StoryFest 2025 announced, sponsored by STUDIOCANAL and Urban Myth Films
Copyright © Helen Murray 2025
NATIONAL YOUTH THEATRE ANNOUNCE EXPANDED 2025 EDITION OF NEW WRITING FESTIVAL StoryFest
SPONSORED BY STUDIOCANAL & URBAN MYTH FILMS
RETURNING FROM 2024, StoryFest WILL TAKE PLACE THIS JULY AT THE NYT’S RIBA AWARD-WINNING WORKSHOP THEATRE IN NORTH LONDON
StoryFest 2025 WILL BE SPONSORED BY STUDIOCANAL - CANAL+’S IN-HOUSE STUDIO AND EUROPE’S LEADING FILM AND SERIES STUDIO - AND URBAN MYTH FILMS - ONE OF STUDIOCANAL’S INVESTED PRODUCTION COMPANIES - AND WILL FEATURE TEN NEW PLAYS INCLUDING FOUR COMMISSIONS AND SIX NEW PLAYS BY CURRENT NYT MEMBERS SELECTED VIA AN OPEN CALL
IN ADDITION StoryFuture WILL EXPLORE THE FUTURE OF STORYTELLING, SUPPORTED BY MICROSOFT, CURATED BY CREATIVE TECHNOLOGIST AND LAST KINGDOM STAR JAMES NORTHCOTE – AND WILL FEATURE AT SXSW LONDON
NYT PLAYING UP COMPANY TO STAGE DISCO INFERNO BY MARTHA WATSON ALLPRESS, DIRECTED BY EMILY ABOUD
NYT AWARDED NATIONAL LOTTERY HERITAGE FUND GRANT TO BRING ARCHIVE TO LIFE WITH STORIES FROM 70 YEAR HISTORY AHEAD OF ANNIVERSARY IN 2026
Following a successful first edition, the National Youth Theatre’s new writing festival StoryFest returns this July to the National Youth Theatre’s RIBA award-winning headquarters in North London. StoryFest is a month-long festival that demonstrates the NYT’s commitment to championing new work from emerging talent, many of whom are alumni of the NYT themselves.
The 2025 event will be sponsored by STUDIOCANAL and Urban Myth Films - whose support will enable over 100 young creatives to have their voices heard in a boost for the next generation of British writing talent. Urban Myth Films previously supported, and were instrumental in delivering, NYT’s free Write to Shine new writing programme, which developed exciting new writers for stage and screen, many of whom are now working professionally. For the CANAL+ group this new partnership is another part of its strategy for content responsibility, boosting the industry and bringing out more diverse voices in all of its territories.
NYT Artistic Director and CEO Paul Roseby OBE said:
‘StoryFest is our response to the 80% drop in scratch nights for new writers and 30% decline in stories on our stages over the last 10 years. This July we're celebrating ten fresh voices, including six current members, selected from over 150 StoryFirst submissions. Featuring a comic teen coming of age story on skates, a humorous journey into the darkest corners of the femosphere on a Birmingham bin truck, a commission in response to last year’s riots, and sex, racism and daddy issues at Oxford. Come and support new stories performed by Britain’s best young storytellers.’
M-K Kennedy, Executive Managing Director of STUDIOCANAL WORLDWIDE TELEVISION said:
‘We’re honoured to partner with the National Youth Theatre on StoryFest. As a studio deeply invested in the future of storytelling, we believe it’s vital to create meaningful opportunities for diverse new voices to emerge, particularly at a time of such rapid change in our industry. Initiatives like this create vital pathways for emerging writers to build the skills and confidence to succeed, and this partnership reflects Studiocanal’s long-term ambition to foster exceptional, original talent for the next wave of scripted television’.
Johnny Capps, Joint CEO and Founder at Urban Myth Films and NYT alumnus, said:
‘Urban Myth Films are so pleased to be working with National Youth Theatre again to build on the success of Write to Shine, our previous new writing collaboration, which produced an array of excellent writers. Working hand in hand with our partners at STUDIOCANAL and NYT, we’re excited to discover and support bold new original voices from across the UK.’
Compass Collective said:
“Collaboration is at the heart of what we do and we are extremely proud to be an Associate Company of NYT. Working in partnership with organisations like NYT enables us to provide our young people with access to a range of high-quality opportunities and renowned platforms for cultural sharing and celebration. We believe in the power of theatre, and of creating new work, to share the stories and amplify the voices which deserve to be heard. The Flip Side will be our first commissioned work.”
Launched in 2024 in response to a 80% decline in scratch nights for writers to stage new stories in development, StoryFest 2024 premiered 6 new plays and featured 100 young creatives. Several of the 2024 plays have gone on to further development, including My Brother’s a Genius by Debris Stevenson, which will tour the UK in Spring 2026 in a new co-production with Theatre Centre, Sheffield Theatres and NYT.
Many of Britain’s leading dramatists have been commissioned at the start of their careers by NYT. They include James Graham (Sherwood), whose first paid commission was from the company, Jack Thorne (Adolescence) whose first play was developed and staged with NYT, 2025 BAFTA winner Lennie James (Save Me) who won a NYT playwriting competition when he was 16, Sarah Solemani (Chivalry), Miriam Battye (Succession) and Zawe Ashton (Character Breakdown). Alongside producing their own critically acclaimed productions, commissions from the pioneering youth arts charity are often programmed by leading venues. The NYT commissioned adaptation of Animal Farm by Tatty Hennessy was recently staged by Leeds Playhouse and Theatre Royal Stratford East and nominated for an Olivier Award and Evan Placey’s adaptation of Jekyll and Hyde toured nationally with the National Theatre.
2025’s StoryFest sees an expanded line-up of 10 new plays, including 6 new plays by NYT Members and 4 professional commissions, alongside the return of StoryFuture, which explores the future of storytelling with new technologies, supported by Microsoft.
StoryFest commissions include: Bin Girl by Lauren O’Rourke and directed by Matt Harrison, both NYT Alum, is set against the backdrop of the 2025 Birmingham bin strikes and explores the limits to female solidarity, developed in Birmingham with local NYT Members. Hinge meets Jane Austen in NYT member Gracie Oddie-James' playful and comic debut F*cking White Boys. Directed by NYT REP alum Jessica Enemokwu and set at Oxford University, the play explores sex, privilege and who's fetishising who.
The Flip Side is a coming-of-age story taking an unblinking look at the bizarre customs and brutal rituals of growing up in London today. Written by Shireen Mula and directed by Eleanor Henderson, the play will be created with and star breakout talent from National Youth Theatre and its associate company Compass Collective, a charity who support the integration of young refugees and people seeking asylum in the UK through the arts.
Compass Collective said: ‘Collaboration is at the heart of what we do and we are extremely proud to be an Associate Company of NYT. Working in partnership with organisations like NYT enables us to provide our young people with access to a range of high-quality opportunities and renowned platforms for cultural sharing and celebration. We believe in the power of theatre, and of creating new work, to share the stories and amplify the voices which deserve to be heard. The Flip Side will be our first commissioned work.’
THUNDER THIGHS is a teen comedy-drama set against the backdrop of roller derby, an energetic sport played on roller skates that prides itself on being inclusive. Written by TV writer and performance artist Krishna Istha (Sex Education) and directed by NYT alum and Co-Founder and Creative Associate at Mischief Theatre Nancy Zamit.
6 plays written by NYT Members, submitted through open call out StoryFirst and selected by NYT Members, Staff and Associate Artists, will be announced and go on sale in June. Over 150 scripts were submitted following FREE writing workshops around the UK in Exeter, Ipswich, Birmingham, Glasgow, Sunderland, London and online. StoryFuture on 25 July will explore the future of live storytelling incorporating new technologies including Artificial Intelligence, sharing work created through our national free Digital Accelerator programme supported by Microsoft. It will be curated by Creative Technologist and The Last Kingdom star James Northcote and will feature at SXSW London in a workshop on 4 June.
StoryFest runs from Thursday 10 July to Saturday 26 July and Pay What You Decide tickets are on sale now at www.nyt.org.uk/StoryFest.
The National Youth Theatre also announces the new play Disco Inferno by award-winning playwright Martha Watson Allpress (Patricia Gets Ready (for a date with the man that used to hit her). Directed by Evening Standard Future Theatre Fund winner Emily Aboud, the play explores young pop fandom following the death of an idol. Disco Inferno runs between 3 and 5 July and Pay What You Decide Tickets are on sale now at nyt.org.uk/discoinferno
Today NYT also launched Storytellers Start Here: a new National Lottery Heritage Fund supported project empowering a new national cohort of young heritage-led storytellers inspired by the innovation central to the 70-year history of the world's first youth theatre. The project will place young people in the lead to bring to life content from NYT’s archive as it celebrates its 70th anniversary in 2026. Storytellers Start Here is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Thanks to National Lottery players, we are uncovering and sharing NYT’s stories to celebrate our 70th anniversary.
Access and Our Supporters
This season will be staged at NYT’s Creative Production House, which is now a licensed venue and was recently awarded a 2025 Civic Trust Award and was Highly Commended for the 2025 Selwyn Goldsmith Awards for Universal Design, recognising how buildings allow all to use them with dignity and equality, putting people at the heart of design.
Everyone is welcome at all performances at the National Youth Theatre, where a relaxed approach is taken to movement and noise in the audience. Latecomers are admitted and audiences are free to leave the performance and come back in at any time. Ear defenders and ear plugs will be available for audiences to use during the performance and captioned performances are listed below. A Chill Out space will be available for audiences to use before and during performances. Pre-show information is available at www.nyt.org.uk.
National Youth Theatre would like to thank its principal supporter Arts Council England, as well as all of NYT's Centre Stage Supporters, Investors in Talent and Friends. We would like to thank Urban Myth Films for their support of StoryFest in 2025. We would also like to thank the following people and organisations for their support of Playing Up in the 2024/25 academic year: United Colleges Group; The Leverhulme Trust; Greater London Authority’s New Deal for Young People, supported by the Mayor of London through the Propel collaboration; The Clothworkers’ Foundation; Jacqueline Worswick; and Jack Petchey Foundation.