A flagship programme for large-scale theatre-making in Wales.
We are delighted to introduce the cohort for Tearing the Roof Off, a major new artist development initiative designed to support the next generation of Welsh theatre-makers as they expand their practice and step into larger creative spaces.
The programme offers dedicated time, bespoke mentorship and high-level professional development opportunities to help artists make the leap to large-scale theatre-making. Over the next six months they will go on a journey with us – both as individuals and collectively – to hone their practice, forge new creative pathways and broaden their artistic horizon. Through support from an industry leading mentor, we hope this programme will support them to step into the next chapter of their artistic journeys.
The programme begins with an intensive residency at Theatr Clwyd in June, featuring masterclasses and workshops led by some of the UK’s most influential theatre practitioners. Contributors include Katie Mitchell, Matthew Xia, Georgia Lowe, Winsome Pinnock, Daniel Schumann, Tom Morton-Smith, Lucy Osbourne as well as speakers from Factory International, Bristol Old Vic and the Sherman Theatre, bringing expertise across directing, design, writing and producing.
We will also be sending our Producer, Shane Nickels, to spend time with Stage One, to hone his skills and insights into the industry alongside producers from across the UK. Joseph Smith, CEO of Stage One, commented: “Stage One is delighted to be working with Stiwdio Clwyd to strengthen the support for Welsh and Wales based theatre producers. Developing skilled, confident producers is essential to the future of the industry, and we share Stiwdio Clwyd’s ambition to create meaningful opportunities for producers to learn, experiment and build sustainable careers.”
By connecting Welsh artists with world-class mentors and industry leaders, Tearing the Roof Off aims to build a stronger pathway of creative talent capable of shaping the future of theatre in Wales and beyond. Tearing the Roof Off is investing deeply in artists from across Wales, giving them the tools, confidence and support to tell bigger stories on bigger stages. We know this programme will help create the conditions for a new chapter of ambitious Welsh theatre.
Meet the cohort and their mentors
Jenny Davies
Director
Mentor: Marianne Elliott
Jenny is a Welsh, Bristol-based director, theatre-maker and audio producer originally from Abergavenny. She brings a holistic, people-centred approach to her practice, rooted in a belief that rehearsal rooms should be places of growth, trust, and playful curiosity.
As a director, her work includes Outlier, Waldo’s Circus of Magic and Terror for Bristol Old Vic; Wendy: A Peter Pan Story for Theatre Royal Bath; and The Things We Carry for Tobacco Factory. Her next production, Badgers by Malaika Kegode, will premiere at the Traverse Theatre as part of TravFest26.
Catherine Dyson
Writer
Mentor: Sarah Frankcom
Catherine is a writer and performer living in Cardiff. Her play The Last Picture, which was originally selected as one of the RSC’s 37 Plays Project, was produced by York Theatre Royal, English Touring Theatre and An Tobar and Mull Theatre in February this year, toured the UK and received 5 star reviews. Other recent writing credits include: The Luminous (RedCape Theatre, UK tour), Peter Pan (Sherman Theatre), Bitcoin Boi (Riverfront Theatre), On Track (RedCape Theatre, UK tour), Believers (South Street Arts Centre), Thunder Road (RedCape Theatre, UK tour) and Transporter (Theatr Iolo, UK and Kolkata tour, translated and produced in Austria).
Alice Eklund
Director
Mentor: Sarah Frankcom
Alice is a Wales-based Director, Dramaturg and Creative Practitioner specialising in new musicals, actor-musician work and contemporary new writing, often with a bold bilingual (Welsh/English) edge. A Welsh-speaking, queer and disabled artist, she is passionate about developing ambitious, punchy work that balances intensity while keeping people at its heart, championing access, representation and unheard voices.
Director Credits: The Last Five Years (Porters Theatre); Ceridwen (Y Cwmni, Urdd Gobaith Cymru); Christmas On Broadway (RWCMD); Anthem (Wales Millennium Centre); Red Riding Hood/Yr Hugan Fach Goch, Iphigenia yn Sblot, The Periodicals, Bratiaith, See for Yourself, Sherman TEN (Sherman Theatre).
Katie Elin-Salt
Writer
Mentor: Pippa Hill
Katie is a current associate artist of Pentabus theatre. She is also artistic director and co-founder of Oshi’s World theatre company – Wales’ first theatre company making sensory theatre with and for people with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD).
Writing Credits include: Under Milk Wood (Theatr Clwyd/Craidd), Celebrated Virgins (Theatr Clwyd), Sprinkles (Dirty Protest/The Other Room), Hansel and Gretel (Sherman Theatre), Little Red Riding Hood (Sherman Theatre), Splinter (Chippy Lane) & Galwad (Sky Arts).
Harry Mould
Writer
Mentor: Lucy Kirkwood
Harry is a writer, artist and wellbeing facilitator originally from Leeswood, North Wales. Their first play, The Brenda Line, was commissioned by Pitlochry Festival Theatre’s 2024/25 season before transferring to the Traverse theatre in Edinburgh. It won the Alfred Fagon Award in 2025. They were recently announced as one of the six recipients of the inaugural Jerwood Royal Court Commissioning Scheme, are currently under commission with Theatr Clwyd and Traverse Theatre. Harry is an associate artist with Sanctuary Queer Arts, Scotland’s only dedicated LGBTQIA+ theatre company, and is on the board of the award-winning Wonder Fools.
Shane Nickels
Producer
Mentor: Lucy Atkinson
Shane is a creative producer and experience designer working across theatre, film, and immersive media, with a practice rooted in Wales and developed through over a decade of collaboration with artists, venues, and cultural organisations.
He has delivered work across national touring productions, site-specific performance, and large-scale participatory projects, collaborating with organisations including National Theatre Wales, Pontio, Sherman Theatre, Manchester Royal Exchange, and companies such as yello brick, Dirty Protest, August012, Chippy Lane, and Fio. His wider partnerships span BAFTA Cymru, Media Cymru, and PDR, reflecting a practice that moves between grassroots creativity and sector innovation.
Cory Shipp
Designer
Mentor: Lizzie Clachan
Cory is a set and costume designer working across all ranges of performative work across the UK. Cory trained at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.
Theatre (as Designer) includes: The Mikvah Project (Orange Tree Theatre); Hansel & Gretel (Chiswick Playhouse), Cyrano de Bergerac, Easy Virtue (The Watermill Theatre); Mr Burns: A Post-Electric Play, RENT, Return to the Forbidden Planet, Vinegar Tom, Caucasian Chalk Circle, 6 Characters, Let The Right One in, (Mountview Theatre Academy); Another Planet (The Gramophones Theatre Company); Justice in a Day (Theatr Clwyd); Anyone Can Whistle (Southwark Playhouse, Grey Area Theatre); Deffro’r Gwanywn (Y Cwmni); Glacier (Old Fire Station); The EU Killed My Dad (Jermyn Street Theatre) & The Book of Eternity, (Northern Opera).
Sophie Thomas
Designer
Mentor: Vicki Mortimer
Sophie is a Welsh set and costume designer working across live performance and film. Trained at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, she developed her practice as Resident Assistant Designer at the Royal Shakespeare Company before designing productions at Chichester Festival Theatre, the Young Vic, and the BBC.
Her work is rooted in storytelling, craft, and a close attention to people and place. Alongside her theatre practice she has developed a particular interest in how endangered crafts, minority languages, and ecosystems, may be sustained and reimagined.
Rhys Warrington
Writer
Mentor: Helen Edmundson
Rhys is a Welsh writer and actor who trained at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. His play Monument will receive its world premiere in a co-production between the Royal Court Theatre and the Sherman Theatre in December 2026 as part of the Royal Court’s 70th Anniversary Season.
Other writing credits include – BLUE (Chippy Lane Productions/Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff), Get Ready With Me (Pentabus Young Writers Cohort 2023) and Out Of The Blue (Llandovery Heart of Wales Theatre Festival). Rhys is currently under commission with the Welsh National Theatre, Matsena Productions and is the 2026 Jerwood Writer in Residence at Pentabus.
