Hastings Theatre Project is a brand-new theatre organisation based in Hastings, East Sussex. We exist to champion and progress theatre made by, for, and with the people of our town.
At the moment, we're a very small team (just Dan and Poppy - hi!) but we are already working with brilliant collaborators and hope to grow long into the future.
Hastings is a creative town with a large number of visual art and music events, though theatre has often been underrepresented. Despite this there are numerous theatre and screen creatives living in the area, but they are often forced to travel elsewhere (London primarily) to make work. We want to challenge the London-centric focus and support artists to make work locally.
Dan Hutton
Co-Artistic Director
Dan is a theatre director, producer, educator and facilitator. His work has been seen at The Yard, New Diorama Theatre, Camden People’s Theatre, Manchester Royal Exchange, the New Jersey Rep, and the Edinburgh Fringe, and he has worked for organisations such as Headlong, Leeds Playhouse, and the New Vic Theatre. He is a founding member and Associate Director of national touring theatre company Barrel Organ, Co-Creative Director of local theatre organisation Spun Glass Theatre and the author of Towards A Civic Theatre.
Poppy Rowley
Co-Artistic Director
Poppy is an award-winning director who has worked nationally and internationally. Her production of Grounded by George Brant won multiple awards at the Adelaide Fringe Festival 2019 & 2020. Previously she was Artistic Associate for Eastern Angles Theatre Company and Head of Year Two at Fourth Monkey Actor Training. She has experience of rural touring, community theatre, new writing, Shakespeare and verbatim theatre. Her training includes MfA Theatre Directing, Birkbeck, NT Studio Directors Course and arthaus.berlin.
Eleanor Westbrook
Associate Artist
Eleanor Westbrook is a classical Soprano and physical theatre performer and deviser. She studied Music & Drama at Manchester University and Mask, Clown and Devising at LISPA in Berlin (Arthaus.Berlin) and Postgraduate Diploma in Vocal performance at Trinity Laban Conservatoire where she is now a guest lecturer.
She has worked and performer and musician in various guises with companies including the Living Theatre (NYC), Kneehigh Theatre, Belarus Free Theatre, Waste Paper Opera Company, Moxie Brawl, Verity Standen and Wassail Theatre Company. She makes her own work, for example as part of local mother artist collective, Babes in Arms, performing at the Big Yin and De La Warr art galleries, for Fool’s Moon at Soho Theatre, for solo shows and for her kid’s music group “Crowniños” in Hastings.
She is currently setting up her own interdisciplinary performance company Tuft, launching with “Concert at the Castle” in Hastings Castle on September 13th. More info here!