£25,000 grant awarded to the Royal Shakespeare Company: Voice Training for Actors

In a new partnership announced on 3^rd November 2025 Jerwood Foundation has awarded the Royal Shakespeare Company a grant of £25,000 to support their launch of a new actor training programme, created in collaboration with leading voice practitioner Professor Patsy Rodenburg.

In response to a changing creative landscape the RSC will offer a tailored training programme focused on supporting early and mid-career artists to build ensemble skills and develop the necessary vocal resilience needed to perform Shakespeare’s text with confidence.

The pilot year will provide the opportunity for 16 actors to participate in activity led by Patsy Rodenburg, and additional theatre practitioners and leading artists. Recruitment began in September and the actors are expected to complete their training in July 2026.

Lara Wardle, Executive Director and Trustee, Jerwood Foundation said:

Embarking on this new partnership with the Royal Shakespeare Company underlines Jerwood’s commitment to supporting both excellence and emerging talent in the arts in the UK. The voice training programme offers a unique opportunity to actors to enable them to develop this vital element of performance whilst receiving expert guidance from Professor Rodenburg.

RSC Co-Artistic Directors Tamara Harvey and Daniel Evans said:

The RSC has always championed traditional stagecraft and therefore shared Patsy Rodenburg’s concerns about our sector's decreasing emphasis on foundational craft skills. We struck up a dialogue to discuss what tangible steps we could take to ensure actors felt ‘match-fit’ for Shakespeare and classical texts.

The results of those conversations are this exciting new training programme, designed to support actors to build crucial foundational skills in voice and ensemble, taught through the lens of Shakespeare – highlighting the relevance of classical work to an actor’s craft.

We are tremendously grateful to the Jerwood Foundation for supporting us to pilot this new training pathway, which will equip actors of all backgrounds and experience with the tools, confidence, and collaborative ensemble spirit needed to bring both timeless and contemporary stories to life with clarity, power and meaning

For more information please see Royal Shakespeare Company | RSC

November 5, 2025

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£25,000 grant awarded to the Royal Shakespeare Company: Voice Training for Actors

In a new partnership announced on 3^rd November 2025 Jerwood Foundation has awarded the Royal Shakespeare Company a grant of £25,000 to support their launch of a new actor training programme, created in collaboration with leading voice practitioner Professor Patsy Rodenburg.

In response to a changing creative landscape the RSC will offer a tailored training programme focused on supporting early and mid-career artists to build ensemble skills and develop the necessary vocal resilience needed to perform Shakespeare’s text with confidence.

The pilot year will provide the opportunity for 16 actors to participate in activity led by Patsy Rodenburg, and additional theatre practitioners and leading artists. Recruitment began in September and the actors are expected to complete their training in July 2026.

Lara Wardle, Executive Director and Trustee, Jerwood Foundation said:

RSC Co-Artistic Directors Tamara Harvey and Daniel Evans said:

The results of those conversations are this exciting new training programme, designed to support actors to build crucial foundational skills in voice and ensemble, taught through the lens of Shakespeare – highlighting the relevance of classical work to an actor’s craft.

For more information please see Royal Shakespeare Company | RSC

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£25,000 grant awarded to the Royal Shakespeare Company: Voice Training for Actors

In a new partnership announced on 3rd November 2025 Jerwood Foundation has awarded the Royal Shakespeare Company a grant of £25,000 to support their launch of a new actor training programme, created in collaboration with leading voice practitioner Professor Patsy Rodenburg.

In response to a changing creative landscape the RSC will offer a tailored training programme focused on supporting early and mid-career artists to build ensemble skills and develop the necessary vocal resilience needed to perform Shakespeare’s text with confidence.

The pilot year will provide the opportunity for 16 actors to participate in activity led by Patsy Rodenburg, and additional theatre practitioners and leading artists. Recruitment began in September and the actors are expected to complete their training in July 2026.

Lara Wardle, Executive Director and Trustee, Jerwood Foundation said:

RSC Co-Artistic Directors Tamara Harvey and Daniel Evans said:

The results of those conversations are this exciting new training programme, designed to support actors to build crucial foundational skills in voice and ensemble, taught through the lens of Shakespeare – highlighting the relevance of classical work to an actor’s craft.

For more information please see Royal Shakespeare Company | RSC

In a new partnership announced on 3^rd November 2025 Jerwood Foundation has awarded the Royal Shakespeare Company a grant of £25,000 to support their launch of a new actor training programme, created in collaboration with leading voice practitioner Professor Patsy Rodenburg.