INK Festival showcases the best new, short scripts by East Anglia’s brightest talent from established writers to brand new voices. With performances of 25 short plays, for stage and radio, a musical, film screenings, performance poetry, workshops, talks, as well as a Saturday children’s programme –  it’s an immersive way to see and take part in new, innovative work. This year’s Festival has attracted some big names.

Sperms life

Five well known East Anglian writers have each written a 5-minute script around a common theme: Richard Curtis, Libby Purves, Blake Morrison, Steve Waters and Esther Freud become The Famous 5 who take on the challenge.

Luke Wright will be presenting Performance Poetry with special guests.

Another northern man

From the world’s longest running soap, Radio 4’s The Archers, Tim Bentinck aka David Archer will be directing and discussing his new book, Being David Archer and Other Unusual Ways of Earning a Living.

Helen Atkinson Wood (The Young Ones, Black Adder and KYTV) will be performing, and directing. She will also be hosting the Archers’ evening and supper with Tim Bentinck.

Moussaka

Gillian Greenwood (Executive Producer South Bank Show) will recall and show clips from Melvyn Bragg interviews with many major British Playwrights from Pinter and Stoppard, to Orton and Tim Rice.

Knock knock

I’m Sorry I haven’t a Clue regular and a third of The Goodies, Tim Brook Taylor will be performing in two radio plays.

INK Radio

Peter Kavanagh(BBC Drama producer), Duguld Bruce Lockhart (Associate Director Propeller) and Dan Allum (Artistic Director Romany Theatre Co) – will be joining the INK directing team for the 1st time.

Julia Sowerbutts, Artistic Director, said, “I am delighted how INK has developed over the last 12 months. This our 4th Festival has attracted, and is continuing to attract, enormous local support as well as interest from much further a-field. The standard and sheer numbers of new scripts have been quite overwhelming. We are confident that INK 18 will be the most fantastic celebration of talent on-stage, off stage and behind the scenes!”

INK A Day in the Married Life

The team behind INK 2018 have received over 200 scripts from which they have selected around 25 plays; Under 18’s, Under 30 minutes, First Timers, New Musical, Themed plays, Radio Plays – INK is the only UK Festival to include new writing for Radio – and INKlings for children.

Him her and them

The plays are performed multiple times over the weekend, by an ensemble cast of around 50 actors, with 13 Directors in six venues at The Cut, Halesworth. A selection of which will then tour across East Anglia (April 11th – 22nd) with INK on The Road,

INK Festival  7th -8th  April 2018, Halesworth Suffolk

Box Office and On-line – From 1st  February 2018

Day pass £15.00 / Weekend pass £25 with concessions for U25s, unwaged and disabled.

01986 872555

www.inkfestival.org

About INK

INK was born in 2015 at the Halesworth Cut Theatre in Suffolk. INK is a charity that develops, nurtures and produces the best new short scripts for stage, film and radio from writers with an East Anglian connection.

From “pen to performance” the focus is on helping writers, whatever their age or experience, to give them the opportunity to work with professional actors and directors through:

INK Festival – annual weekend festival of new short plays, musicals, radio and film. The festival also includes a growing programme of workshops and talks, as well as a children’s programme.

INKlings – provides drama, film, and creative writing courses for children and young people.

INK’d Up – offers professional development for aspiring writers and actors to hone their skills through readings, feedback of works in progress, talks and workshops from industry professionals.

INK Spills – helps writers to develop scripts that are premiered at the INK Festival, in order to transfer elsewhere. Previous works have been performed in London, Ipswich, Latitude Festival, Norwich and Cambridge.

INK on the Road – tours the best world premieres from the INK Festival.

2018 Tour Dates:

April 11th Headgate Theatre Colchester

April 12th Seagull Lowestoft

April 13th Garage Theatre Norwich

April 14th Wymondham Central Hall

April 19th John Peel Stowmarket

April 20th Brandeston

April 21st Fisher Theatre Bungay

April 22nd The Wolsey HEG

INK opens your eyes to the extraordinary potential of the short play as a must-have live art form.

James Christopher, Director, Journalist

INK is unique among theatre festivals… like having all your favourite bands under one roof.

James Christopher, Director, Journalist

INK – a brilliant festival – unpretentious, gutsy and entertaining…

Guy Nesling, East Anglian Daily Times

Last year’s INK Festival was a revelation but this year’s surpassed all my expectations. INK will surely create a legacy for decades to come!

Andy Powie, Writer/Director INK 2017

Discovering the INK Festival was such a joy!…The range and content was simply inspirational…

Chris Ure, Deputy Director Southwold Arts Festival

INK FEST going a storm. New writing, new film, short treats!

Libby Purves, Times Journalist & Radio Broadcaster

…such a vibrant, engaging and unique festival… doing fantastic work to promote creative writing in East Anglia.

Camilla Falconbridge, Children’s Programme INK 2017

Such a buzz, so well attended and the variety of shows made it an entertaining kaleidoscope.

Jan Etherington, Writer, Journalist

Hugely impressive ambition and enterprising effort… a fantastic showcase for up and coming talent.

Tamion Von Christian, Children’s Programme INK 2017

The weekend was excellent, people appeared to really enjoy all the shows and everyone seemed to be going around smiling!

Christine Smith, Volunteer INK 2017

LOVED the INK Festival. Short, brilliant performances in the coolest venue put together by the best creative team using the cream of Suffolk talent. May Halesworth be inked up forever!

Richard Curtis & Emma Freud, film writers

So exciting to discover so many new plays at the INK Festival this year. A real pleasure to see them performed by such versatile performers!

David Morrissey, Actor

INK Sponsors

Arts Council England

European Union Development Fund

Imaginative Traveller

Moat Farm Flowers

New Anglia – Local Partnership Enterprise

Norfolk County council

Score Production Music

Smoke & Fire Tiles

Suffolk County Council


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Mixed age CLASSES
Peewee 5-11,  Junior 12-16, Adult 17-39
& ‘Old Tigers’ 40+:
on Monday and Thursday evenings
7 to 8.30pm