The route into touring theatre isn’t always the easiest, especially when there isn’t a rule book pulling everything together in one place…

So, here at house, together with our friends Little Bulb, Ad Infinitum and Box Tale Soup, we thought we’d try and give it a go - in the form of a full day workshop.

Have a show that you’re keen to get on the road, but don’t know how? Want to make work and feel confident taking it on the touring circuit?

Come and join the house team and special guests, for a jam-packed day working through the essentials of touring.

With thanks to our wonderful hosts at The Pleasance.

Morning session:

“Why tour? And how to tour well?" In Conversation with Little Bulb Theatre, Ad Infinitum and Box Tale Soup.

We’ll ask our touring stalwarts to expand on their practice when it comes to making work for touring to studio spaces and share some of their experiences of touring throughout the UK.

Afternoon session:

Nuts & Bolts of Touring Workshop with Harriet Bolwell, Rhys Jones & Mark Makin.

A whistle stop tour covering off the key tools you’ll need for touring studio work and busting some easily made assumptions on the way.

house will bring together the insights and top tips of a Producer, Tour Manager and a Tour Booker to help you get your show on the road.

Meet the speakers:

Little Bulb

Described as ‘the cause of big joy' by The Observer, Little Bulb is an award-winning national touring company based in the South West of England. Since forming in 2008, they have created a body of critically acclaimed work that has toured extensively nationally and internationally, including to the Salzburg & Brisbane festivals. Notable productions include Orpheus (★★★★★ The Times, co-produced with Battersea Arts Centre), Wolf Witch Giant Fairy (co-produced with the Royal Ballet & Opera) which won the Olivier Award for Best Family Show in 2022 and The Nutcracker (originally co-produced with Polka Theatre) which was also nominated for an Olivier Award in 2025 in the same category, before transferring to St Martin's Theatre in London's West End in 2025 . Recently they have been touring Listen Dance, a participatory night out celebrating social dance as a 9 piece live band, and alongside taking the Nutcracker to the West End, have remounted their show for younger children, Antarctica, at Bristol Old Vic, which will transfer to Polka Theatre in 2026. In 2023 they became a National Portfolio Organisation supported by Arts Council England.

Ad Infinitum

Ad Infinitum is a multi-award-winning Bristol-based theatre company creating bold, physically inventive and emotionally resonant work. Through a collaborative devising process, the company blends movement, visual imagery and sound to create socially engaged theatre with international impact, much of it made specifically for studio and small-scale touring.

Ad Infinitum has created 14 critically acclaimed productions and toured to over 25 countries, working with major cultural institutions worldwide. For almost 20 years the company has toured extensively to studio-scale venues across the UK and internationally. Touring highlights include extended seasons in Brazil, four national tours across China, and long-term touring throughout Norway, with recent and upcoming international activity including Canada, Turkey, India and Korea.

The company’s latest international co-production, Until I Find You / Hasta Encontrarte (with El Ingenio del Caldero and UNAM, Mexico), premiered in Mexico City in 2024, winning five major theatre awards, before playing in Madrid and touring the UK and US in 2026–27.

Ad Infinitum is a diverse-led company with deep experience in global touring and cross-cultural collaboration, creating work that connects across languages, identities and borders.

Box Tale Soup

Box Tale Soup is an award winning, critically acclaimed touring theatre company, whose work bridges tradition and innovation, blending timeless storytelling with sustainable, innovative creativity. Founded in 2012 by Antonia Christophers and Noel Byrne, since then Box Tale Soup has created 16 shows, mostly based on classic literature. Each production features an original script and music, and their unique design aesthetic, frequently employing handmade puppets, props and masks from recycled materials.

Since the company’s creation they have toured extensively in the UK, with over 1, 200 performances in hundreds of venues around the country, including Wilton’s Music Hall and the Wigmore Hall in London; Bridgewater Hall and Home in Manchester; Harrogate Theatre and Everyman Cheltenham. International touring includes performances in Los Angeles, Innsbruck, Beijing, Shanghai, Valletta and on board the Queen Victoria and Queen Mary 2. Box Tale Soup have taken work to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival every year since 2013, with multiple sell out runs, the most recent being their acclaimed production of ‘1984’ at the Pleasance Courtyard in 2025.

Through regular touring they have built a supportive, national audience who are excited to see what the company does next. Their upcoming tour of ‘1984’ will visit venues around the country in Spring.

Meet the trainers:

Harriet Bolwell, house Senior Producer (she / her)

Harriet leads and manages the house programme of work and the house team, ensuring house achieves its strategic ambitions and maximises the opportunities for development. She helps find and programme work touring to the network and delivering various events and initiatives. Having recently returned to the UK after working at Creative New Zealand, her producer roles include Bristol Old Vic, Francesca Moody Productions, Trigger, Coney, Paines Plough.

Mark Makin, house Touring Associate & Founder of makin projects (he / him)

As well as working as Touring Associate for house southeast theatre network for the past twelve years, Mark is founder and co-director at makin projects - independent theatre tour bookers and producers since 2005. He also manages and operates two major UK comedy festivals, 35 regular national comedy clubs as well as delivering training and touring/producing consultancy sessions to a range of emerging and established theatre and dance companies.

Rhys Jones (they / them)

Rhys has been touring on the UK theatre circuit since 2009. They spent the best part of 15 years as one half of Morgan & West touring to many regional venues in the UK, and producing shows regularly at the Edinburgh Fringe and beyond. In the last two years they have directed Tabby Lamb's Tuesday, Matt Parker's Getting Triggy With It, and Kevin Quantum's Unbelievable Magic for Non-Believers. They have been a magic consultant for Bristol Old Vic, Wilton's Music Hall, Working Light Theatre, and Mappa Mundi Theatre.

They are currently tour managing Cally Beaton's Namaste MotherF*ckers and recently produced and tour managed DUCK by Maatin. They also tour book for several acts and have extensive experience of the UK touring circuit.