Fuel

Fuel Fuel produces fresh work for adventurous people by inspiring artists. We produce fresh work for adventurous people by inspiring artists.

Founded in 2004, and led by Kate McGrath, Fuel is a producing organisation working in partnership with some of the most exciting artists in the UK to develop, create and present new work for all. Fuel is currently working with artists including: Will Adamsdale, Clod Ensemble, Inua Ellams, Fevered Sleep, Lewis Gibson, Gyre & Gimble, Racheal Ofori, Frauke Requardt, David Rosenberg, Andy Smith, Sound&Fury, Melly Still, Tom Stuart, Uninvited Guests and Melanie Wilson.

🎬 The excitement is real—rehearsals for There's a Bear on My Chair are officially underway!The room is alive with energy...
24/01/2025

🎬 The excitement is real—rehearsals for There's a Bear on My Chair are officially underway!

The room is alive with energy as the cast, creative team, and puppets come together for the first time. From warm-ups to scene run-throughs, every moment is filled with laughter, collaboration, and a whole lot of bear-y good vibes.

Take a look behind-the-scenes as we prepare for our premiere at Southbank Centre’s Imagine Festival in February 2025!

Get your tickets here: https://fueltheatre.com/projects/theres-a-bear-on-my-chair/

🎭 Meet the incredible cast bringing There's a Bear on My Chair to life! 🐻✨Each performer brings a unique energy and char...
16/01/2025

🎭 Meet the incredible cast bringing There's a Bear on My Chair to life! 🐻✨

Each performer brings a unique energy and charm to this heartwarming production, creating a magical experience for audiences of all ages.

Ailsa Dalling is a puppeteer and visual artist based in Bristol. She works in theatre, film and TV performing, making and directing puppets. Her theatre credits include; Animal Farm (Robert Icke/Fiery Angel), Venus & Adonis (RSC), and The Dancing Frog (Kneehigh).

Ben Thompson trained at Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Credits includes; The Wizard of Oz (London Palladium/Curve), 101 Dalmatians (Regent’s Park), and Animal Farm (UK Tour). Photo credit: Ben Wulf

Elisa de Grey is a performer whose credits include: Prince Charming, The Wolves in the Walls (Little Angel Theatre); Pinocchio, A Christmas Carol (Citizens Theatre); and Peter Pan (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre).

Fred Davis is an associate artist with Gyre and Gimb whose theatre credits include: Life of Pi [Olivier award, Best supporting actor] (Wyndham’s Theatre); and The Hartlepool Monkey (UK Tour). Photo credit: Ben Wolfe.

📅 Catch There's a Bear on My Chair at Southbank Centre's Imagine Festival (Feb 18-23 Feb) and The Egg Theatre, Bath (27 Feb - 2 Mar).

✨ A New Year, A New Chapter ✨As we step into 2025, we’re looking back to go forward. 💭 Ten years ago, Gareth Fry capture...
13/01/2025

✨ A New Year, A New Chapter ✨

As we step into 2025, we’re looking back to go forward. 💭 Ten years ago, Gareth Fry captured children's dreams of the future, inside an ice-cream van turned recording studio in Corby and Kettering. These dreams became Ten Years From Now, a standout project celebrating Fuel’s 10th Birthday.

In occasion of our 20th anniversary, we re-released these incredible audio stories – reimagined and remixed, and entitled Ten Years From Then – on Fuel Digital, Spotify, and Apple Music. 🎧

At the start of a new year, we invite you to reflect:
✨ Where were you ten years ago?
✨ Where are you now?
✨ And where do you see yourself ten years from now?

Go to the link in comments below to listen. Share your thoughts in the comments, or post your story and tag Fuel to join the conversation. 🌍✨

🤝There's a Bear on My Chair: Meet the Team!Introducing Aideen Malone, Lighting Designer.🐻Aideen has enjoyed a career as ...
08/01/2025

🤝There's a Bear on My Chair: Meet the Team!

Introducing Aideen Malone, Lighting Designer.

🐻Aideen has enjoyed a career as a lighting designer in the entertainment industry for 30 years working both nationally and internationally. She is currently working with Sadlers Wells Theatre as a lighting design consultant for Sadlers Wells East Foyer lighting design, where she has designed the feature lighting elements.

Introducing Michael Jean-Marain, Associate Director

🐻As an actor credits include: Animal Farm (Birmingham Rep), The Hatchling (Trigger Productions) and War Horse (National Theatre/UK and International Tour)

🎟Shows:
Centre (part of Imagine Festival)
Tues 18 - Sun 23 Feb 2025
The Egg, Theatre Royal Bath
Thurs 27 Feb - Sun 2 March 2025

🔗for more info: https://bit.ly/BearOnMyChair

🎭✨ Behind the Scenes: Global Majority Puppetry Intensive ✨🎭Take a peek behind the scenes of our Global Majority Puppetry...
07/01/2025

🎭✨ Behind the Scenes: Global Majority Puppetry Intensive ✨🎭

Take a peek behind the scenes of our Global Majority Puppetry Intensive, produced by Fuel with Little Angel Theatre and funded by Arts Council England. 🌍

This groundbreaking programme brought together 10 talented performers for workshops led by industry experts like Aya Nakamura, Toby Olié, and Haruka Kuroda. Over weeks of creativity and collaboration, these artists honed their skills and built a vibrant new community in puppetry.

Fred Davis: “The growth and support in this group were incredible. It’s been beautiful to watch their journey.”

Swipe through to see the magic in action! 💛
Arts Council England Little Angel Theatre

🌟 Fuel: End-of-Year Reflections & Exciting Plans for 2025 🌟  As 2024 draws to a close, we reflect on a year of creativit...
04/01/2025

🌟 Fuel: End-of-Year Reflections & Exciting Plans for 2025 🌟

As 2024 draws to a close, we reflect on a year of creativity, resilience, and connection. Thank you for being part of our journey! 🙌

💡 2024 Highlights
✨ Celebrated 20 years of Fuel’s artistry since our founding in 2004.
✨ Worked with 25 lead artists and 136 freelance creatives.
✨ 88% of live performances happened outside London, connecting deeply with communities.
✨ Exceeded our Big Give goal, raising £25k for our anniversary programme!
✨ Reached audiences in 19 countries, with 38% of work accessible online.

🎭 Unforgettable Productions
🌍 Nowhere by Khalid Abdalla – “Radical and urgent” ★★★★ - The Guardian
❤️ Love Letters Straight from Your Heart by Uninvited Guests – Evenings filled with love & laughter.
🚗 Peaceophobia from Common Wealth Theatre Co Speakers' Corner Collective - Bradford & Bradford Modified Club – Transforming car parks into spaces of storytelling & activism.
👩‍👧‍👦 Protest by Hannah Lavery – “Leaves us questioning our assumptions.” ★★★★ - The Times.

🎧 Digital Innovations
🎙 The Last Taboo of Motherhood? by Courtney Conrad, Bryony Kimmings and Sara Shaarawi – Shining a light on maternal mental health.
🎙 Fuelling Change – Exploring the producer’s role in live performance with Fuel’s Artistic Director & CEO, Kate McGrath.
🎧 Dreaming Species by Melanie Wilson – Exploring connections through sound.

🌍 Engagement Achievements
🎟 10% of tickets offered for free through our Take Your Seat initiative.
🎨 Workshops & post-show talks engaged schools, charities, and activists.
🎭 Trained a new wave of puppeteers through our Global Majority Puppetry Intensive.

🎉 Looking Ahead to 2025
🐻 There’s a Bear on My Chair by Ross Collins premieres at Southbank Centre’s Imagine Festival (Feb 18–23), and and The Egg, Theatre Royal in Bath (Feb 27-Mar 2). Southbank Centre The Egg Theatre, Bath
🎭 FuelFest at the Barbican (Mar 10–22) – Showcasing four bold new works in progress by incredible artists Racheal Ofori, Will Adamsdale, Jay Bernard, and Melanie Wilson. Barbican Centre
🎧 Osoyegbon by Gloria Patrick launches online (Apr 1) – Tackling themes of modern slavery and mental health.

💛 Support Our Mission
As a registered charity, we rely on your generosity to make theatre accessible for all. Help us continue this courageous work in 2025. Donate on our website via the link below👇.

Here’s to another year of transformative storytelling! 🎉

New year, new work! 🎇In March, FuelFest will platform four brand new works in progress. Spanning multiple art forms, eac...
02/01/2025

New year, new work! 🎇

In March, FuelFest will platform four brand new works in progress. Spanning multiple art forms, each piece grapples with a big question of our time.

These new works are:
Beauty is the Beast by Racheal Ofori
AI, AI, Oh… (or how I wrote a hit sitcom with ChatGPT but we’re not talking now) by Will Adamsdale
Joint by Jay Bernard
Oracle Song by Melanie Wilson

Head to our website for more on each project!

📍 Barbican Centre
🗓10th-22nd March 2025
🎟All tickets Pay What You Can https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2025/series/fuelfest

What better way to prepare for seeing There's a Bear on My Chair than reading the books? They make good presents too! 🎁T...
22/12/2024

What better way to prepare for seeing There's a Bear on My Chair than reading the books?

They make good presents too! 🎁

There's a Bear on My Chair 🐻🪑 and There's a Mouse on My House 🏠🐭 by Ross Collins.

Available from Nosy Crow and all good bookshops.

Poor Mouse! A bear has settled in his favourite chair and it just isn’t big enough for two. Mouse tries all kinds of tactics to move the pesky Bear but nothing works and poor Mouse gives up. Once Mouse has eventually gone, Bear gets up and walks home. But wait – is that a Mouse in Bear’s house?!

Shaping imagination into reality! 🐻✨ These carefully crafted puppets are coming to life for There’s a Bear on My Chair, ...
21/12/2024

Shaping imagination into reality! 🐻✨

These carefully crafted puppets are coming to life for There’s a Bear on My Chair, set to delight audiences at the Centre's Imagine Festival, and The Egg theatre in Bath. Proudly produced by , by Ross Collins and adapted for the stage by Toby Olié, we can’t wait to share their magic with you! 🎭🎨

Book tickets here: https://fueltheatre.com/projects/theres-a-bear-on-my-chair/

🎉 Breaking News! 🎉Fuel is celebrating  incredible achievement of winning the 2024 Alfred Fagon Award for his play, Once ...
20/12/2024

🎉 Breaking News! 🎉

Fuel is celebrating incredible achievement of winning the 2024 Alfred Fagon Award for his play, Once Upon a Time in Sokoto! The team at Fuel are proud to have commissioned and developed this play, with the National Theatre Studio, and are thrilled to be producing its first production, the next adventure in our longstanding collaboration with Inua. 🏆✨

Set in Sokoto, pre-colonial Nigeria, the play explores power struggles, the politics of language, and the dominance of faiths and cultures as kingdoms rise and fall. Mixing traditional Nigerian and contemporary oral storytelling, it’s a profound exploration of history and identity.

Born in Nigeria, Ellams is a globally acclaimed poet, playwright, and artist. Known for The 14th Tale and Barber Shop Chronicles, also produced by Fuel, he continues to push creative boundaries.

The prize was presented by Trustee and Judge of the , Olusola Oyeleye, at the Lyttelton Theatre, National Theatre, on Friday, 13 December 2024.
Congratulations, Inua! 🙌

FuelFest is a celebration of 20 years of fresh work for adventurous people by inspiring artists. The festival comprises ...
19/12/2024

FuelFest is a celebration of 20 years of fresh work for adventurous people by inspiring artists.

The festival comprises four new and ambitious works in progress from Racheal Ofori, Will Adamsdale, Jay Bernard and Melanie Wilson, inthe Barbican's experimental studio space, the Pit.

Following two decades of Fuel collaborating with artists and producing imaginative, trailblazing work that has travelled around the globe, FuelFest creates space for artists to experiment and audiences to experience new ideas.

📍Barbican Centre Barbican Centre
🗓10th-22nd March 2025
🎟All tickets Pay What You Can

Link in comments below 👇

There's a Bear on My Chair: Meet the Team!🤝Introducing Erin Guan, Video Design & Creative Captions. All performances wil...
18/12/2024

There's a Bear on My Chair: Meet the Team!

🤝Introducing Erin Guan, Video Design & Creative Captions.

All performances will have captioning, brought to life by Erin.

🐻Erin Guan is a London-based scenographer, video designer, and interactive installation artist from China. Her work spans across intercultural performances and minority voices. Her recent theatre credits include The Dao of Unrepresentative British Chinese Experience (Kakilang x Soho Theatre), Romeo and Juliet (Polka Theatre), Turandot (The Opera Makers & Ellandar x Arcola Theatre), Pied Piper (Battersea Arts Centre)
Photo Credit: Jake Steward

🤝Introducing Adam Pleeth, Composer & Sound Designer. Adam last worked with Fuel on The Hartlepool Monkey (Directed by Toby Olié).

🐻As a composer, his works include The Elephantom at the National Theatre and in the West End; James and the Giant Peach at West Yorkshire Playhouse; Pitcarn at Shakespeare’s Globe and Chichester; This May Hurt a Bit for Out of Joint; Wolves in the Walls and Red Riding Hood and the Wolf at the Little Angel; Laika at the Unicorn; The Hartlepool Monkey on UK tour. He also writes and releases music as The Mighty Child.
Photo Credit: Sam Tom

Book Now 🎟Shows:
Southbank Centre (Imagine Festival)
Tues 18 - Sun 23 Feb 2025
The Egg Theatre, Bath, Theatre Royal Bath
Thurs 27 Feb - Sun 2 March 2025

🔗for more info: https://bit.ly/BearOnMyChair

🤝There's a Bear on My Chair: Meet the Team!Introducing Amy Jane Cook, the Set and Costume Designer!🐻Amy previously worke...
17/12/2024

🤝There's a Bear on My Chair: Meet the Team!

Introducing Amy Jane Cook, the Set and Costume Designer!

🐻Amy previously worked with Fuel on Protest. "Amy Jane Cook's design invites spontaneous, joyful movement." North West End UK (Protest, 2023).

Amy is a Performance Designer who trained on The Motley course. She won the Wales Theatre Award for Best Design in 2017 for Constellation Street at The Other Room. She was nominated for three Off West End Awards for Best Set Design in 2018 for Jellyfish (Bush Theatre), The Funeral Director (Southwark Playhouse) and Not Talking (Arcola).

Introducing Charlie Tymms, the Puppet Co-Designer and Puppet Fabricator.

🐻 Charlie is a freelance puppet designer/maker working in theatre, film and the visual arts from her studio in East London.

"At the core of my work is the desire to create a dynamic partnership between the materials, character and physicality of a puppet."

Notable works include: The Lord of the Rings (Watermill Theatre & Chicago Shakespeare Theatre), Spirited Away (London Coliseum Theatre & Japan) Stranger Things (Pheonix Theatre), My Neighbour Totoro (Gillian Lynne Theatre)

Book Now 🎟Shows:
Southbank Centre (Imagine Festival)
Tues 18 - Sun 23 Feb 2025
The Egg Theatre, Bath
Thurs 27 Feb - Sun 2 March 2025

🔗for more info: https://bit.ly/BearOnMyChair

Photos by Michaela Bodlovic and Joanna Bongard

🤝There's a Bear on My Chair: Meet the Team!We're delighted to introduce the first two in our series on the creative team...
10/12/2024

🤝There's a Bear on My Chair: Meet the Team!

We're delighted to introduce the first two in our series on the creative team behind There's a Bear on My Chair: Ross Collins, the best-selling author and illustrator behind There's a Bear on My Chair and Toby Olié, Adaptor, Director and Puppet Co-Designer

🐻Ross Collins has illustrated over 100 books and written more than a dozen, including the hugely successful There’s a Bear on My Chair series. Ross has visited many schools and literary festivals up and down the land, entertaining and inspiring his young readers.
Headshot by Chris Close

🐻Toby previously worked with Fuel on The Hartlepool Monkey.
Toby's work as a puppetry designer/director includes: Spirited Away (London Coliseum); The Enormous Crocodile (Leeds Playhouse); Animal Farm (UK tour); Toby’s work as a director includes: The Wolves in the Walls (Little Angel Theatre); The Four Seasons: A Reimagining (Shakespeare’s Globe); and The Elephantom (National Theatre).
Headshot by Steve Tanner

🎟Shows:
Southbank Centre (part of Imagine Festival)
Tues 18 - Sun 23 Feb 2025
The Egg Theatre, Bath
Thurs 27 Feb - Sun 2 March 2025

🔗for more info: https://bit.ly/BearOnMyChair

Thank you to everyone who’s donated to our   🎄so far! Only 24 hours to go!One donation, twice the impact! See link in bi...
09/12/2024

Thank you to everyone who’s donated to our 🎄so far! Only 24 hours to go!
One donation, twice the impact! See link in bio to donate.

We're thrilled that the brilliant Dreaming Species by Melanie Wilson has been longlisted for a Digital Culture Award Art...
02/12/2024

We're thrilled that the brilliant Dreaming Species by Melanie Wilson has been longlisted for a Digital Culture Award Arts Council England in the Digital Content category!

This dream-like listening experience embarks on a journey into a world in which human connection to animals is re-imagined using the processes of machine learning. To engage with the crisis of biodiversity loss in the UK, Wilson collaborated with an AI neural net, using the voices of animals at risk of extinction and human voices, creating a new sonic language.

Produced by Fuel, the project was initiated by a Sound and Music’s Dimensions Award and is also supported by funding from Arts Council England.

Experience Dreaming Species online for free, at dreamingspecies.com

✨ Ten Years From Then✨Ten years ago, an ice-cream van turned recording studio captured dreams of the future from childre...
26/11/2024

✨ Ten Years From Then✨

Ten years ago, an ice-cream van turned recording studio captured dreams of the future from children and adults in Corby and Kettering. The soundscapes they created became Ten Years From Now, a highlight of Fuel’s 10th Birthday Season.

Now, this project comes full circle. To celebrate our 20th birthday, we’re re-releasing these audio stories - with a fresh remix - on Fuel Digital, Spotify and Apple Podcasts 🎧.

Take a moment to reflect: Where were you 10 years ago? Where are you now? Where would you like to be 10 years from now?

Share your thoughts in the comments, or post your story and tag to join the conversation 🌏✨!

Fuel Digital link: https://digital.fueltheatre.com/?mc_cid=19e95a404a

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/show/4Qy8EaEvFQfETRZuUDSQHq?mc_cid=19e95a404a

Apple Podcasts link: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/ten-years-from-then/id1779952896

Poor Mouse! A Bear has settled in his favourite chair and it just isn’t big enough to share. Mouse tries all kinds of ta...
22/11/2024

Poor Mouse! A Bear has settled in his favourite chair and it just isn’t big enough to share. Mouse tries all kinds of tactics to move the pesky Bear but nothing seems to work. However, it isn’t long until the tables are turned and Bear finds himself with an unwelcome guest – the cheeky Mouse won’t leave his house!

Fuel in association with Southbank Centre presents.....
There’s a Bear on My Chair by Ross Collins🐻🪑
licensed by Nosy Crow

In this first ever stage adaptation of Ross Collins’ much-loved books, Toby Olié (Spirited Away, Animal Farm, War Horse) brings Bear and Mouse to life through loveable, life-sized puppets. Enter the mischievous world of Bear and Mouse for a show packed with laughs and surprises.

🎟Shows:
Southbank Centre (part of Imagine Festival)
Tues 18 - Sun 23 Feb 2025
The Egg, Theatre Royal Bath
Thurs 27 Feb - Sun 2 March 2025

🔗for more info: https://bit.ly/BearOnMyChair

Address

Fuel, Somerset House, South Wing, Strand
Kosti
WC2R1LA

Opening Hours

Monday 10:00 - 18:00
Tuesday 10:00 - 18:00
Wednesday 10:00 - 18:00
Thursday 10:00 - 18:00
Friday 10:00 - 18:00

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