Cockpit Theatre Maker

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Cockpit Theatre Maker

A community of classes, scratch nights, rehearsed readings and performance opportunities.

21/07/2026

Discover how improvisation can unlock new ideas and bring performances to life in our new workshop.

DEVISING WITH IMPROVISATION

11 October

Join The Cockpit's new resident company, The Palimpsest Project, for a full-day workshop, exploring improvisation as a tool for devising.

Drawing on Lecoq and physical theatre traditions, you will generate material, embrace spontaneity, build ensemble awareness and build original work without sitting down to write.

https://www.thecockpit.org.uk/class/devising_with_improvisation

20/07/2026

Still time to sign up for our online workshop!

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AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT FOR YOUR SHOW & COMPANY⁠
With Fae Fichtner⁠
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22 July
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This workshop is designed for artists who want to understand their audiences better and develop strategies to engage them. It is particularly useful for those who are beginning to define their target audience and are looking for practical approaches to audience development. Together, we will explore different methods and create a roadmap for thinking creatively about integrating audiences into your creative process.⁠
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The workshop will introduce audience development as a practical tool, with examples from different production scales and company structures. We will then explore a series of case studies together to examine how these strategies can be applied in practice.⁠
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By the end of the session, you will leave with a clearer understanding of audience development strategies and tools, and a practical case study framework to help you design and evaluate your own audience engagement strategies.⁠
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Click on our bio and head to THEATRE MAKER to book.⁠
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19/07/2026

Our scratch night is back with more Theatre Makers sharing their work for your feedback.

THEATRE IN THE POUND

20 July

DAY RELEASE by Chess Hayden

Two strangers on a first date, both trying to appear 'normal'. But as the conversation unfolds, it becomes clear that one of them is carrying something much heavier beneath the laughter.

DATING IS SH*T, THAT'S WHY I HAVE A DOG / AGAINST THE CLOCK by Sandra Monero

Told through the eyes of a mature woman, the story becomes increasingly aware that time is moving on. She reflects on missed opportunities, unanswered questions and the search for meaningful connection in a world that often places limits on women as they grow older.

STARBOARD by Lily Johnson

Four thousand guests. Two thousand crew. One ship. A floating world where everything feels effortless — if you never look too closely. As four crew members move between glittering guest spaces and hidden crew corridors, small cracks begin to surface.

ELEMENTS by Federica Ruggieri, Camille Genhart

Elements explores ecology on a global scale through the lens of magical realism and the butterfly effect — four primal elements, four stories from different continents, all interconnected.

https://www.thecockpit.org.uk/show/theatre_in_the_pound_july_0

18/07/2026

Discover how images can become the foundation of performance in this new Theatre Maker workshop.

DEVISING WITH IMAGES

3 October in Studio 1

Join The Cockpit's new resident company, The Palimpsest Project, for this full-day workshop, exploring image-making as both a creative tool and a performance language. Drawing on physical theatre, object theatre, and puppetry techniques, participants will investigate how to create images on stage using bodies, objects, movement, space, and composition.

The workshop is particularly suited to artists who are curious about how images, movement, and spatial relationships can communicate ideas, emotions, and narratives, and who are interested in meeting and collaborating with other creatives.

The day will begin with ensemble warm-ups and physical exercises before moving into a series of practical devising tasks. Participants will explore techniques from physical theatre, object theatre, and puppetry to create theatrical images using bodies, objects, space, and movement.

Working individually, in pairs, and in groups, participants will develop these images into short pieces of performance material, experimenting with composition, transformation, rhythm, and visual storytelling. Along the way, there will be opportunities to share work, receive feedback, and reflect on different approaches to devising.

Drawing on Lecoq-inspired practices, the workshop offers practical tools for generating performance from visual ideas and creating theatre that communicates through image, movement, and relationships in space.

https://www.thecockpit.org.uk/class/devising_with_images

16/07/2026

Another round of this brilliant online writing course is now on sale.

GET YOUR SHOW WRITTEN

Tuesday evenings
15 September - 20 October on Zoom

For anyone writing - or thinking about writing - a piece of theatre.

You have the images dancing in your head, but how does it all fit together? So much theatre is full of memorable moments, but often lacks the deep structure that would take it to the next level...Daisy Campbell is a master storyteller who will guide you week by week as you work on your own show, inspiring you to see that a deep understanding of story structure will completely transform your writing, and possibly even your life! This is true, whatever your chosen genre.

https://www.thecockpit.org.uk/get-your-show-written

15/07/2026

A one-day workshop that helps you prioritise what needs doing tech-wise with limited time and resources.

TECH UNDER PRESSURE

1 August

For theatre technicians and self-producing writers, performers, directors, and designers; anyone who works on Fringe-scale projects when there is little time, money or resources, and who wants to learn more of the basics of lighting design, sound design, video design and stage management.

This is a unique combination of technical training and meditative techniques, helping you to remain calm within the pressurised environment of technical theatre and create the best work that you can within those limits. There will be hands-on work with The Cockpit's technical systems where you will get to create lighting, sound and video designs on the fly, and even scenarios where you have to diagnose mysterious tech issues quickly. Overall, it's a fun and ironically low-pressure introduction to tech, with as much emphasis on mindfulness as on good cable coiling.

https://www.thecockpit.org.uk/class/tech_under_pressure

14/07/2026

August brings with it another of our rehearsed reading sessions.

NEW STUFF

2 August in Studio 1

SAFETY NET
by Matthew Jones

A dark comedy set in a GP surgery, following a hectic day in the life of Tim, a nurse practitioner handling back-to-back telephone consultations. Through a series of often absurd, sometimes poignant patient interactions, the play highlights the pressures of modern healthcare, where efficiency and remote triage clash with the messy realities of human need.

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MISFIT
by Tony Bell and Oona Lowther

A man examines his life in the light of the death of his parents and discovers enough skeletons in the closet to build a ghost train. A cellist calms the storm while the man learns to let go of the monkey on his back and live his best life free from generations of shame.

https://www.thecockpit.org.uk/show/new_stuff_august_1

13/07/2026

Looking to create your own work? This workshop is a great place to start.

INTRODUCTION TO DEVISING

15 September in Studio 1

Curious about devising but unsure where to begin? Join The Cockpit's new resident company, The Palimpsest Project, for this practical workshop that introduces the fundamentals of collaborative theatre-making through playful exercises, discussion, and creative experimentation.

Whether you're completely new to devising or looking to refresh your practice, the session offers a welcoming introduction to a range of creative approaches.

https://www.thecockpit.org.uk/class/introduction_to_devising

09/07/2026

One of our most popular workshops still has a couple of spaces left!

BUTOH & THE IMAGINATION
With Mim King

11 July

An intensive workshop exploring Butoh dance through imagery, presence, awareness and the tension between opposites.

The aim is to free the body from its mundane preconceived set of gestures and access a deeper and more authentic essence of movement and archetypal expression.

Butoh (dance of transformation) is an avant-garde dance philosophy/method created in Japan in the late 1950's.

https://www.thecockpit.org.uk/class/butoh_the_imagination

08/07/2026

From live cameras to immersive sound, creative technology is shaping some of the most exciting work in contemporary theatre. But it can just as easily overcomplicate a piece or pull focus from what matters most: the live experience. So how do we use these tools in service of the drama?

This one-day course looks at how to integrate technology in a way that enhances storytelling, rather than obscuring it.

CREATIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN THEATRE

6 September

In the auditorium

Across the day, we will:

Explore a range of creative technologies currently used in theatre, from the familiar to the unexpected.

Break down the process of developing creative technical ideas: from initial concept through rehearsal to performance.

Look at how to scale ideas to different budgets, including low-cost and DIY approaches.

Get hands-on with tools such as immersive audio, haptics, video, simple electro-mechanics, and AI

This course is designed for directors, designers, and theatre-makers who are curious about integrating technology into their work. The focus is not on mastering equipment, but on understanding how to think with it: how to choose the right tools, collaborate effectively, and realise ambitious ideas with clarity and control. You do not need advanced technical knowledge to participate.

https://www.thecockpit.org.uk/class/creative_technologies_in_theatre

Address

The Cockpit, Gateforth Street
London
NW88EH

Website

http://www.thecockpit.org.uk/theatremaker

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