About Oxford Playhouse and the Burton Taylor Studio
Positioned at the cultural heart of Oxfordshire, with the drive to inspire, engage and entertain a wide reaching and diverse audience, Oxford Playhouse brings together artists and audiences to experience great live performance. Oxford Playhouse regularly hosts some of the most dynamic touring theatre companies in Britain as well as producing its own work and touring both nationally and internationally.
Oxford Playhouse and its Burton Taylor Studio present and produce a wide range of live performance. The programme includes the best of British and international drama, family shows, contemporary dance and music, student and amateur shows, comedy, lectures and poetry.
We also create live performance here in Oxford. The Playhouse produces and tours its own shows, hosts Associate Artists, has launched EVOLVE an artist in residence scheme and presents Playhouse Plays Out, an ongoing series of off-site events which happen at locations across the county.
Oxford Playhouse manages the Burton Taylor Studio for The University of Oxford. This flexible 50 seat venue is used for student productions during the three eight week University terms. Throughout the rest of the year it runs a programme of small scale touring productions, workshops and activities for all ages.
Burton Taylor Studio - History
Richard Burton received his first standing ovation in Oxford while he was studying at Exeter College. The 18 year old had arrived in Oxford from West Glamorgan in 1944 for a six-month course that allowed him to combine RAF training with English Literature and Italian studies. John Gielgud was in the audience for that memorable Oxford University Dramatic Society (OUDS) performance of Measure for Measure and English Tutor Neville Coghill made Richard promise he would act in Oxford again one day.
The promise was kept in 1966 when Richard and his wife Elizabeth Taylor, at the time the highest paid star in the world, returned for an OUDS production of Doctor Faustus directed by Neville Coghill on the stage of Oxford Playhouse.
In 1966 Richard also donated money towards the Burton Rooms. Originally used as Reading rooms, for rehearsals and the occasional performance, it was in the late 1980s, while Oxford Playhouse was dark, that members of OUDS and other University students with a keen interest in drama, established the venue as somewhere that they could regularly put on their plays, and gave it the name the Burton Taylor Theatre, known today as the Burton Taylor Studio which is currently managed by Oxford Playhouse on behalf of the University of Oxford.
Burton Taylor Studio -Current
The Burton Taylor Studio is an exciting and well-recognised place to see new work in Oxford. Situated just around the corner from Oxford Playhouse, the 50-seater studio hosts a wide variety of student productions during each eight-week University term.
Out of term time the Burton Taylor Studio presents a dedicated programme of professional work including new writing, comedy, live music and dance. In addition the Studio offers an extensive family friendly programme, with work suitable for children as young as 18 months old and a play area before and after the shows.
Oxford Playhouse has continued with a commitment to produce new work for the Studio including One Small Step, which premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival before playing in Oxford in the Studio and undertaking a national and international tour, a small-scale production of The Wright Brothers by David Hastings, which premiered at the Singapore Arts Festival before playing at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Paterson Joseph’s play Sancho – An Act of Remembrance, which premiered in the Burton Taylor Studio, Bath Time and Tea Time, devised and directed by Toby Hulse, and a series of Christmas shows for the very young written and directed by Helen Eastman: Dear Father Christmas (2011/12), Where’s Father Christmas (2012/13), Father Christmas and the Icicle Bicycle (2013/14) and Hurry Up, Father Christmas (2015/16). The Christmas show for 2016/17 was Snowflakes by Cerrie Burnell which was extremely well received and gained excellent reviews. The Burton Taylor Studio is also committed to supporting local artists’ work. The intimate and adaptable space is the perfect platform for shows at all stages of development, from excerpts in scratch evenings to full-scale productions in any art form.
Work Experience Opportunity
The work experience placements are primarily aimed at those considering working in technical or front of house roles within a theatre. The placements are structured to give participants experience supporting professional and amateur visiting companies and the day-to-day management of a venue. Candidates should have some prior experience on an amateur, school or student level and be looking for their first experience within a professional environment.
Work experience at the Burton Taylor Studio as a Studio Assistant involves:
· Assisting visiting companies in the preparation of the studio including get-ins and get-outs.
· Providing front of house support at studio performances and marketing activities around the shows.
· Assisting with general maintenance tasks.
You will need an interest and enthusiasm for technical theatre, possess excellent communication skills and have a willingness to work flexibly in a pressured environment.
The placement will run from Monday 4th December 2017 – Sunday 14th January 2018, with time off to be worked out with the successful applicant.
You will be expected to be available full time, 39 hours per week and evening and weekend work will be required. Please note that work experience placements are voluntary positions.
How to apply:
The application form is an important part of the work experience process. To ensure fairness to all applicants any decision to short list you for interview will be based solely on the information you supply on your application form. Ensure you read the work experience description and person specification before you start to complete the form. It is important you give as much information as relevant regarding why you wish to apply and what makes you a suitable applicant.
Please complete the application form in black ink/type. If you have any difficulty completing this form please do let us know and we will arrange an alternative means of application with you.
If you need to attach a continuation sheet please mark your name clearly at the top of the sheet. Please limit continuation sheets to one side of A4
Completed applications should be emailed to or posted, together with the recruitment monitoring form, in an envelope marked on the top left corner “Burton Taylor Work Experience” to: Laura Smith, Executive Assistant, Oxford Playhouse, 11-12 Beaumont Street, Oxford, OX1 2LW.
Applications should arrive no later than:
12pm Friday 24th November 2017
Interviews will take place on Wednesday 29th November 2017.
Work Experience Opportunity Burton Taylor Studio Assistant
Department: Programming and Productions
Supervision & training provided by: Burton Taylor Studio Manager
Main Purpose of the opportunity
To gain experience of the running of the Burton Taylor Studio; Specifically, assisting with the preparation of the studio and assisting with the technical requirements of visiting companies and shows. To gain understanding of front of house duties and being the public face of the studio for the audience. To gain understanding of general support activity including marketing, ticket sales and maintenance.
Key internal contacts:
Burton Taylor Studio Manager
Key external contacts:
Audiences, visiting companies, the general public.
Tasks:
· To assist in the preparation of the studio as required by visiting companies, including rigging and plotting lights.
· To provide support front of house; issuing tickets and selling refreshments as necessary.
· To assist in the technical get-ins and get-outs.
· To assist in the operation of lights and/or sound equipment according to the needs of the company.
· To assist in the maintenance of equipment and to keep all electrical and sound areas clean, safe and tidy at all times.
· To liaise with visiting companies prior to their visit and assess technical requirements with the Burton Taylor Studio Manager.
· To assist with marketing activity in and out of the building.
· To assist in the setting up of Family Friendly activities front of house.
· To undertake any other duties as may reasonably be required.
Training will include:
· Studying and taking on board all matters of health and safety.
· Becoming familiar with the operating aspects of all technical equipment.
· Being aware of security procedures about the building.
· Taking advice on customer care and audience management
Desirable Skills and Attributes
· Have an interest in and enthusiasm for theatre and performance
· Have an ability to commit themselves fully to the task in hand
· Have a willingness to learn
· Be able to work independently
· Be comfortable using Word and Excel
· Be prepared to take on manual and practical tasks
· Be able to commit to flexible hours – including evenings and weekends
Application Form
Work experience opportunity at the Burton Taylor Studio
Dates you are applying for:
£ Monday 4th December 2017 – Sunday 14th January 2018
Personal Details
Name: / Email:Address:
Postcode: /
Phone Day:
Mobile:
I confirm that the details given on this application form are accurate (electronic signature acceptable):
Signed:
Date:
Suitability for the post:
Explain, with reference to the work experience description and person specification, why you think you would perform well as a Studio Assistant and how the work experience opportunity will benefit you. Please continue on a separate sheet if necessary.
Please insert your current CV at this point.
Include any qualifications you hold, awarding bodies and dates of those qualifications. Please also include any other training you have undertaken and detail any work experience you have (if any).
EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES RECRUITMENT MONITORING FORM
Oxford Playhouse is committed to a policy of equality of opportunity in employment and to taking action to avoid discrimination within the organisation. All applicants for employment are considered only on the information given in application regarding their ability to undertake the job for which they are applying.
This information is used for monitoring purposes only, and is removed from the application prior to the short-listing process.
Please tick the appropriate box:
Age range
£ Under 16 £ 17-24 £ 25-34 £ 35-44
£ 45-54 £ 55-64 £ 65+
Gender
£ Male £ Female £ Non-binary gender £ Prefer not to say
Ethnic Origin
Asian or Asian British
£ Indian £ Bangladeshi £ Pakistani £ Chinese
£ Other: Please write in:
Black or Black British
£ Black Caribbean £ Black African £ Other: Please write in:
Mixed
£ White & Black Caribbean £ White & Black African £ White & Asian
£ Other: Please write in:
White
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Other Ethnic Group
£ Other: Please write in:
Do you consider yourself to be a disabled person? £ Yes £ No
IMPORTANT: If you have answered yes to this question and you require any adjustments to be made in order for you participate fully in our recruitment process, please ensure you have indicated these in your application or on an additional sheet or email separately with details.
Please tell us how you found out about this post:
Thank you for your co-operation in completing this form.
Work Experience Placements November 2017 2