Arts Council Theatre Bursary Award (Ireland)

The Award provides artists with the time and resources to think, research, reflect and critically engage with their art.

Objectives

• The Theatre Bursary Award supports professional theatre artists to develop their artistic practice at all stages of their career.
• The focus of this award is on professional development. The award therefore provides artists with the time and resources to reflect on, interrogate and advance their artistic practice.
• The award supports a process of structured engagement with the development of theatre practice. There is a particular prioritisation on the development of a particular artistic impulse/artistic direction/area of theatre practice through structured research and experimentation and/or mentorship and/or collaboration.
• Please note that proposals to work on the development of specific projects for development or production – or elements of productions – will not be supported through this award. Equally, proposals for ongoing formal professional training will not be supported.
• The award aims to:
  • Afford theatre artists the time and space to explore and/or research ideas towards a specific artistic impulse and/or
  • Support theatre artists to develop their practice through investigation and research or through discrete training opportunities of non-accredited study and/or non-vocational training, and/or
  • Afford theatre artists the time and means to be mentored by a practitioner/s with a significant national or international track record, and/or
  • Enable an artist to undertake a Residency of no more than one-year duration with the partnership of an Arts Council-funded arts centre or other relevant Arts Council-funded theatre organisation and/or local-authority arts office. In such cases, the specific contents of the work programmes will be designed by the theatre artist in collaboration with an arts centre/festival/Arts Council-funded theatre organisation and/or the localauthority arts office. Please note that, while the artist’s own professional development is still the priority within the bursary award, in the context of a residency proposal the scope of work may also include working with other artists and communities of interest and/or the production of a finished work at the end of the period of the residency.

Funding Information

• The maximum amount that may be awarded to each successful applicant is:
  • €20,000
• The minimum amount that can be applied for is:
  • €5,000

What may you not apply for?

• You may not apply for more than one bursary award in any artform/artspractice area in any one round of funding – e.g. the same applicant cannot apply for a Dance Bursary Award and a Theatre Bursary Award in the same round.
• Activities and costs that you may not apply for include the following:
  • Activities or costs that do not fit the purpose of the award because they do not develop your theatre practice, skills or work or are better suited to another award funded by the Arts Council
  • Activities that are for the development of/for specific projects for production unless part of a residency proposal
  • Subscriptions, including ongoing software licences, that are unrelated to this proposal
  • Membership fees
  • Costs towards supporting or undertaking an internship or volunteer work
  • Activities that are more suited to another award funded by the Arts Council or operated by other state agencies, such as Culture Ireland
  • Activities that have already been completed or that will have commenced before a decision is made on your application
  • Activities undertaken for charity-fundraising purposes, for participation in a competition, or for primarily profit-making purposes
  • Activities that have already been assessed by the Arts Council, unless you demonstrate that you have developed the proposal since previously applying or if the Council has specifically advised you to redirect your application to this award. Please bear in mind that such advice is not an indication of a successful outcome

Who can apply?

• The award is open to emerging, mid-career and established professional theatre artists working in all genres.
• To be eligible to apply, applicants must:
  • Be resident in the Republic of Ireland. However, they may accept applications from outside the Republic of Ireland. In this case, you must detail in your application form how your proposal would benefit the arts in the Republic of Ireland. They would need to be satisfied with your explanation.
  • Be professional practising theatre artists, as set out under the definition above
  • Demonstrate a track record with between one and three relevant and recent examples of professional achievements.

Who cannot apply?

• People who are not eligible to apply include the following:
  • Individuals currently in undergraduate education (including those undertaking foundation courses)
  • Individuals seeking support towards fees for postgraduate, higher education – credited or unaccredited – or formal courses or modules
  • Individuals seeking support towards work undertaken as part of a formal course of study
  • Individuals seeking support towards the costs of undertaking an internship or volunteer work
  • They cannot accept applications from those employed or contracted on a full-time basis by, or are beneficial owners of, an arts organisation funded through Arts Council programmes or through direct state subsidy or by a commercial arts entity
  • Aosdána members in receipt of a cnuas.

For more information, visit The Arts Council.