Elevate Festival is a vibrant celebration that brings together artists and audiences from the South-West. It’s a space to connect, create, discover fresh talent, unlock new skills and spark inspiration through performance, workshops and meet-ups.
Festival Programme
WORK
Work-in-Progress
Sun 1 Nov | 3.30pm
WORK is a piece of theatrical performance art that comments on the workforce as an entity, the things we say and do, and the parts of ourselves we abandon in order to become and remain employed. Set to an original soundtrack of distorted field recordings and uncategorisable noise, it explores everything from staff room diet chat to the long-term suppression of our animal impulses.
Book ticketsInner horizons Exhibition
2 – 6 Nov | FREE
Dominic Baker, born in 1978 first started painting in 2015, he is self-taught in a variety of different artistic disciplines. Most of the work with the focus being around colour using brushes, pallet knives, spray and digital techniques to render different finishes. The main bulk of his work being abstracts but also with impressionist forays into local landscapes- especially Dartmoor.
Inner horizons Exhibition represents the journey from the physical world to the metaphorical using shape and colour. Vivid Landscapes Coincide with colourful abstract worlds that tell you a story of time, movement and emotion.
Before We Were Ghosts
Mon 2 Nov | 3.30pm | CLOSED READING
Before We Were Ghosts began through Exeter Northcott’s Write/Direct programme in summer 2025. The play follows three sisters hiking across Dartmoor to bury their mother’s ashes. Along the way, they encounter Fern, a mysterious wild camper who looks exactly like their dead mother. What begins as an attempt to say goodbye becomes a darkly funny and increasingly uncanny journey through grief, guilt, memory and the different versions of the people we love.
This event is invite only and closed to the public.
Scratch Night Workshop
Mon 2 Nov | 5.30pm | FREE
Hosted by Cait Laws (Exeter Northcott Programme Producer) and Katy Danbury (Exeter Phoenix Performance Programmer), this informal, discussion-led session aims to help early career artists understand the relationship between producers/companies and venues, particularly the questions that are worth asking at the point a deal is agreed.
Book ticketsScratch Night
In collaboration with Exeter Phoenix
Mon 2 Nov | 7pm | Pay What You Can: £6 – £14
A bunch of local theatre makers, comedians, dancers, musicians, actors and clowns are going to try some new things. Audiences can the delights of a smorgasbord of bold, fresh, new work in progress performances. It’s the first crucial part of a journey for the acts and a left-field night like no other for the audience.
Book ticketsPhysicality for Performers
Tue 3 Nov | 2pm | FREE
A movement session for theatre makers, actors, physical performers and dancers. Working with physicality and ensemble movement games, join Sally Knight – Artist development producer at Hall for Cornwall and Movement director/Choreographer for a playful session to get the body moving and the creative energy flowing.
This event is exclusively for Elevate Members.
Find out moreArtist Social
Tue 3 Nov | 5.30pm | FREE
Co-hosted by Exeter Northcott and The Hall For Cornwall, this social is an opportunity for Elevate members to come and spend time with other creatives, share ideas, and meet the artist development teams for both theatres.
This event is exclusively for Elevate Members.
Find out moreElevate Shorts
Tue 3 Nov | 7pm
Exeter Northcott has once again commissioned four local playwrights to pen a collection of brand-new short plays, brought to life by a team of directors and actors from across the region. Elevate Shorts is an evening of new writing that puts South-West stories centre stage.
Book ticketsAn Introduction to National Lottery Project Grants
Wed 4 Nov | 2pm | FREE
A session hosted by the Arts Council’s South West team to help you learn more about our National Lottery Project Grants funding programme. The presentation is aimed at those who are new to the Arts Council’s Project Grants and want to find out more about the application process. There will also be 121s (booking required).
Book ticketsHorizons
Wed 4 Nov | 5pm
Siblings Adam and Kay are navigating growing up in Torbay. While Kay starts to plan for her future, Adam searches for inspiration in his hometown. Horizons is a new performance by Red Clay Theatre, developed in conversation with young people from Torbay. The performance explores themes of young ambition, opportunity, and the unique impact of coastal communities on their young people’s ability to fulfill their potential.
Book ticketsThe Necromancer!
Wed 4 Nov | 6.30pm
When Myrtle’s mum is drowned as a witch for being suspiciously good-looking, she enlists the help of a magical cave-dwelling weirdo, The Necromancer, to bring her back to life. But raising the dead is a lot harder (and more musical!) than she anticipates. Packed full of jokes, songs, and arcane magic, this medieval comedy takes the audience on a hilarious journey into the world of death!
Book ticketsBehind the Scenes: Producing & Touring Theatre
Thu 5 Nov | 1pm
Ever wondered what it actually takes to get a show from an idea onto the stage – and then take it on the road? This workshop will introduce you to the world of creative producing and touring and allow you to get practical advice on challenges, next steps and how to make them happen.
This event is exclusively for Elevate Members.
Find out moreDirecting Without Borders: Theatre Techniques from Around the World
Thu 5 Nov | 3pm
Through playful, collaborative practice, participants will discover different ways of working with actors, shaping scenes, and creating meaning on stage.
This event is exclusively for Elevate Members.
Find out moreCancer B*tch!
Work-in-Progress
Thu 5 Nov | 8pm
Molly has cancer but she’s like, totally fine. More than fine in fact, because her doctor’s told her she has a nice cancer – no chemo, no hairloss, no sickness. But several months later, Molly’s no closer to knowing if she’s cancer-free. But that’s fine. She’s fine. Everything’s fine – right?
Book ticketsElevate Production Social
Fri 6 Nov | 5pm | FREE
This social is an opportunity for freelance technical/production/back stage professionals who are living in the South West to come and spend time with others in their field, share ideas, and crucially, feed in on what they would like to see from our Elevate: Production strand of support as it continues to grow and evolve.
This event is exclusively for Elevate Members.
Find out moreHighwall: An Intercession
Fri 6 Nov | 6.15pm | CLOSED SHARING
Highwall Theatre was founded in 2014 as a graduate company. Its debut original production, The Alpha Effect, began on the Northcott Theatre’s RAW platform before touring schools, festivals and venues for a year. Two further productions followed the next year. Fast-forward ten years and, with a new line-up shaped largely through the Northcott’s community workshops and community production, they have decided to make a comeback and are exploring what will come next.
This event is invite only and closed to the public.
Don’t Call Me China Doll
Fri 6 Nov | 7pm
Don’t Call Me China Doll is a one-woman show that explores the intricacies of internalised racism and self-worth. A compelling exploration of identity, discrimination , and progress, it prompts audiences to reflect on how and why East Asian artists still face the same barriers as they did a century ago.
Book ticketsThe Thing About Goats
Sat 7 Nov | 10am & 11.30am
The Thing About Goats is a new family production by Devon based puppetry company Baby Panda. Join us on Goat Mountain where everybody’s picnics are being ruined by a hungry goat who won’t stop until he’s eaten everything.
Book tickets
Unearthing: How not to mine your creative self
Sat 7 Nov | 10am | CLOSED WORKSHOP
Hannah Mulder has been exploring in her own practice how to de-programme the extractive mindset in which we are often trained and encouraged as artists, where we treat ourselves as a resource to be taken from. How could we relate to our ideas less as miners and more as gardeners, dance partners, lovers? How can we create space for ideas to grow into themselves and remain in relationship with them as they do?
This event is invite only and closed to the public.
Orientate: Dance Off Stage
Sat 7 Nov | 6pm | FREE
A light-hearted and curious dance performance in the public spaces at the Barnfield Theatre. Danced by two exciting graduates of contemporary dance, the work looks at how dancers view every day spaces.
Book ticketsKILN
Sat 7 Nov | 7.45pm
Set against the backdrop of Combe Martin and the centuries-old tradition of the Hunting of the Earl of Rone, KILN is a solo show about belonging, acceptance and the stories we inherit. Created with writer Kayleigh Caird and Ghostlight Productions, KILN is a story about the power of storytelling and the narratives we tell ourselves.
Book ticketsBecome an Elevate Member
Our free Elevate membership gives South West artists access to exclusive opportunities, press nights, social events and discounts, including a 10% discount at the Northcott and Barnfield bar and café, and ticket discounts on selected shows.
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