Blog - Page 3 of 4

An Artistic Leader Departs

Posted on: 31 Oct 2024

Extant – Pursued By A Ben As if by magic and in the blink of an eye, that’s my 15 months over and done with. I have come to the end of my time as Trainee Artistic Director at Extant and in some ways, it feels like about five minutes since I received the very […]

The background features a blurred silhouette of a building with distinct spires, identified as ZOO Southside. Orange and black text highlights key information about the event: ‘EXTANT X ZOO - EXTANT & VICS: ACCESS FOR VISUALLY IMPAIRED AUDIENCES DROP-IN SESSION. FRIDAY 2ND AUGUST, 11:30 AM - 1:30 PM, ZOO SOUTHSIDE CABARET BAR.’

Edinburgh Fringe event

Posted on: 9 Aug 2024

Edinburgh Fringe in crisis… By Louisa Sanfey, Artist Development Manager. It started with a Tweet (or whatever the X equivalent is now called!) “Of the 3,300 shows at Edinburgh Fringe Festival: 10 have audio description options (0.3%)” When I read this, I had to check out the facts for myself. As of today, the situation […]

A white woman with long blonde hair lies across a black aerial hoop in front of a backdrop of red haize. She is wearing a silver sparkly leotard with tassels around her hips. She is slim with strong arms; one on her hip, and one bent over her head. She looks elegant and is smiling.

Extant Connect

Posted on: 24 Jul 2024

Karina Jones at Extant Connect Extant Connect is Extant’s regular online session for blind and visually impaired (VI) people to network, talk, learn, and share ideas, taking place on the last Monday evening of every month. We vary between hosting guest speakers, workshops – and sometimes just having an open session to chat about whatever […]

A Letter to Judi Dench

Posted on: 20 Jun 2024

Dear Dame Judi Dench, You don’t know me. I am writing this letter/blog post because I read in the press recently that you are quitting acting because of your sight. This upset me for several reasons. Firstly, you are actual Judi Dench. You are amazing. I recently watched Philomena again, for about the 27th time, […]

Ben Wilson, a white man, with short blonde hair and a beard. He wears a floral shirt and is talking mid-sentence.

Identical Twins

Posted on: 5 Jun 2024

Trainee Artistic Director R&D Project on Toxic Masculinity During my time as Trainee Artistic Director (TAD) at Extant there has always been a pot of money for me to develop an artistic project of my own. This was one of the most attractive elements of the original job advertisement when I applied, so I’ve been […]

Ellen is a white woman, in her mid-twenties, with long brown hair. She is wearing a navy-blue jumper and has her arms crossed, with a big smile on her face.

The importance of making time for learning

Posted on: 3 Jun 2024

The importance of making time for learning One of the reasons why I joined Extant was to expand my knowledge and grow my practice in theatre and accessibility, and since I joined 8 months ago as Administrator and Project Coordinator, I have certainly been doing that! The staff team at Extant each have […]

A group of people from a range of backgrounds stand around a table with cooking utensils and biscuit dough. They are engaging with the props as part of the Touch Tour for ‘Pepper and Honey’ at The Courtyard, Hereford.

Enhance Makes A Splash!

Posted on: 3 Jun 2024

Enhance Makes A Splash! It has been a lively time for Enhance at Extant. Our first two Enhanced shows for our Paul Hamlyn Foundation funded roll-out – Pepper and Honey by Not Now Collective at The Courtyard, Hereford and English Kings Killing Foreigners by RealFake Theatre company at Camden People’s Theatre, London – both […]

A group of eight people of varying ethnicities and genders are rehearsing and smiling together. They are dressed colourfully and casually in a brightly lit white and green room.

Unseen: co-creation

Posted on: 3 Jun 2024

Unseen: co-creation and the devolution of creative power to a community of VI artists In November 2022, Maria Oshodi and I found ourselves representing Extant at a glitzy soiree at the House of Lords, hosted by the Vision Foundation in honour of the release of the Unseen Report. We were moved to hear the eloquent […]

A group of 8 people sitting around a large table in a modern rehearsal space. There are six women and two men, who are all varying ages. The picture is taken candidly as they are engaging in a table read. From Ben, who is wearing a blue T-shirt and has a beard, clockwise we have Ben Wilson, Georgie Morrell, Esther Irving, Tam Gilbert, Tafsila Khan, Louise Hall, Ian Rattray and Anna Clarkson.

An insight into the creation of Unseen

Posted on: 19 Mar 2024

An insight into the creation of Unseen: An Assistant Producer’s perspective “We’d be delighted to offer you a place on the devising team and the Assistant Producer role if you’re still interested.” Nice one. My reply […]

My Development As An Artistic Leader

Posted on: 5 Mar 2024

My Development As An Artistic Leader Amazingly, I am at the halfway point of my time as Trainee Artistic Director with Extant, but I am not sure how this has happened. The past seven and half months have flown by, but in other ways it feels like I have been at Extant forever. […]

Ben Wilson simmers over Richard III controversy

Posted on: 24 Jan 2024

Ben Wilson simmers over the recent Richard III controversy As a disabled person and a Shakespeare nerd, I struggle with Richard III. It’s a really tricky play. Part of me wants to tear it up and never see it again because it’s strewn with vile ableism from start to finish. My soul sinks every time […]

Blind in Theatre Festival

Posted on: 29 Nov 2023

Blind in Theatre Festival in Zagreb By Benjamin Wilson In October, along with Artist Development Manager Louisa, I lead Extant’s biannual visit to the Blind In Theatre festival (BIT) at the New Life theatre in Zagreb, Croatia. Louisa and I were joined by Samuel Brewer, Aarian Mehrabani and Alice Christina Corrigan. Sam and Aarian are […]