Two more in our series of workshops are coming up shortly.
Sunday 4 October – Producing and Paperwork
What happens in the rehearsal room is only one part of bringing a show to the stage. Directing at the Tower also comes with producing responsibilities — and getting those right can make a huge difference to the experience of everyone involved.
This practical workshop will take you through the life of a production, from writing the audition notice to opening night. We’ll cover schedules, company communications, budgets, paperwork, sharing responsibilities with your Stage Manager, and managing a group of people through the whole process — all while still finding time to actually direct your show!
The aim is to help you set yourself up for success before the first rehearsal even begins, stay on top of everything outside the room, and create a well-run, enjoyable production for everyone. You’ll also leave with practical templates and resources to make the job easier.
Led by Rob Ellis
 Rob Ellis is a freelance theatre producer and fundraiser, originally from Yorkshire, who has been a Tower member for ten years. For the Tower he has directed Brief Encounter, Clybourne Park, The 39 Steps, The Real Inspector Hound, The Chimes and The Merry Wives of Windsor (which toured to Paris). He also recently acted for the first time in a long time, when the Tower toured Shakespeare in Love to Pykard’s Hall in Suffolk. Rob runs Relish Theatre, a LGBTQ+ theatre company, who are Associate Artists at Pleasance Theatre. He was previously Producer at the Actors’ Church in Covent Garden. |
Sunday 15 November – Warming up and using improvisation in rehearsals
This workshop will give you a variety of exercises that can be used as stand-alone warm-ups in themselves and / or to build up readiness for using improvisation in rehearsals.
The exercises we will look at will build up skills and confidence in initiating a scene, agreeing with their scene partner to build up the world of the scene, listening to their scene partner, supporting their scene partner or as an ensemble, and committing to the scene and their character.
We will then work though how to use improvisation in the rehearsal process, looking at creating backstory, helping actors move past their comfort zones to stretch their characters, using attitudes to explore character and relationships, and using improvisation to test a character’s intentions in a scene.
Led by Jonathan Reed
 Jonathan Reed is an improviser, writer and director. He performed improv across London for over 10 years and was on the writing team for the sketch show Vice Captains (Edinburgh Fringe, 2018) and for a follow up podcast (Vice Captains: How to Life Life, 2021). He is also part of the Tower Theatre Writer’s Room. Jon directed Seagulls in 2023, The Children in 2025, and Jerusalem in 2026 at the Tower, and One Day When We Were Young in 2025 at the Hen and Chickens Theatre. |