Who Are Bootworks?
Artistic Policy
Bootworks Theatre Collective (C.I.C.) is a multi‐disciplined group of artists committed to making high quality and original theatre and performance. We strive to be both highly innovative and accessible with the work we create. Our commitment to touring to non-traditional locations and presenting cutting edge street theatre to audiences of all kinds engaging audiences from all walks of life is an area of our ongoing work that we are proud of and intend to continue and evolve.
Background
Bootworks (and The Black Box) have been making and touring work since 1999. The main work and company is Directed by Robert Daniels and Produced by Emily Coleman.
Bootworks is a theatre collective making a reputation, as one of the UK’s most innovative and unique theatre collectives. People of all ages and backgrounds will enjoy our work. Its nonverbal style is particularly accessible to audiences. Audience and promoters/press alike often comment on its intimate experience, inventive, energetic and skilful style and filmic visual direction. One of the key assets of The Black Box is its ability to engage audiences from all walks of life and this is a concept we are proud of and want to continue. During our 2008 tour people living in a deprived area of Liverpool, builders in Dublin and intoxicated festivalgoers alongside our peers and National theatre critics enjoyed our shows, and whilst our ambitions have grown, and opportunities granted, we'll always commit to the ethos that our work is to be of the highest artistic merit, whilst remaining accessible to all people from all walks of life.
The Black Box has proven to meet and often surpass the expectations of those who have commissioned and seen our work in the past, and our work is always overbooked and praised by our audiences for its quality and originality. We've been forging a reputation for ourselves over the last 2 years because of what we do and the way we are; a professional, hard-working, original theatre collective with a distinctive identity and standard of work. But this hasn't happened overnight. This year marks our 10th Birthday! We've been quietly working away for years on The Box; honing and evolving its form and aesthetic, and only in the last couple of years have made a concerted effort to push it proactively into the public sphere. We started by gaining the support of The University of Chichester and Farnham Maltings last year, and off the back of this support - and the opportunities they offered us (not to ignore the MASSIVE amount of hard work by Emily, our producer, to make it all happen!) – We have gained support from Without Walls, BAC and Forest Fringe and been selected to be part of The British Council Showcase in Edinburgh this year! A great landmark year and such a massive step forward in growth, status and reputation. The timing couldn't be better!