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A large group of people performing on a curved stage. Some stand and some are in wheelchairs. All are looking ahead and singing or talking wearing shades of pale orange clothing.
A large group of people performing on a curved stage. Some stand and some are in wheelchairs. All are looking ahead and singing or talking wearing shades of pale orange clothing.

Theatre Nation Partnership

Sunderland Culture is part of the Theatre Nation Partnership, representing Sunderland along with our city partner Sunderland Empire.

Theatre Nation Partnership is a collaborative network of arts organisations aiming to strengthen their relationship with local audiences, schools and communities.

Convened by National Theatre, the network is made up of theatres and creative organisations in 13 priority areas of England. By working together, we create more opportunities for people to engage with theatre and are on track to reach 500,000 targeted audiences, young people and community members between 2022 – 2025.

Public Acts

Public acts nationwide programme works with Theatre Nation Partnership members to create extraordinary acts of theatre and community across England.

Public Record (2025)

For 2025, Public Acts is coming to Sunderland with Sunderland Culture, Sunderland Empire and National Theatre working together on an original theatre piece!

Director of Public Acts Emily Lim, Co-Director and Choreographer Dan Canham and Sunderland-born musician Ross Millard (The Futureheads) are teaming up to develop a new production Public Record, a celebration of the people and music of Sunderland performed by community members and professional artists from across the city.

Set in a live recording studio, we witness the community coming together to record an album and, in doing so, to make a record of who they are. Using a combination of dance and live music, the piece will explore what it means to come together to write our own history, to capture our present and look forward to a shared future.

The piece is being developed in collaboration with community members and will feature an array of inspirational artists and musicians who represent the breadth of Sunderland’s rich cultural identity.

The production will take place from 25-27 April 2025 at The Fire Station, Sunderland and will feature over 50 people from partner community groups:

    • Connect Company – part of the beating heart of Sunderland Empire, a relaxed drama group for adults aged 18+ with additional needs. The group has toured shows and performed across the city of Sunderland
    • Back on the Map – working with and for local people to transform Hendon for the better. They work in the heart of the community to empower the people of Hendon by creating a better place, a stronger community and a local voice
    • Sunderland Nigerian Family Group – provides support for Nigerian families through shared experiences to encourage wellbeing for members and their children while navigating new cultures
    • The Alumni Group – an intergenerational group formed of Sunderland community members who took part in the 2023 nationwide Public Acts production of The Odyssey
Adults and children pose enthusiastically for a group photo in a corridor with grey panelled walls and wood flooring.

Engagement session with Sunderland-Nigerian Families Support Group at Sunderland Empire

The Odyssey (2023)

To celebrate the fifth anniversary of Public Acts in 2023, The Odyssey was reimagined as an epic, multi-venue production made in collaboration with hundreds of community members and professional artists from across the country.

Through this landmark project, the adventures of Odysseus were adapted for today and performed in a series of episodes across five venues in the Theatre Nation Partnership.

Sunderland Culture and Sunderland Empire worked in partnership with National Theatre to deliver the fourth episode here in the city.

The Sunderland episode, The Island of the Sun, featured a script by local playwright Lindsay Rodden and Artistic Direction from Newcastle-based Annie Rigby alongside music from singer-songwriter Sean Cooney (The Young ’Uns), choreography from Partick Ziza, choir leadership from Catherine Stephens (The Cornshed Sisters) alongside 34 volunteer performers of all ages.

The Island of the Sun was performed at The Fire Station, Sunderland on 28-29 April, 2023.

To commemorate the project, the National Theatre released a documentary, The Odyssey: A National Story, following the creation of this landmark production. The documentary gives a unique insight into how this epic production was brought to life, highlighting the power of theatre to bring communities together. It has been created by award-winning director Hanan Abdalla.

A group of people gathered in a circle in a white rehearsal room with wooden floors.
Open Media
A group of people, different ages, wearing costumes and performing on a stage that is lit orange/red. In the background is a big yellow semi-circle with strip lights hanging down to make it look like a setting sun.
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Eight people in swimsuits carry a wooden boat structure decorated with multicoloured ribbons into the sea. Roker pier stretches across the horizon.
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A group of people performing on stage with wooden furniture and an orange background.
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A person poses with their arms stretched out. There is a group of people in the background caught in different stages of movement.
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A boat structure made out of strips of wood and decorated with multicoloured ribbons sat inside Penshaw Monument.
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A large group of people performing on a circular stage with overhead lights streaming down on them. They're all holding their hands up high and look excited.
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Speak Up

Speak Up is a secondary school programme that sees young people working in collaboration with local artists and teachers to co-create artistic responses to issues that are most important to them.

Speak Up in Sunderland is run in partnership between National Theatre, Sunderland Culture and Sunderland Empire working with numerous schools across the city.

If you’re an artist interested in getting involved with this project, we would love to hear from you whatever your practice may be!

Register you’re interest

Three young people in school uniforms stand loosely in a line. The one in front gestures with their arm out to the left while the other too look on.
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Five young people sit around a table in a room lit by blue/green light. They are all wearing headphones with a microphone in front of them. Behind them is a silver fringe curtain hung up on the wall and green and white bunting that reads 'Speak Up'.
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