Theatre artist Nick Kavanagh, of Curious State Theatre Company, has been announced as Theatre Royal’s ‘artist in residence’ for 2023.

The Waterford-born performer, director, writer and tutor will work at the theatre throughout the year on a number of exciting new projects for Curious State, which he established in 2016. Much of this site-responsive work will be anchored within and inspired by Theatre Royal’s new urban biodiversity garden and in line with both the theatre’s and Curious State’s ‘green arts’ strategies.

Highlights planned include the development of ‘climate conscious’ workshops and theatre pieces that will engage with theatre makers, local primary and secondary schools and SETU students. The residency will also involve a research project that delves into the rich history and archives of Theatre Royal to create a new piece of theatre.

“The performers, musicians, creatives and technicians that come together to produce the core Curious State productions will all work at Theatre Royal at various points during the year on these projects”, Nick commented. “This includes performer/ musicians Killian Browne, Cilian Jacob and Kate Powell, performers Ciara Healy and Laura Broderick, sound technician Dean Caulfield, sound designer Joe Harney and director Eoin O’hAnnracháin. We aim to use our time and space at the Theatre Royal as an incubation studio, a testbed to reflect, research and create new methods of working and to foster new relationships with other creatives in the region while we develop new work that is climate conscious and in harmony with the need to reduce our collective carbon footprints. This residency is a much-needed refuge for Curious State, post-pandemic. It gives us an invaluable opportunity for us to reestablish our working rhythms and to reignite our creative energy by situating ourselves in the heart of the city and using this base to strike-up new supports and working relationships.”

Theatre Royal Director Mary Boland said the theatre team was excited about collaborating with Nick in the months ahead: “Having a person of Nick’s immense talent and skill make and create exciting new work on The Mall with and for audiences is very exciting. The team is looking forward to working with Nick as he creates visual and sensory treats that link to our biodiversity garden and transformational green journey, and we are especially grateful to the Arts Council and Waterford Council for supporting Nick at the Theatre Royal.”