My time with People’s Theatre Collective

After more than eleven years with People's Theatre Collective, I've decided that the time has come to step down as Artistic Director.

It's a strange thing to write. This organisation has had a huge influence on my career, my values and practice and it's difficult to imagine not being part of its day to day life. At the same time, I know it's the right moment. The Collective has an exciting future ahead and I know it's time for others to lead its next chapter.

I’m pleased to share some of my reflections and memories of working with the organisation below.

Looking back, I'm still amazed that the then called 'CTC' (or Cherwell Theatre Company) took a chance on me. In 2014 I was a 26 year old actor with very little directing experience and somehow found myself running workshops with young people, then co-writing a pantomime, directing it and eventually being supported to become Artistic Director. That opportunity changed my life.

The company's co-founder Nasser Memarzia gave me that first chance, as he did for many others, but so many other people have invested their time in helping me grow into the role. In particular, Debs Howe has been my closest collaborator. As trustee, Co-Chair and now Strategic Director, she's mentored me, challenged me and supported me through every stage of my time with the Collective. Our Chair, David Adkin, the board of trustees, our staff team and countless freelancers have all played a part too. The trustees deserve particular thanks. For years they've given their time, energy and expertise because they believe young people in Banbury deserve ambitious and accessible cultural opportunities. It's easy to forget that so much of what organisations like ours achieve is only possible because of people quietly giving up their evenings and weekends.

When I look back at the work itself, I can almost see it in three chapters. It's impossible to do eleven years justice in a single post, but these are the moments that stay with me.

The first was rooted in the company's long tradition of bringing professional artists and young people together to make theatre. Taking on the baton from Nasser, we developed and co-wrote a cycle of three pantomimes through workshops with young people, giving them genuine influence over the stories we told and the way in which we told them. Each time we increased the scope of the music and participatory elements, alongside increasing the ownership and inclusion of the young people and audiences involved. I was proud to continue Nasser's legacy for creating surprising, subversive and 'cheeky' work, which refused to conform to gender stereotype characters or reductive cultural clichés.

A big part of this process was learning from some incredible collaborators: actors like Liam Nooney, Jess Lloyd-Jones, Penny Tasker, Jess Braviner, Holly Creed, Gareth Fordred, Andy Allen and Neil Hobson, and composers like Adrian Banks, all of whom brought joy and creativity to every rehearsal room, but crucially, skilfully supported and mentored the young people performing with them in a process that was joyful and mutually beneficial. Many of those young people I worked with during this time are now professional artists themselves and having watched them grow into colleagues is one of the things I'm proudest of, as well as all the other young people now living their lives having taken the confidence and friendships they forged with the company into adulthood.

Alongside that, we held onto something that's been at the heart of the company since its beginnings in 2004: creating a place where young people who might feel like outsiders can find they belong. That was what youth theatre meant to me when I was younger and it's something I always wanted the organisation to protect.

The second chapter was one of artistic adventure. Working alongside incredible partners including Creation Theatre, Royal & Derngate, Banbury College and the always supportive Cherwell District Council, we began making ambitious site-specific and outdoor work in places that most people would never imagine as theatres. A decommissioned nuclear bunker beneath Banbury Town Hall. Wood Green's open-air swimming pool. New housing developments, parks and marketplaces. We also produced our first full-length play written by a young playwright at Tooley's historic seventeenth-century boatyard. Sophie Beckinsale, who joined the company in 2019 and continues to do amazing work across our programmes, must also be recognised for her work during this period and beyond.

The Myth plays will always have a special place in my heart. They began with an idea from our young people and grew into joyful, festival-style productions inspired by Greek theatre, with live music, giant puppets and audiences gathering in communities that often had little shared cultural infrastructure. Everywhere we went, it felt like theatre creating a reason for people to come together.

Then came the pandemic. Looking back, 2021 feels emblematic of everything the Collective became during that period. Whether conducting R&D into online workshop practice or working outdoors with social distancing, every conversation started with the same question: "What do young people need from us now?"

Pete Stays Home, written by Renata Allen with songs by Josh Baldwin and based on the book by Karra MacFarlane and Kim Hankinson, toured school playgrounds as children emerged from lockdown, using the story of a family of hibernating bears to help younger children make sense of an experience none of us had lived through before. I shed a few tears hugging my own three-year-old son at many of these performances and saw many other parents doing the same. Do You Accept?, our play exploring social media and online safety, became a digital film with live online workshops facilitated by the actors when we couldn't reach schools in person. Sam and Zoe vs Evermore, co-written with the wonderful Jessica Lloyd-Jones and Krage Brown, grew from conversations with our young company into a game theatre production using Dungeons & Dragons to explore young men's mental health. Our first Tell Your Story Festival transformed Banbury's LIDL supermarket car park into a youth-led arts festival because it was one of the few places we could safely gather. Alongside all of that, we created and toured Myth II, rehearsing almost entirely outside (how anyone didn't catch COVID is beyond me – the great Zeus himself must have been watching over us!) and laid the foundations for Song of the Summer, a deeply personal play I'd been developing for six years about my experiences as a teenager coming of age in the mid-2000s Northampton indie music scene, which I later had the privilege of directing in co-production with Royal & Derngate.

Many of these projects would not have existed if we'd simply carried on making the work we'd planned before the pandemic. They came from listening more carefully, responding more quickly and trusting young people to tell us what mattered. It was exhausting. It was chaotic. It was also one of the most creative periods of my career.

The most recent chapter has been about listening even more carefully. Perhaps the biggest shift came away from productions altogether. We made the decision to remove participation fees and establish Amplify, taking weekly creative activity into communities across Banbury rather than waiting for young people to find us. Nicki Watts and Kizzy Thorne especially deserve enormous credit for driving this work forward, alongside our staff team, trustees and brilliant local partners including Banbury Mosque, Let's Play Project, The Hill Community Centre, Style Acre, Connections Support and The Mill Arts Centre. Together they helped reshape how the organisation thinks about access, creating regular opportunities for disabled young people, refugee communities, young people from Muslim backgrounds and those living in some of the town's most disadvantaged neighbourhoods. Amplify has done huge work in removing barriers so that the Collective can genuinely belong to the whole town and it's fundamentally changed the organisation's approach to our projects and governance.

Alongside that came projects exploring healthy relationships and violence against women (Enact), new work around emotional wellbeing for younger children (A Home for Harmony) and most recently, the journey towards genuine co-creation through Revolutions.

Looking back now, I can see that all of these changes were leading us towards this point. Every stage gave young people a little more ownership, a little more creative agency and a bigger role in shaping the organisation itself. In no small part, this next chapter has been made possible by the tireless work and brilliant strategic thinking of Debs Howe, who is now the Strategic Director of the company. More than anyone, she has helped take the Collective to the place where our new Revolutions strategy could simply ask the next question: what happens when young people don't just influence the work, but co-create it from the beginning?

Seeing our summer 2026 production The Scar emerge from that process has been like watching a new artistic identity begin to take shape. That's one of the reasons I know this is the right time to step aside. The next chapter already belongs to the young people and artists who are creating it.

Most careers have people who change your way of thinking and ultimately, your life. Mine certainly has. I want to say thank you to every young person who's trusted us with their creativity. To every freelancer, facilitator, actor, musician, designer, stage manager and technician who brought ideas, generosity and imagination into rehearsal rooms. To every member of staff I've had the privilege of working alongside. To every funder, partner school, community organisation and supporter who believed in what we were trying to build. I feel terrible not to name every single one of you, but this is already a long post and you know who you are: THANK YOU. Conveniently, the Collective does have a handy page where we can at least credit the funders and partners who have given such support: https://www.peoplestheatrecollective.org.uk/our-supporters

And once more, especially to Debs Howe. Throughout my entire time with the Collective you've been there: first as a trustee, then as Co-Chair and now as Strategic Director. More than anyone, you've helped shape the organisation we've become. You've challenged my thinking, supported me through difficult moments, celebrated the successes and guided the organisation with remarkable care, consistency and determination. I wouldn't be the artist or leader I am today without your belief, your support and your friendship.

As for me, I'm looking forward to spending more time directing, writing and developing my own projects. I'm also looking forward to having a little more space for family life after a very full few years.

I'll still be cheering the Collective on from the sidelines. It's an organisation that has meant the world to me and I can't wait to see the young people, artists and leaders who write its next chapter.

Hoppily Ever After: The Frog Prince Musical

I’m excited to be directing Hoppily Ever After: The Frog Prince Musical with Little Seeds Music at The Story Museum this Christmas, with a tour to follow in 2027.

This is my fourth collaboration with the brilliant writer/composer David Gibb and over the past few months, we’ve been taking ideas into primary schools, testing and refining the material and developing it into a three person actor-musician musical. It’s been a wonderful process of discovering more about how children understand, explore and express love and how you turn all of that into a story that's heartfelt, funny and full of music.

I’m excited to be working with the amazing Victoria Spearing on the design, with producer Ellie Dimmock and a brilliant creative team bringing this big hearted musical to life.

CINDERELLA ICE CREAM SELLER : THE ORIGINAL CAST RECORDING NOW STREAMING

I’m delighted to say that The Original Cast recording of Cinderella Ice Cream Seller is now streaming on Spotify!

I’m so proud of this show and it’s lovely to have quality recordings of the songs as it comes to the end of it’s 2026 tour in Sheffield later this month. Click below to stream the album.

The Scar: Secrets of the Verdant Isle with People’s Theatre Collective

Photography by Rosy Addison-Dunne

We did it! After five months of ideas, conversations, experiments, rehearsals, rewrites, making, unmaking and making again, The Scar: Secrets of the Verdant Isle, the first entirely co-created play by People's Theatre Collective finally made it to the stage at The Mill Arts Centre in Banbury.

Part of the Collective’s new two year project ‘Revolutions’ funded by Arts Council England, The Scar has been a real experiment in co-creation. Rather than arriving with a play and asking young people to perform it, we started with them. We came up with the ideas together, built the world together and gradually worked out what the play needed to become.

At times it was challenging. Working in a co-creative way means everyone giving up the certainty that usually comes with making a show and trusting that you'll find it together. But that's also been the joy of it.

Over the five months I've watched the young people involved grow enormously in confidence and resilience, take more and more ownership of the work and ultimately create something that felt completely theirs.

Listening to them talking about the show with such passion, excitement and ownership, explaining the choices we'd made, the world we'd created and what the whole experience had meant to them was really special.

A huge thank you to every young person who threw themselves into the process, to the brilliant core team at People's Theatre Collective and to the extraordinary group of skilled professional artists who came into many rooms over the past five months and always treated the young people as fellow collaborators.

There are lots of things I'll take away from this project about co-creation, what it asks of us as professional theatre-makers and what becomes possible when we're prepared to relinquish a bit of control and share the process. But for now, I'm mostly just very proud of them all.

The creative team was as follows:

Tristan Jackson-Pate (Director), Harriet Gill (Assistant Director), David Snell (Set Designer), Dan Parry (Production Designer), Hayley Stevenson (Costume Designer), Emma Brion (Costume Assistant), Sophie Beckinsale (Scenic Designer and Prop Maker), Eloise Sheffield (Stage Manager), Adrian Banks (Sound Designer) and Lewis Manley (Lighting Designer), with our professional cast Emily Butler, Laura Bay and Krage Brown.

For People’s Theatre Collective: Debs Howe (Strategic Director), Simon Lewis-Beeching (Finance Director) and Michael Deacon (Company Manager).

All of Them, Dead touring now!

The All of Them, Dead team on opening night at Pegasus Theatre, in front of Vic Spearing’s wonderful set

All of Them, Dead by Thom Munden is now open and touring until 25 July!

It’s been such a pleasure to work on this unqiue, funny and moving piece.

Remaining Tour Dates

• Chats Palace, London Thu 25 & Fri 26 June

• Front Room, Weston-super-Mare Sat 27 June

• The Garage, Norwich Sat 4 July

• The Mill Arts Centre, Banbury Thu 9 July

• The Place, Bedford Sat 11 July

• Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham Sat 18 July

• Angles Theatre, Wisbech Sat 25 July

Directing ‘Cinderella’ at Nottingham Playhouse this Christmas

It's lovely to be planning a festive treat in June!

I'm pleased to say I'll be directing Cinderella, the 2026 Christmas show for younger children at Nottingham Playhouse.

Written by Katie Arnstein, with music by Jude Taylor and design by Michelle Cave, the production is being created especially for children aged 3–8 and their families this Christmas and will also tour schools and community venues across Nottinghamshire in 2027.

All of Them, Dead on tour for pride month

I’m currently working as dramaturg on All Of Them, Dead, a brilliant new play written by Thom Munden and co-directed by Thom alongside Krage Brown, touring June–July 2026.

All Of Them, Dead follows Harry and Corey, who meet outside an abandoned burger shop during the apocalypse. As they fall in love, the country falls apart. It’s a play about being young and gay in the middle of nowhere – about the things that go unsaid, about two boys holding hands, about clinging together as the world shifts around you. And, unexpectedly, it’s also about meat falling from the sky.

The piece was originally created through Oxford Playhouse’s Queer Fest, where it featured in the 2024 Scratch Night (under its original title Wisbech Meat Shower) and then further developed through R&D last summer, so it’s thrilling to see the piece tour in it’s completed version to coincide with pride 2026!

Alongside this production I’ll also be supporting four emerging queer identifying writers to develop short plays inspired by the themes of All of Them, Dead, which will be rehearsed and staged as a curtain raiser events before the performamces.

Tour Dates

• Pegasus Theatre, Oxford Fri 19 June

• Chats Palace, London Thu 25 & Fri 26 June

• Front Room, Weston-super-Mare Sat 27 June

• The Garage, Norwich Sat 4 July

• The Mill Arts Centre, Banbury Thu 9 July

• The Place, Bedford Sat 11 July

• Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham Sat 18 July

• Angles Theatre, Wisbech Sat 25 July

Looking forward to this one being out in the world over the summer!

People’s Theatre Collective secure ‘Revolutions’ Project Funding from Arts Council England

I’m delighted to share that People’s Theatre Collective has secured two years of funding from Arts Council England to deliver Revolutions, a major new phase of our theatre-making work with young people in Banbury.

This moment has been over a year in the making. It’s grown from listening deeply to the young people and communities we work alongside and shaping a programme that reflects their voices, ambitions and lived experiences. It also comes at a pivotal time for the organisation, as we continue to develop new youth-led creative spaces in partnership with Castle Quay Shopping Centre, creating places where young people can explore their creativity, collaborate and feel a sense of belonging.

Revolutions is about young people leading the cultural life of their town: co-creating bold new theatre, developing as artists and leaders and building a more inclusive, connected community through creativity.

We’ve now begun the casting process and the first phase of devising, working alongside a brilliant group of collaborators. As well as co-leading this process with fantastic creative colleagues, I’m delighted to be directing our first fully co-created production, which will be performed at The Mill Arts Centre in Banbury in August, with further members of the creative team to be announced.

Lily’s Special Recipe: Second Stage R&D with Human Story Theatre

L-R Tristan Jackson-Pate, Alexander Mushore, Amy Enticknap, Patterson Joseph (Oxford Brookes Chancellor), Éyum-Priscilla Ocheola, Amy Blake, Shelly Coe, Will Harding (Student Shadow Director Placement)

I’m delighted to have shared the next stage of development for Lily’s Special Recipe at the Science Bazaar at Oxford Brookes University this year.

This has been a rich and rewarding collaboration with Dr Shelly Coe (RNutr, FHEA) of Oxford Brookes, where we’ve sought to blend nutritional science with playful, accessible storytelling for children.

Produced by Human Story Theatre, we presented three rehearsed readings across the day, performed by Alexander Mushore, Éyum-Priscilla Ocheola and Amy Blake. It was fantastic to see such energetic participation from young people and parents alike.

This second phase of R&D has allowed us to develop the play into a three hander, test audience interaction, refine the script and explore how science can live theatrically in a way that feels joyful, engaging and empowering for primary aged children.

Creative Team

Co-Written by: Dr Shelly Coe & Tristan Jackson-Pate
Directed by: Tristan Jackson-Pate
Performed by: Alexander Mushore, Éyum Priscilla & Amy Blake
Produced by: Amy Enticknap, Human Story Theatre

Our next steps will be further script development and fundraising towards a 2027 tour of primary schools and libraries, accompanied by hands on cookery workshops to deepen learning beyond the performance.

Royal & Derngate Generate Residency 2026

David Gibb and I are proud to have been selected for the Generate Residency at Royal & Derngate in 2026.

We’re researching and developing a new musical together with dramaturgical and producing support from Erica Martin (Associate Director, New Work) and Jesse Jones (Artistic Director).

I can’t say too much about the piece yet, but we’re very excited about it! We plan to share our work in progress later in the year.

A Home For Harmony Wins a Northamptonshire Community Foundation Award!

I’m thrilled that the People's Theatre Collective team have won the Celebrating Culture and Heritage Award at the Northamptonshire Community Foundation Awards 2025 for our play A Home for Harmony.

It means so much to be recognised, especially alongside such brilliant organisations whose work we admire hugely: Lumina Arts Alliance, NN Contemporary Arts, Northampton Film Festival, and United African Association.

A Home for Harmony has been a real labour of love. From early R&D with families with young children, to shaping the piece with SEND specialists, Makaton consultants and sensory theatre practitioners, to touring it to 39 venues and 2,000+ young children, this award feels like a celebration of every person who contributed.

Whilst Strategic Director Debs Howe and I accepted the award, we want to thank our incredible staff team, freelance creatives, trustees, volunteers, Activate Learning students and young theatre-makers as well as the venues, families and communities who welcomed this project with such warmth!

And of course a profound thanks to our funders Arts Council England, Northamptonshire Community Foundation, Click Arts Foundation, Cherwell District Council and the Noël Coward Foundation for believing in inclusive theatre for our youngest audiences.

A Present For Jack

I’m thrilled to be returning to the beautiful Woodshed Theatre at The Story Museum this Christmas with A Present For Jack, a festive musical storytelling piece written and composed by the wonderful David Gibb.

This marks my third collaboration with David, and this time we’re joined by two fantastic classical musicians, Sean Law and Olly Matthews, which makes this one feel truly special.

The show follows young Jack on a very special mission: to find the perfect song to give his dad for Christmas. Along the way, he shares the legendary stories that made his father famous; from climbing beanstalks and outwitting giants to chasing fortune and finding love.

Creative Team

Written & Composed by: David Gibb
Directed by: Tristan Jackson-Pate
Featuring: Sean Law & Olly Matthews
Design by: Liz Cooke
Lighting Design: Nomi Everall
Sound Design: James Ball

It’s full of festive sparkle, magical storytelling, traditional tales and joyful original songs. We run at the Woodshed Theatre from 20-30 December 2025

Becoming an Associate Artist with Human Story Theatre

I’m really proud to share that I’ve become an Associate Artist with Human Story Theatre.

It’s a real privilege to formalise my relationship with HST after several collaborations together. I’ve always admired their commitment to telling urgent, socially relevant stories that spark dialogue in communities, whether that’s in theatres, libraries, or health and education settings.

As an Associate, I’m looking forward to continuing to support their work in different ways, from dramaturgy and adaptation through to developing new theatre projects. It feels especially exciting to be joining a company whose ethos around theatre as a catalyst for change chimes so strongly with my own.

‘Cinderella Ice Cream Seller’ Edinburgh Reviews Round Up

Lauren Harthorpe in Cinderella Ice Cream Seller

We’ve just completed our Fringe run and the team have returned to England. We’ve been so delighted with the feedback for the show, key reviews include:

• The Scotsman: “A whimsical reimagining… a song-filled journey of entrepreneurship, flavour, and fairy-tale reinvention.”

• The List: ★★★★★ “A perfectly scrumptious scoop of children’s theatre…. polished and professional”

• Broadway Baby: ★★★★ (“funny and engaging… catchy songs”)

• Lothians With Littles: “Charming and creatively reimagined… giggling from start to finish.”

• Edinburgh Fringe Family Guide: “Funny, heart-warming, and completely captivating,” with “flawless vocals.”

We’re also delighted to have been shortlisted for Best Kids Show at The List Festival Awards 2025; winners will be announced on 22 August 2025.

Lily’s Special Recipe becomes a picture book!

I am delighted to continue working with Human Story Theatre and the writer Dr Shelly Coe to adapt her play ‘Lily’s Special Recipe’ into a picture book.

The storytelling piece, which I supported dramaturgically was co-produced by Human Story Theatre and Oxford Brookes University earlier this year. Now I’m working with Shelly and illustrator Claire Whittaker to bring the story to more families across Oxfordshire in book form!

I’ll also be designing a workshop programme for primary schools to accompany the book, helping children to learn more about healthy, sustainable nutrition through drama.

Cinderella Ice Cream Seller goes to Edinburgh!

I’m really pleased to share that Cinderella Ice Cream Seller, a new musical for families, will be heading to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this summer.

The show runs at the Ermintrude, at Underbelly, Bristo Square from 30 July – 17 August at 11:40am. Tickets are on sale now.

The show is written by David Gibb and produced by Little Seeds Music. It’s full of live music, bold storytelling and big emotions- a contemporary fairytale that’s also a love letter to friendship, ambition and very good ice cream.

The team and I are really proud of how this one punches above its weight as a musical, and with just two actor musicians onstage. One reviewer from our Oxford Christmas run called it “Nick Cope meets Operation Mincemeat”, which we’ll definitely take!

Creative Team:

Directed by Tristan Jackson-Pate
Written and Composed by David Gibb
Dramaturgy by Renata Allen
Design by Victoria Spearing
Props by Jana Lakatos
Lighting Design by Nomi Everall
Sound Design by James Ball
Performed by Lauren Harthorpe and David Gibb
Produced by Ellie Dimmock

Little Seeds have been supported by a Keep It Fringe grant and are really excited to share the show with new audiences, industry and programmers. More soon!

'All Of Them, Dead' in research and development

I am delighted to be Dramaturg for an amazing new play for young people by Thom Munden called ‘All of Them, Dead’.

Harry and Corey meet in an abandoned burger shop during the apocalypse. As they fall in love, the country falls apart.

All Of Them, Dead is a play about being young and gay in the middle of nowhere. It’s about the things that go unsaid, it’s about two boys holding hands, it’s about clinging together as the world changes around you. And it’s about meat falling from the sky (no, really).

Perfect for fans of Heartstopper and The Day Of The Triffids, All Of Them, Dead is a sharp, funny and touching queer love story for the end of the world.

The project is currently in research and development with Pegaus Theatre, Everyman Theatre Cheltenham and Prime Theatre, funded by Arts Council England.

Selected for Oxford Playhouse's Queer Fest 2024 Scratch Night under its original title 'Wisbech Meat Shower

‘Lily's Special Recipe’ @ Oxford Brookes Science Bazaar

Storyteller Amantha Edmead

I am Directing a new storytelling performance for young people aged 5-12 years old with the wonderful Human Story Theatre as part of Oxford Brookes Science Bazaar on 1 March 2025.

There will be three opportunities throughout the day to see ‘Lily’s Special Recipe’ performed by Amantha Edmead, and written by Dr Shelly Coe (Oxford Brookes), based on her research in sustainable, healthy nutrition. I have thoroughly enjoyed working with Shelly, Amantha and the Human Story Theatre team to dramaturgically support the development of this new play.

The whole event is FREE to attend
Sponsored by Morgan Sindall Construction

'Remember Me' by Lekha Desai Morrison

I will soon direct 'Remember Me' by Lekha Desai Morrison, a family drama about living well with dementia.

When Sally finds that her artist husband Jack is losing interest in painting, she gradually learns that the problem is much deeper than it seems at first.  With the support of her daughter Keira, they go on a journey of learning to understand and manage his condition with compassion, warmth, humour and love.

The show plays the Key Theatre, Peterborough on 6-7 March and the Old Fire Station Theatre, Oxford on 14-15 March.

Remember Me is a Fir Tree Theatre production in collaboration with Landmark Theatres UK, and funded by Arts Council England.

‘Cinderella Ice Cream Seller’ runs until 31 December at The Story Museum, Oxford

Cinderella Ice Cream Seller has opened at The Woodshed Theatre within the Story Museum Oxford and runs until 31 December 2024. It then tours the UK from February - May 2025.

Starring David Gibb and Lauren Harthorpe

Written and composed by David Gibb

Produced by Little Seeds and The Story Museum

Directed by Tristan Jackson-Pate

Dramaturgy by Renata Allen

Design by Victoria Spearing

Props by Jana Lakatos

Lighting by Nomi Everall

Sound by James Ball

Stage Management by Tamsin Youngson and Annie Tebay

Photography by Andrew Walmsley