Lyceum Youth Theatre announce Hannah Lavery Writer in Residence

Playwright, short story writer, poet and performer Hannah Lavery has been announced by The Royal Lyceum Theatre as the Lyceum Youth Theatre’s Writer in Residence, supported by the National Lottery through Creative Scotland.

Hannah’s critically acclaimed work includes The Drift, her autobiographical play produced by National Theatre of Scotland, and Lament for Sheku Bayoh, commissioned by The Lyceum and performed first as part of the Edinburgh International Festival 2019.

Last year she also directed Lament for Sheku Bayoh in a highly acclaimed production for The Lyceum, National Theatre of Scotland, and Edinburgh International Festival, filmed and streamed from The Lyceum main stage. She received a Summerhall Lab 2019 for her play Three Pints on a Sunday, written with Colin Bramwell, and was awarded a New Playwright Award from Playwrights Studio Scotland in the same

year. She was named as one of BBC Writer Room Scottish Voices of 2020, and was selected for The British Council and National Centre for Writing’s International Literature Showcase. Also in 2020, Hannah featured in a special The Stage 100, which recognised those in the arts who have gone above and beyond in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Hannah will work closely with our vibrant and inspired young people for a period of seven months, creating work that challenges, questions and captivates young people, seeking inspiration from other young people who are facing the challenges of the future head on, and asks the question: ‘What Would Greta Do?’

The paid residency offers a writer living in Scotland the opportunity to explore the creativity, activism and energy of the young people who attend the Lyceum’s Youth Theatre (LYT), benefitting from a meeting of minds between generations that will enrich their experience of the arts whilst giving the writer a unique opportunity to develop their craft and work alongside the whole Lyceum team.

There will be a travel provision allowing the fellow to travel from across Scotland, but the residency is organised to allow for remote working.

Hannah Lavery said: “I am so thrilled to be given the opportunity to work with LYT and to respond and be inspired by their energy and creativity. I’m hugely grateful to The Lyceum for the opportunity to develop as an artist and to in these isolating times be given an opportunity to be part of a community.”

Creative Learning Producer Sophie Howell said: “Having a writer in residency is a new experience for the LYT, and we are incredibly fortunate for that writer to be someone as exciting and responsive as Hannah. Her dedication to putting the voice of young people at the heart of the residency means she is the perfect fit for exploring the ‘What would Greta do’ theme.”