What we do and why

Fuel leads the field in independent producing in the UK’s live performance sector, collaborating with curious, insightful and skilled theatre makers to create fresh experiences for adventurous people.

Fuel is 20! Since 2004, we have evolved a pioneering producing model that develops innovative ideas through attentive collaboration, a spirit of curiosity, and an emphasis on trust. We have developed a reputation for spirited and surprising new theatre, deep relationships with a wide range of artists, and passionate commitment to inclusion and care for young and diverse audiences.

We have produced shows, festivals, films, installations, podcasts, apps and books. In doing so we have supported the artistic development of over 120 lead artists or companies and reached more than a 1.5 million people, live and digitally. We have hosted over a hundred internships and been recognised with awards for our work.

We present our programme all over the UK and internationally. We have a distinctive and celebrated approach to artist development and significant producing experience across a broad range of art forms. We operate a building-free model and have a long history of strong collaborative partnerships. We have a proven commitment to improving representation and inclusion on stage and off, and experience of engaging new, diverse and under-served audiences.

We seek to model industry best practice in working collaboratively and respectfully with freelancers who are the lifeblood of our industry.

We serve a wide and diverse public through careful programming, strategic audience development methods, and a layered approach to engagement. This includes co-creating with non-professional artists and communities and collaborating with a broad range of specialist practitioners and researchers outside the arts. We seek to create accessible opportunities for deeper engagement, and value when this work has direct impact.

We have diverse income streams and strong relationships with many partners and funders. In a challenging economic context, we continue to underpin our commitment to creative innovation and risk with a proven and prudent approach to financial sustainability.

During the pandemic in 2020 and 2021, we presented online performances and events, indoor and outdoor live performances, and film and audio projects. We also played a significant role in the cultural sector during the pandemic, particularly in our work to mitigate challenges faced by the freelance workforce, leading by example and influence.

2004

Fuel is co-founded at Battersea Arts Centre by Louise Blackwell, Kate McGrath and Sarah Golding nee Quelch.

2006

Fuel becomes Producer for The Lyric Hammersmith, developing, producing and curating the programme with the Artistic Director.

2006

Kate McGrath and Louise Blackwell run Fuel together until 2017.

2006

Louise Blackwell forges new relationships with companies Clod Ensemble and later Fevered Sleep which would continue through to 2017.

2009

Fuel receives its first core funding from Arts Council England, becoming a Regularly Funded Organisation.

2010

Fuel is accepted onto the Arts Council England National Portfolio for the 2012 - 2015 round.

2012

The company becomes a registered charity with a Board of Trustees.

2013

Fuel kicks off a four year programme New Theatre in Your Neighbourhood to explore ways of improving touring of contemporary work across the UK.

2014

Fuel celebrates its tenth birthday with a special anniversary season across the UK including a festival in London.

2017

Kate McGrath becomes sole leader of the organisation. Barber Shop Chronicles premieres at the National Theatre.

2018

Fuel produces 14 projects of which 7 are premieres, reaching 66,000 across the UK and internationally.

2019

Fuel celebrates its 15th birthday with a season of exciting new work reaching over 185,000 audience members across the UK and internationally.

2020

Fuel commits to creatively responding to the Covid-19 pandemic, including a digital world tour of Love Letters at Home & Barber Shop Chronicles.

2021

Fuel emerges from the pandemic with new work, including tours of The Body Remembers & Peaceophobia. We launch a streaming platform, Fuel Digital.

2022

2022 sees premieres of two new productions - A Dead Body in Taos and The Gretchen Question. It also marks the start of a new business plan, to 2027.

2023

We premiere Protest by Hannah Lavery and Travis Alabanza’s When All Is Said, a series of five plays by Black trans writers performed over the phone.

2024

Fuel is 20! Our 20th anniversary season is a celebration of independently producing fresh work for adventurous people by inspiring artists.

Our Vision

Fuel works with the artists who we feel have the most vital ideas, to create an innovative programme which we feel asks the big questions of our times. We will connect those artists with audiences and participants who we feel will benefit most from their work, aiming to spark their curiosity, creativity and humanity. We will strive to do so with bravery and care.

We believe everyone has the right to participate freely in cultural life.

We believe in the power of art and creativity to create social change.

Our work is made with, by and for artists, audiences and our team: we are all theatre-makers.

Our purpose, as a team, is to bring these artists and audiences together.

Our Business Plan 2022-27 strives to achieve artistic innovation, public engagement, and both organisational and sector development in the years ahead.

Our vision will be realised through values-led relationships with artists, communities and places, supported by local, national and international partnerships.

How does Fuel work with artists?

We choose every artist, company or project we produce carefully. Each relationship is different and unique as we try to respond to the needs of each artist individually.

Broadly speaking, there are two key ways in which we work with artists:

On projects we initiate:

We commission artists to work with us on ideas we have. For example, we commissioned Travis Alabanza to curate a selection of five new plays by Black trans artists for the production When All Is Said, delivered to audiences one-on-one by telephone.

With individual artists and companies

We manage specific projects for artists such as Inua Ellams, Rachel Bagshaw, and Melanie Wilson as well as companies like Common Wealth and Uninvited Guests. We raise the money, do the marketing and press, handle the finances, project manage, production manage and administrate each project. We also work with artists and companies creatively on the development of each project. We tend to have an ongoing relationship with artists across multiple projects, and the long-term nature of our commitment to these artists reaps great benefits.

"The maverick theatre group that pushes new boundaries and makes theatre production sexy"

The Guardian on Fuel

"As immediate and vital as any piece of theatre can be"

The Reviews Hub on Nowhere (2024)

"addresses big concerns of gender, race and ecology convincingly and movingly"

The Times on Protest (2023)

"Racheal Ofori's satirical two-hander FLIP! bounces in like a breath of fresh air"

WhatsOnStage on FLIP! (2023)

"It's a powerhouse piece and testament to the power of complex storytelling, delivered with effective simplicity"

The Stage on Peaceophobia (2022)

"Clever, clear and compelling"

Financial Times on A Dead Body in Taos (2022)

"Compelling outdoor exploration of the imperilled Arctic"

The Guardian on The Gretchen Question (2022)

"You can't help but fall in love with it"

The Guardian on Love Letters Straight From Your Heart

Where does Fuel’s work happen?

We have team members based across the UK as we aim to increasingly decentralise to reflect our artists, programme and audiences. We also have a hybrid working system in place, which enables our team members to work remotely.

The projects we produce happen in all kinds of places: outdoor shows; workshops and residencies designed for particular groups; national tours to regional venues across all of the UK; and international tours across the globe. We have built relationships and partnerships with people based in places such as Manchester, Leeds, Devon, Belfast, Gloucester and Bristol. Further afield, we have partnered with companies and artists in countries such as the USA, Rwanda, South Africa, Ireland, Australia and India.