Tobacco Factory Theatres Will Perform Three New Productions In The Round

Artistic Director of Tobacco Factory Theatres, Heidi Vaughan, has announced three new shows to be performed in the round in the theatre’s main Factory Theatre; including co-productions with Opera Project and New International Encounter (NIE) and one, in-house Shakespeare production. 

This new season will see Tobacco Factory Theatres’ ‘unfailingly brilliant’ (Bristol 24/7) Christmas productions join hands with opera and Shakespeare which return to the theatres’ repertoire for the first time since before the Covid-19 pandemic. 

In a co-production with Opera Project, The Marriage of Figaro will be the first production staged-in-the round this autumn, running from Wednesday 2nd to Saturday 12th of October. Directed by Richard Studer (Artistic Director of Opera Project) and conducted by Jonathan Lyness (Musical Director of Opera Project), this will be the first opera to be staged at the venue since The Barber of Seville, the last collaboration between the two companies in 2019. 

TFT will once again join forces with New International Encounter this Christmas, following their hugely successful main house co-productions in recent years of The Snow Queen (2022), Snow White (2019) and Beauty & The Beast (2017). This year’s festive offer in The Factory Theatre will be Hansel and Gretel, directed by Alex Byrne (Artistic Director of NIE), and it will run from Thursday 28 November 2024 to Sunday 12 January 2025, with 11 dedicated performances for school groups to satisfy demand. 

Shakespeare will return to Tobacco Factory Theatres with Heidi Vaughan directing an in-house production of The Winter’s Tale from Thursday 20th of February 2025 to Saturday 29 March 2025. Tobacco Factory Theatres has a rich history of presenting Shakespeare with this production being the first home-produced adaptation of a Shakespeare play since A Midsummer Night’s Dream in 2019.  

Announcing this exciting season of home-produced and co-produced work, Artistic Director Heidi Vaughan said;  

“Tobacco Factory Theatres has a proud history of creating great theatre right here at our iconic home in South Bristol. We have spent the last year listening to our audiences and we believe this new season of productions complements our wonderful programme of received work; in a way that is both contemporary and classical in its offer. Our mission is to connect our community; by listening and providing a diverse offer of artistic adventures, and that’s why, alongside our existing creative and community work, we are bringing opera and Shakespeare back in-house, to proudly sit alongside our flagship annual Christmas show to form a new season of theatre that is being made right here at TFT.” 

“We are thrilled that Opera Project will co-produce The Marriage of Figaro with us in the Autumn and that our own theatre company will produce an in-house Shakespeare at the beginning of the New Year. With New International Encounter also returning this Christmas, who are enormously popular with Bristol audiences, this wonderful trio of in the round productions over the coming months will diversify our programme even further.” 

Speaking of their return to Bristol, Richard Studer & Jonathan Lyness of Opera Project said: 

“We are thrilled to be back at Tobacco Factory Theatres this autumn. It has been a long journey since the lockdown, but the time is right to relaunch our collaboration with Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro. We have a phenomenal cast of young artists, many of whom have already made their debuts at national and international level, so expect tears, laughter and a proper good night out. TFT has always felt like home to us and returning to Bristol where our careers started means so much to us both.” 

Alex Byrne, Artistic Director at New International Encounter said of his company’s Christmas show co-production with Tobacco Factory Theatres: 

“NIE are really excited to be coming back to Bristol for Christmas this year - because of the lovely space and wonderful audiences, Tobacco Factory Theatres is our favourite place to play. We are really pleased to be able to say that the cast features some much loved Bristol based performers who people will recognise from previous NIE/TFT Christmas shows, and they will also perform a rich mix of original acoustic music in the show on double bass, saxophone, piano and more.  Hansel & Gretel is a glorious mix of music, magic and joy, which we can’t wait to share with TFT audiences!” 

Directing her second show for TFT following her successful debut with Oliver Twist last Christmas, Vaughan’s second production at the helm will be Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale;  

“Shakespeare has a very special place in the history of Tobacco Factory Theatres and this title is very rarely done so I’m very much looking forward to be directing one of William Shakespeare's final plays, The Winter’s Tale is a wild and wonderful piece that is packed full of surprises and, of course, that famous stage direction”. 

All three productions will go on sale to members of Tobacco Factory Theatres on Tuesday 7th of May with general sale opening at 12.30pm on Thursday 9th of May. For Hansel & Gretel, there will be a special 20%-off EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT for all tickets purchased before midday on Wednesday 31 July. Tickets can be purchased at tobaccofactorytheatres.com or by calling the box office on 0117 902 0344. 

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