it Studio Salford Development Weeks, where members of the public are encouraged to turn scripts lieing dormant on hard-drives into a first performance, which, again, gets feedback from an audience to help develop the piece further. At least four pieces (and counting) performed at a Development Week have either been produced into a full production or is being produced right now (March 2014).

 

Studio Salford is an umbrella group representing and promoting several theatre companies, raising the profile of Salford as a viable artistic location and promoting artists from all over Salford and Manchester. See below for the current in-house companies. In the past we have hosted visiting companies, but now all visiting pieces are being hosted directly by The Kings Arms. We are now focusing entirely on new writing and training courses.

 

What the press have said about Studio Salford -

 

"Britain's most bohemian back-street boozer, the Kings Arms... home to theatre collective Studio Salford" - THE GUARDIAN

 

"Facilitator to the underground, to great acclaim... original, innovative performances written, directed, acted by local talent" - THE INDEPENDENT

 

"Be the envy of your friends and say you saw it first at the ever-adventurous Studio Salford." - Kevin Bourke, M.E.N.

 

"...a haven for Mancs looking to host leftfield theatre / poetry / music events" - ARENA MAGAZINE "Studio Salford is at the top of the fringe" - CITY LIFE