Arts opportunities

Arts opportunities

* A residency open call for emerging and mid-career Palestinian artists based anywhere in the world: the fully funded, 11 week residency will be at Gasworks in London from 7 July to 21 September 2026. Application deadline: 12 January.

* The BFI is to invest £150m over the next three years under six headings: audiences, education & heritage, filmmaking & talent development, skills & workforce development, international, and insight & industry.

* If you are a first or second-generation migrant, an asylum seeker, refugee, international student or international worker who has lived or currently lives in the UK, you are eligible to enter the Then & Now’ writing competition focussing on your or your family’s migration story. Details here

* Entries for the 2026 Open City Documentary Festival are open. Deadline: 28 November

* Black Cultural Archives is looking for 13 more youth programme members to develop skills, explore culture, and shape the future of the heritage sector. Information here for information and an application form.

* Ten years after Good Chance was formed in the Calais Jungle refugee camp, it is launching Stage Door 10 - a national programme placing 10 creatives from refugee backgrounds in paid roles across 10 of the UK’s leading theatres and arts organisations.

* Theatro Technis and Hyphen Artist Collective’s offer free in-person & online writing sessions + community chats for hyphenated & global majority creatives.

* Artist Surgeries at the Gate Theatre: on the second Thursday of every month

* As Yet Unscene is a year-round programme initiative to find and develop scripts in early stages of development. It includes workshops, rehearsed readings and fully-rehearsed performances of longer extracts. Details here

* The Royal Court Theatre has launched The Writers’ Card, part of its programme of helping playwrights. It offers mentoring, networking, funding opportunities, events, and use of resources in the building, subsidised meals and free script printing. For more information,  visit https://royalcourttheatre.com/playwriting 

* The Royal Court has also launched a London-wide playwrights award for 13-18-year-olds.

* Theatre in the Pound: The Cockpit Theatre’s monthly scratch night enables performers to try out 10-15 minutes of new work + a short Q&A. Also classes, workshops, readings, advice sessions, support & performance opportunities.

* Papatango hopes its new Playwrights’ Studio will be a home for playwrights of all levels of experience. It aims to be  a joined-up, sustained writing package with a variety of free advantages, including digital workshops, one-to-one,  and thousands of pounds in open-access funding.

* Riverside Studios is offering a regular drop-in playwriting group:  “Whether you’re working on a script and want creative inspiration, you're intrigued by the idea of writing a play, or simply want a creative outlet, these monthly meet-ups are informal, fun and open to everyone.” It has also launched songwriting sessions.

* Citizens of the World, a choir that grew out of the Calais “Jungle” and has 50 members from 30 countries, welcomes newcomers. It rehearses on Wednesday evenings. Details on the website

Thanks to volunteer Daniel Nelson (editor of Eventslondon.org) for compiling this list.