Bristol launched an inter-uni new writing competition in 2011 and has big plans to expand to more universities in 2012.

Bristol has a really diverse drama scene, ranging from devised productions by drama students in the Wickham Theatre, to a 48 hour new writing show by Musical Theatre Bristol, to performances on the Treasure Island stage on King’s street during the summer Harbour Festival. There are plenty of amateur theatre companies with links to both Bristol and UWE universities and lots of interesting venues – several of which are located in and around local pubs.

What’s going on

Hopefully you’ll be able to find all the information you might need on the site: we have a comprehensive calendar of theatrical events, a city map showing all the theatrical venues in the city, and a tag cloud of theatre societies on our homepage. If you feel there’s anything we’re missing though, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

What’s good to go and see

To find out what’s good to go and see each week, read our two student reviews from the first night performance of student, amateur and professional productions in Bristol (published online 18 hours after the start of the performance). Epigram, the student printed newspaper, also reviews some plays; the Bristol Playgroup publishes two anonymous reviews of performances without star ratings; and Intermission Bristol is an online forum for cultural information. Other professional publications include the Bristol Evening Post (the local paper), Venue (a monthly arts magazine for Bristol and Bath) and Guide 2 Bristol.

How to get involved: reviewing

Any student (with an ac.uk email address) who is interested in theatre can review for us. Simply request to review the play of your choice online (go to the specific event’s page or to your ‘my reviews’ page to sign up). Tickets are allocated on a first come first served basis; if all the spaces are filled, you can be put on a waiting list so that you are the first one to be contacted if spaces become available.

How to get involved: acting, producing, directing, technical

Check out different societies’ portfolios from the links on our homepage, or search people’s portfolios to see who you’d like to work with. The website Theatre Bristol also provides invaluable help connecting theatre makers and audiences.

Exciting events to watch out for:

Spotlights drama society’s FLASH Autumn term:

• Any fresher who auditions gets in.
• The idea is to create a piece of theatre (with no props) that must look spontaneous
• You will be given a place to perform it in

DramSoc’s TRASH, Autumn term:

• DramSoc members direct freshers in a scene from a famous play

Panto Soc’s big Christmas Panto, end of Autumn Term

bristoltheatrereview.com’s radio drama competition, Spring Term:

• 10-15 minute script entries in by January 2012
• The winning entry will be produced and will go through to an inter-university competition

onlinetheatrereview.com’s Inter-Uni radio drama competition, Spring Term

Inter-Uni Competition, Spring term:

• This new writing competition between universities was launched by Bristol students in 2011
• Bristol won the competition in 2011 (universities that entered: Bristol, Cambridge and Oxford)
• There are hopes to expand to more universities for 2012

Panto Soc’s free panto, Spring term