The Marilyn Imrie Fellowship

Stellar Quines and A Play, A Pie and A Pint worked in partnership in 2022 to launch three fellowships to support theatre artists to develop their practice. The fellowships are in memory of Marilyn Imrie, a celebrated theatre director and radio producer whose huge talent and inspiration played an important role within both companies. 

Two fellowship positions were created with Stellar Quines. These offer a bespoke, co-designed learning journey for theatre artists or practitioners interested in exploring intersectional feminist theatre practice in any discipline.

The initial fellowships are now complete.

Meet The Marilyn Imrie Fellowship receipients

The 2022/2023 programme received a large number of applications and our selection panel was incredibly impressed by the high standard of these.

The recipients of The Marilyn Imrie Fellowship were Julia Taudevin and Helen Shutt.

Julia and Helen undertook individual fellowship programmes with Stellar Quines over 9 months.

Julia Taudevin

Julia is a writer, director and performer working in stage and screen and co-Artistic Director of Glasgow based theatre company Disaster Plan. She has been making award-winning theatre for over a decade. Hit plays include Dario Fo Award winner Blow Off and Move, which recently completed its triumphant tour of 12 Scottish beaches, both of which she also performed in and directed. Other directing credits include CATS Best New Play award winners Beats and Heads Up both by Kieran Hurley. She has made a number of award-winning/nominated short films and has her first feature in development. She was the 2019-20 IASH fellow and is currently under commission to the Lyceum and NTS.

Line of enquiry: How do I build emotional resilience into my practice as a writer-director who is a survivor and prioritises working with survivors?

Helen Shutt

Helen is a writer and researcher with a particular interest in participatory performance. She was a writer and producer for Leith based new writing collective Village Pub Theatre. In her recent doctoral research, undertaken at the University of Glasgow, she explored playwriting and participation. As a theatre practitioner and researcher, she has used the performing arts as a tool for addressing experiences of sex and gender based-violence, collaborating with NGOs in Malawi (Theatre for a Change) and Sierra Leone (Timap for Justice).

Line of Enquiry: I will explore the intersection between playwriting practice and principles of care, examining how caring values can be embedded in the dramaturgy of a play from the early stages of script development, towards both a safer working environment and aesthetic experimentation.

Can you help fund the future of the Marilyn Imrie Fellowship?

Stellar Quines and A Play, A Pie and A Pint provided £12,000 in funding for the inaugural year of the Fellowship. We are seeking donations to support this work for future years.

If you would like to have a conversation about how you can support artists to develop their work as part of the Marilyn Imrie Fellowship programme, please get in touch with barbie@stellarquines.co.uk or make a donation

Support The Marilyn Imrie Fellowship

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Marilyn Imrie

Marilyn Imrie was a celebrated theatre director and one of the most respected producers of radio drama of her generation. Her work won awards and her reputation attracted some of the most notable talents in the profession. As well as directing productions for Stellar Quines and A Play, A Pie and A Pint, she also served as joint chair of the Board of Stellar Quines and was a long-time collaborator and friend to both companies.

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“Marilyn was a very accomplished stage and radio drama director and did many very successful productions for the Company. As Chair of the Board of Stellar Quines she brought new people and ideas into the frame, she was hugely ambitious for the Company and her influence and generosity took us to new and exciting places.She was always looking for new initiatives for us and would return from a visit to London with scripts and ideas for projects.

“The spirit of Stellar Quines’ fellowship initiative is enshrined in Marilyn’s creative life and it is a fitting legacy to her loving kindness, talent and inspiration that she gave to all artists she worked with and to those in the future.”

– Muriel Romanes, former Artistic Director of Stellar Quines

Image by James Runcie

More information about the programme

The Marilyn Imrie Fellowships offered with Stellar Quines are aimed at artists and practitioners whose practice aligns with our mission to explore intersectional feminism through the performing arts and with those who are challenging the patriarchy through their work. 

While each programme is uniquely designed to match the individuals’ objectives and needs, every programme includes access to mentoring, bespoke introductions connections, sharing opportunities and a bursary.

Applications for the 2022/2023 programme were open to theatre practitioners:

Based and working in Scotland. 
Working in any discipline within the professional theatre sector;
Of any age, gender or career stage;
With experience and interest in exploring and/or developing intersectional feminist theatre and/or work that challenges the patriarchy.;

Applications for our 2022/2023 fellowships are now closed. Please check back for details about future opportunities.

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