Big Imaginations

Big Imaginations Big Imaginations is a region-wide group of venues and promoters dedicated to bringing brilliant children’s theatre to the North West.

We are a region-wide group of venues and promoters dedicated to bringing brilliant children’s theatre to the North West. From grand auditoriums to rural village halls and everything in between, our mission is to spark the imagination of children aged 0-12 with the wonder of theatre. Big Imaginations has brought together 15 venues to make the North West’s children’s theatre offer bigger, better and more affordable.

3 week and 4 days until the deadline of the 2026/27 round of Artist Imagination Fund funding!So if you have an idea for ...
04/06/2026

3 week and 4 days until the deadline of the 2026/27 round of Artist Imagination Fund funding!

So if you have an idea for a new piece of children’s and family performance work, then this is the fund for you! Don’t delay, apply today!









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Another amazing performance of ‘The Jewellers Daughter’ by  at  Market, supported by !We’ll be seeing it again through s...
27/05/2026

Another amazing performance of ‘The Jewellers Daughter’ by at Market, supported by !

We’ll be seeing it again through summer 2026 and int 2027!

See , , & .nw for the next shows!

Artist Imagination Fund!On the 13th may we hosted an amazing AIF coffee morning style event online via ZOOM for theatre ...
26/05/2026

Artist Imagination Fund!

On the 13th may we hosted an amazing AIF coffee morning style event online via ZOOM for theatre makers to come and meet the network, hear from us about the fund and ask any questions.

We’re aware that not everyone was able to make it to this coffee morning event. With this in mind, we have published an FAQ’s page to hopefully address any immediate questions artists may have about the Artist Imagination Fund.

Link in our bio.









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🚨ARTIST IMAGINATION FUND🚨The Big Imaginations Artist Imagination Fund is still open! Deadline for application is Thursda...
19/05/2026

🚨ARTIST IMAGINATION FUND🚨

The Big Imaginations Artist Imagination Fund is still open! Deadline for application is Thursday 30th June 2026.

So, what’s are you waiting for? If you’ve got an idea for a piece of new and exciting children and family performance work, we want to hear from you! Don’t miss out on this amazing opportunity to have your work and its development supported by our network of 22 incredible arts organisations.

We hope to see your application by the 39th June 2026.









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🚨Artist Imagination Fund Applications are now open🚨Another year of Big Imaginations Artist Imagination Fund, funding is ...
06/05/2026

🚨Artist Imagination Fund Applications are now open🚨

Another year of Big Imaginations Artist Imagination Fund, funding is upon us! And we’re so excited to hear from you about the idea(s) that you have for performance work for children and families.

Do you have:
🎭 An idea you need to get out your head, play with and explore?
🎭 A project that needs some space and timet research and develop it?
🎭 A show that’s ready to be made and you need match funding?
🎭 Or something a little bit in between these!

If so, we want to hear from you about your idea!

The application form, plus some addiontal resources to support you with your application can be found on our LinkTree, which is in our bio.









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05/05/2026

🚨 Artist Imagination Fund Applications are now open! 🚨
Another year of Big Imaginations Artist Imagination Fund, funding is upon us! And we’re so excited to hear from you about the idea(s) that you have for performance work for children and families.



We’re excited to announce our AIF support package for 2026/27. This package exists to support artists who have an idea that they want to explore. This might be:



An initial idea you want to play around with
Something you want to take into an R&D process.
An idea you plan to apply to Arts Council England for and want match funding.

So if you have an idea, we want to hear from you!








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Artist Imagination FundThis year, Big Imaginations was able to support multiple different artists with different levels ...
15/04/2026

Artist Imagination Fund
This year, Big Imaginations was able to support multiple different artists with different levels of funding to help support them to create new and exciting theatre for children and families.
We’re writing this post to celebrate the amazing year of funding and creativity that Big Imaginations has been able to support across the 9 different artist. The fund we were able to give out were split into three categories, which were:
🎉 Seed Funding – 2 posts of £500 to support an artist to do some initial exploration and playing with an idea they have.
🎉Artist Imagination Funding – 3 pots of Funding up to £2,500 to support artists to research and develop an idea they have for a piece of children and family theatre.
🎉 Development Funding – 4 pots of money between £300 and £1000 to support artists to do further development on an already existing piece of theatre they have.

The artists who received these funds are as follows:

Seed Fund:
🎭 Paul Barnhill (Goofus Theatre)
🎭 Simone Lewis

Artist Imagination Fund:
🎭 Edy Hurst
🎭 Herd Theatre Company (Janice Ho and Elsie Shepard)
🎭 Natasha Kim Chapman

Development Funding:
🎭 Adam Blake (Adventure Arts)
🎭 Coalesce Dance Theatre
🎭 Gemma Bond
🎭 Knotted Hawk Productions

       







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Setting up for our Big Imaginations Away day at .artsmcr 🤩🤩🤩culturenwartsmcr
18/03/2026

Setting up for our Big Imaginations Away day at .artsmcr 🤩🤩🤩







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Link in LinkTree in BioJoin us for the launch of Writing the (r)age, a new resource supporting writers navigating the me...
17/02/2026

Link in LinkTree in Bio

Join us for the launch of Writing the (r)age, a new resource supporting writers navigating the menopause.

Curated by Rachel Barnett-Jones from a series of conversations with writers experiencing peri-menopause, these resource packs provide practical strategies for writers managing symptoms such as brain fog and fatigue, and offer guidance to organisations on creating inclusive, flexible environments.

The event will feature a keynote speech and expert panel discussion with representatives from the British Association of Performing Arts Medicine (BAPAM), the theatre maker Imogen Ashby, and other speakers soon to be announced. We will discuss the specific challenges writers face, from isolation to cognitive demands, and identify how the industry can better support freelancers. There will also be the opportunity for small-group discussions on what YOU feel you need to navigate this period of life.

The Launch of Writing the (r)age is Produced by Sheffield Theatres, Big Imaginations Network, and Sensible Creative. Supported by British Association of Performing Arts Medicine.

Hosted and Organised by , supported by , curated by Rachel Barnett-Jones.

Spotlight on   Natasha Kim Chapman is another one of our Artist Imagination Fund supported artists who’s been funded by ...
09/02/2026

Spotlight on

Natasha Kim Chapman is another one of our Artist Imagination Fund supported artists who’s been funded by Big Imaginations Artist Imagination Fund to research & develop her new show for children and families, called ‘The Jewellers Daughter’

About Natasha


Natasha’s passion is to use creativity to build community. As a theatre maker – facilitator, performer and project co-ordinator – she has used her wide set of skills to engage people with the arts for 15 years.

Since training in Community Drama at LIPA Natasha has worked with a number of different Theatres in the North West- including Collective Encounters, 20 Stories High, Black Box CIC, FUSE, Theatre Porto and The Octagon.

With a specialism of community engagement, she has regularly and successfully forged relationships between theatres, community groups, libraries and schools. Her focus is work with children and young people, particularly those deemed at risk or on the outskirts and she has a heart to use theatre and the arts to bring about awareness and change – socially, emotionally and politically.

Career highlights have included; taking a show to the International Community Arts Festival in Rotterdam, establishing and running Drama@theLighthouse (an intergenerational arts project in Wavertree) for 8 years, leading an annual Youth Residential, delivering an arts programme with young prisoners in Cape Town to encourage behavioural change; writing and directing ‘My 4 Years’ with a group of teenage performers- a show raising awareness about the impact of genocide.

More recently she is proud to have performed solo in ‘Every Brilliant Thing’ by Duncan MacMillan, supported her local primary school to gain a Platinum Award as an Ambassador for their Outdoor Play and Learning Programme – encouraging imaginative play and creative outdoor engagement, as well as leading Theatre Porto to become the first dedicated Children’s Theatre Venue in the UK to receive Sanctuary Status in her role as Sanctuary Lead.

She is honoured to have had the opportunity to work with thousands of children and young people so far – to learn from and with them and continually develop her practice

Address

Manchester
M155ZA

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