At any one time, we may have up to 40 projects in development, each receiving dedicated time, expertise and resources. Every project is supported in the way it needs, with the aim of giving the artistic idea the best possible opportunity to grow, be tested and realise its potential.

These projects sit at different stages of development, from early seed ideas to final play drafts moving towards production. Our artistic development and creative engagement work creates the space for artists to experiment, refine their ideas, build new relationships and deepen their practice. While not every project will ultimately become a National Theatre of Scotland production, each is rigorously explored and developed, generating learning, connections and creative value that extend beyond any single outcome.

For projects that do progress to production, the journey can be long. It can take between four and six years for a commissioned idea to evolve into a show on stage in front of an audience.

The list of projects currently in development is updated quarterly.

Current Projects

Rob Drummond is developing a new play about fatherhood with director Justin Martin and Assistant Dramaturg Grace Edwards.  

Shilpa T-Hyland  is creating a new musical about a long-distance romance between Delhi and Glasgow, conducted by airmail letters in the 1980s.  

Christina Gordon is developing a new show about Scottish cultural identity through an exploration of her grandfather the entertainer Andy Stewart, working with Dramaturg Isobel McArthur.

Ben Tagoe is writing a new play with songs about a 1990s Glaswegian City of Culture steel band, working with Dramaturg Felix Cross.

Isaac Savage and Jonathan O’Neill are writing a new musical about UFO fanatics and unbelievers.  A co-commission with Dundee Rep Theatre and Capital Theatres.

Thierry Mabonga is writing a new play about a group of African immigrant female cleaners working in a government building.

A new work is being developed with one of our True Story submitters, Dr Saqib Razzaq on behalf of Colourful Heritage about the Force K6 Muslim mule transport corps (part of RIASC) who escaped from Dunkirk during WWII and were subsequently stationed in the Scottish Highlands.

Hannah Lavery and Billy Letford are adapting one of Billy’s poetry collections exploring themes around humanity and AI.

Debbie Hannan and Laila Noble are developing a follow-up to Debbie’s recent play The Hen Night.

A new stage adaptation of a Disney animated film.  

Ross MacKay and Jordan Blackwood are developing a new play about the gaming industry in Dundee.

Síofra Campbell is developing a new play about the eighteenth-century Scottish economist, John Law, working in collaboration with Ewen Bremner.

Manjeet Mann and director Tessa Walker are developing a new play with songs about the Indian politician and Bandit Queen, Phoolan Devi.

Joeravar Sangha and Taqi Nazeer  are reimagining a Shakespeare tragedy.

Kirstin Innes is adapting one of her novels into a new musical with director Candice Edmunds.

Laurie Motherwell is developing a new play about Scottish identity through the lens of the nation's relationship with its national football team.

Daniel Jackson is writing a new play about the housing crisis.

Stef Smith is adapting a novel by Alice Hoffman, working with director Orla O'Loughlin.

We are supporting the Traverse Theatre to develop the development of a new dystopian eco-thriller by Isla Cowan, commissioned by the Traverse Theatre.

Dr Mojisola Kareem is developing a new theatre work set in an African hair salon, working with dramaturg Philip Howard.

A new play about care, dementia and relationships being developed with one of our True Story submitters.

Jack MacGregor is developing an adaptation of a Scottish novel with director Fraser Scott.

Joe McCann is writing a new play about abolitionist Frederick Douglass.

Robert Softley Gale, Scott Gilmour and Claire McKenzie are working with director Jemima Levick and story consultant Mairi Taylor  to redevelop a musical.  A BOP Co-Commission.

We are supporting writers' Niall Moorjani and Surya Elango to each develop a new play for a future production at A Play A Pie and A Pint through our South Asian Playwrights Programme, a partnership with Bijli Productions, A Play A Pie and A Pint and Playwrights' Studio, Scotland. 

Simone Kenyon is developing ideas for a sited performance marking the recent disappearance of previously permanent snow patches in Scotland.

Marie Williamson is exploring the creation of new football chants with east cost football fans.

Davey Anderson is engaging with communities in the East End of Glasgow to explore the city’s founding legends, secret histories and myths about the future.

Andrea Ling is leading a practical research enquiry into what kinds of “containers” or spaces teenage boys and young men might create for themselves, and what becomes possible when they have agency in shaping them.

Katrine Turner is undertaking a period of creative research around the themes of new towns and utopia, with a group of 8-12 year olds in Cranhill in Glasgow.

We are supporting Craig McCorquodale in developing a new participatory performance project exploring loneliness through the collective act of comfort eating. Commissioned and lead produced by Metal Culture. 

Header image | Kidnapped Rehearsal Credit: Julie Howden