STOMPING GROUND CALL OUT

About the Open Call

Stomping Ground is a commissioning group comprised of Citymoves, Creative Crawley, FABRIC, FESTIVAL.ORG, Pagrav Dance Company, Strike A Light, The Place and Tramway. We work with artists to develop ambitious, high-quality work created for outdoor spaces that can grab the attention and imagination of audiences. We have supported a wide range of outdoor practices since the group’s inception in 2018. Our goal is to support compelling ideas originally conceived for the outdoors that have a strong impact and engage across a broad audience base, and which integrate access for audiences in imaginative ways. Shows commissioned by Stomping Ground have been presented in diverse contexts, including urban, rural, festival, and high street settings. Stomping Ground has previously commissioned works by Robby Graham, Requardt & Rosenberg, Joseph Toonga, Pagrav Dance Company, AndroidX + MHz, Jessica Walker, Richard Chappell Dance and Francesca Baglione (Miss High Leg Kick). This year we are delighted to welcome new partners, and to announce a focus for 2026 on dance for primary aged children. Partners: Citymoves Dance Agency (Aberdeen), Creative Crawley (Crawley), FABRIC (Midlands), FESTIVAL.ORG, Pagrav Dance Company, Strike A Light (Gloucester), The Place (London), and Tramway (Glasgow). THE COMMISSION: We are looking for a short solo or duet tourable to primary schools, festivals and other public spaces around the country. The piece needs to be suitable for performances in school playgrounds for primary aged children, to be presented as part of The Place’s Playground Tour Summer 2026. We also expect that the commissioned piece will be suitable to tour to other outdoor festival contexts offered by the Stomping Ground partners. The piece should be created with children as the primary audience in mind. However, we welcome proposals from artists interested in adapting aspects of the work for presentation to broader audiences in a festival setting. Small in scale doesn’t mean small in ambition. We are looking for ideas which encourage curiosity, discovery and joy, and want to commission works that are dynamic, engaging and centre innovation. In your application, we encourage you to think about what makes your idea particularly exciting for children. We know for example that children respond well to humour, high energy, decisive and bold movements. You might also be exploring a theme currently on the school curriculum or ask questions that will spark children’s curiosity. We are particularly interested to hear from artists who incorporate dance styles which are underrepresented in the sector. You don’t need to apply with a completely new idea. You can apply with a piece that has already had some development if it hasn't toured yet. We are expecting to build opportunities together with the artist for testing the piece with groups of children during the rehearsal process. This will be done in collaboration with the commissioning partners who are specialised in producing works for schools and wider outdoor contexts. We are inviting applications from UK-based artists, who define themselves as having an established practice, and track record of making and presenting high quality work. We encourage applications from artists with a range of lived experiences and from a range of backgrounds, and we particularly welcome applications from those who are underrepresented in the dance sector, including artists from Global Majority backgrounds, artists who identify as LGBTQIA+, deaf, disabled, neurodivergent artists and artists from lower socio-economic backgrounds. THE OFFER: The selected piece will receive a £20,000 commission, up to 2 weeks of studio space in kind at The Place, guidance on producing outdoor work for children, and performance opportunities with the commissioning partners. The piece will be co-produced by The Place as part of The Playground 2026, and go on a 5-week tour around schools and family festivals. The Stomping Ground partners may offer presentation opportunities which will be negotiated with the commissioned artists, and which will be subject to additional touring fees. Artists are not expected to raise additional match funding. Production, budget & timeline considerations: Applicants should consider the parameters below when submitting their idea. Production parameters: A solo or duet; Using dance or movement as the main medium; For children aged 6 to 10 year-old; Up to 20 minutes long, followed by a Q&A when touring to schools; Minimal props which can be packed easily and transported in a small vehicle; Can be performed on a variety of surfaces (e.g. concrete, astroturf, grass); or with a light and transportable flooring e.g mats; Can be performed twice a day; Can be toured with one technician. We encourage applicants to detail in their application any adjustments required for access needs. Budget parameters: We are expecting project to be made with: 3 to 4 weeks of rehearsal; 1 or 2 understudies; The piece’s presentation cost should be £2,000 maximum per show days including travel, accommodation and per diems; The Place will manage The Playground Tour and contract the performers separately. Performers will be paid a minimum of £660 per week, plus holiday pay. If invited for an interview, you will be asked to send in advance a creation and touring budget. Timeline parameters: The piece should be ready to premiere in June 2026; Available to tour for 5 weeks throughout June and July 2026; The commissioning partners will be given the priority to book the work for their festivals and outdoor events. More information about The Playground Tour can be found here. WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR: We are looking for ideas that are innovative, engaging and dynamic, and which respond to the way the world is now. In your application, we encourage you to think about what makes your idea particularly exciting for children. We know for example that primary audiences respond well to humour, high energy, decisive and bold movements. You might also be exploring a theme on the school curriculum or ask questions that will spark children’s curiosity. We encourage you to think about how your work will work in other outdoor contexts, how it can appeal to both dance and non-dance audiences, committed attendees and passersby. We are open to receiving ideas for adaptations of existing indoor works reimagined for outdoor, but we will want you to strongly demonstrate how the piece is suitable for outdoor performances. We are asking applicants to demonstrate in the form how access is considered in the way the piece is made and how it communicates with an audience. We are keen to hear from artists who want to explore more sustainable ways of making and touring, and who explore themes of environmental sustainability in their work. We will ask you to talk about your collaborators and the performers for the work you’re applying with. We are interested in hearing about how their skills and experience will contribute to making a high quality work. ELIGIBILITY: Artists applying must: Be based in the UK; Be applying for a work with a strong and distinctive movement element - we welcome applications from dance artists as well as artists from other disciplines who use movement in their practice; Have previous experience of making and touring high quality work in different contexts; Not apply with a work that has been submitted to Stomping Ground before unless it’s had further development since applying; Not currently be in education (unless at PhD level). We are interested in hearing from artists who we haven’t worked with before as well as artists we have existing relationships with. IMPORTANT DATES: Thursday 16 October 2025 | 9am-10.30am: online application workshop focusing on making work for children and for outdoors, BSL interpreted. Please email producing@theplace.org.uk to sign up; Wednesday 29 October 2025 | 12pm (midday): deadline for applications; Tuesday 2 or Wednesday 3 December 2025: online interviews; Shortlisted applicants will be notified by Friday 21 November 2025 if they are invited for an interview. If you have any questions, we would encourage you to read the application guidance carefully. If your question is not answered here, please email producing@theplace.org.uk. SELECTION PROCESS: The selection is carried out by a panel of producers and programmers who work in the partner organisations. If invited to an interview, you’ll need to tell us a bit more about your idea, how you’ll use the resources – money, strategic support - to make the project happen, and show how your previous experience will support you in making the work. You will also be asked to send in advance a creation and touring budget. You will be notified of the interview panel when invited to the interview and will be offered a fee to prepare for and attend the interview. ACCESS COSTS: The partners have a budget to support access costs for applicants to prepare for and attend an interview. There is no additional money, on top of the commission, to cover access costs in the making of the work. In some cases, support workers and/or access equipment and technology can be funded via Access to Work funding if support is necessary and relevant to you. For more information, visit the Government website or check out Disability Arts Online's handy guide to interpret the Access to Work rules and official guidance, with specific advice for the arts and cultural sector.

What is Offered

The selected piece will receive a £20,000 commission, up to 2 weeks of studio space in kind at The Place, guidance on producing outdoor work for children, and performance opportunities with the commissioning partners. The piece will be co-produced by The Place as part of The Playground 2026, and go on a 5-week tour around schools and family festivals. The Stomping Ground partners may offer presentation opportunities which will be negotiated with the commissioned artists, and which will be subject to additional touring fees. Artists are not expected to raise additional match funding.

Requirements

Artists applying must: Be based in the UK; Be applying for a work with a strong and distinctive movement element - we welcome applications from dance artists as well as artists from other disciplines who use movement in their practice; Have previous experience of making and touring high quality work in different contexts; Not apply with a work that has been submitted to Stomping Ground before unless it’s had further development since applying; Not currently be in education (unless at PhD level).

How to Apply

To apply, please fill in the form via this link: https://forms.gle/pLmA1vjtJ7nKoKQY6. You can also submit your application via video, please follow the instructions in the application form. A PDF version of the questions is available here: https://the-place.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/Stomping-Ground-2026-Application-Questions.pdf. An MP3 audio recording of the questions is available here: https://the-place.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/Stomping-Ground.mp3. If you require any support during the application process, or if another format or application process would be more accessible for you, please contact producing@theplace.org.uk and we will make the appropriate arrangements. Please also complete one of our Equal Opportunities monitoring forms which you will find attached to the application form. The Equal Opportunities monitoring form is optional and will help us to monitor whether our Call Outs are reaching groups that are currently underrepresented in our programmes. These forms will be reviewed by our HR team and will not be seen by the shortlisting or interview panel.