Open Theatre

What Open Theatre does

Open Theatre is a UK registered charity (charity number 291344, company number 01871300) and non-profit theatre and educational organisation founded in 1984 by Richard Hayhow and headquartered in Coventry, West Midlands. Its core offering is a 30+ year proprietary non-verbal physical theatre practice developed collaboratively with young people with learning disabilities. The methodology emphasises physical interaction, music, and ensemble theatre over scripts or spoken language, on the premise that approximately 80% of human communication is non-verbal.

The organisation operates across four interconnected product strands: (1) Ensemble Theatre, including the 15-strong Open Theatre Ensemble producing touring productions such as Falling (2026), Return to Wonderland, Search for the Second Star: Reimagined, Juke and Lake, and Valued or Vanished; (2) Educational Programmes, including Teaching Differently (a Paul Hamlyn Foundation-funded three-year teacher training research project) and weekly sessions in 19 special schools across the West Midlands reaching over 3,000 young people annually; (3) Creative Groups, including Open MAC (ages 8–14), One of a Kind (18+), Next Steps, and Tiger Tiger (for adults with profound and multiple learning disabilities); and (4) open-access resources such as the Open Theatre Open's Up video guides and the Ethical Fundraising Toolkit. The company engages 5,000+ young people annually and 50+ partner organisations cumulatively.

The business model is grant-funded rather than commercial. Primary revenue is Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation (NPO) funding, supplemented by The Paul Hamlyn Foundation, Birmingham and Coventry City Councils, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, and individual donations via JustGiving. Ticket income is nominal and access-oriented (e.g., £4.50–£8 per ticket, pay-as-you-feel options). Distribution is regional (West Midlands) with anchor venues including Birmingham REP, Birmingham Hippodrome, Belgrade Theatre, and MAC Birmingham; international interest has been registered from India, the Netherlands, and Australia, and a prior Siberia partnership (2012–2018) demonstrated cross-cultural applicability. Leadership comprises a 21-person staff team, a Board chaired by Professor Steven King, and an ensemble of 15 performers; the company holds Disability Confident Leader status.

Name

Open Theatre

Legal name

Open Theatre Company

Website

https://opentheatre.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Open Theatre is a UK registered charity that develops non-verbal physical theatre practice with young people with learning disabilities, delivering school sessions, touring productions, and creative groups across the West Midlands and nationally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Inclusive Theatre and Disability Arts Services

NAICS

Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters (711110), Fine Arts Schools (61161), Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters (71111)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Theatre Education, Training & Conservatories (MPAGABAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Children’s & Youth Theatre (MPAGABAE), Theater & Drama Education (Acting, Improvisation, Musical Theater) (EDAMAAAG), Fringe & Experimental Performing Arts (MPAGABAI)

Keywords

• Non-verbal physical theatre
• Inclusive performing arts
• Disability-led theatre
• SEN school programmes
• Immersive theatre productions

Headquarters

HQ city

Coventry

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Arts Council England Funding (NPO): Open Theatre is a National Portfolio Organisation (NPO) of Arts Council England, receiving long-term funding support that enables sustained operations and programme delivery.
2. Foundation Grants: Major grants from The Paul Hamlyn Foundation specifically fund the Teaching Differently three-year research project exploring how the practice can transform special education.
3. Individual Donations: Public donations through JustGiving platform to support creative opportunities and fair pay for artists.
4. Local Authority Funding: Funding from Birmingham & Coventry City Councils supporting operations and community programmes.
5. Ticket Sales: Revenue from theatre performances and immersive experiences, including tickets for Falling (£8), Search for the Second Star (£5), Return to Wonderland (£5/group), and Whispering Willows (£4.50).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Open Theatre Company is a registered charity that develops and delivers non-verbal physical theatre co-created with young people with learning disabilities. It produces touring ensemble and immersive productions for public and school audiences, runs weekly creative groups for participants aged 8 to adult (Open MAC, One Of A Kind, Open Theatre Ensemble, Next Steps, Tiger Tiger), delivers weekly sessions in 19 SEN schools across the West Midlands, and operates the Paul Hamlyn Foundation-funded Teaching Differently research and teacher-training programme. Open-access educational resources (Open's Up video guides, Ethical Fundraising Toolkit, Opening Up Access research) extend its methodology to teachers, parents and the wider arts sector.

Product overview

Open Theatre is a non-profit theatre and educational organisation (registered charity 291344) that operates across multiple interconnected strands: Ensemble Theatre, Immersive Theatre, Educational Programs, and Creative Groups. The core offering is non-verbal physical theatre created with and for young people with learning disabilities. Key productions include Falling, Return to Wonderland, Juke and Lake, and Search for the Second Star. Educational programs include Teaching Differently (a Paul Hamlyn Foundation-funded teacher training initiative) and weekly sessions in 19 schools across the West Midlands. Creative groups include Open MAC (ages 8-14), One Of A Kind (18+), and the Open Theatre Ensemble. Additional offerings include career development support, resources/toolkits (Open's Up, Ethical Fundraising Toolkit), and research projects (Opening Up Access). The organisation functions as a unified portfolio of interconnected creative and educational services rather than a single software product.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Teaching Differently: A three-year research project exploring how Open Theatre's non-verbal physical theatre practice can transform teaching and learning in special schools, funded by The Paul Hamlyn Foundation.
• One Of A Kind (OOAK)
• Open MAC
• Open Theatre Ensemble
• Tiger Tiger
• Next Steps

Products and services

• Falling A full-scale touring theatre production devised and performed by the Open Theatre Ensemble, on the borderlines of theatre, dance and mime, exploring love, mental health and freedom through non-verbal physical storytelling with live music.
• Juke and Lake A slapstick comedy duo performance featuring Jake Jarvis and Luke Greenwood who take on a day job at a toy factory after globe-trotting gigs. Performed at regional venues including The Albany Theatre and The Crescent Theatre.
• Return to Wonderland A summer immersive theatre programme across Birmingham and Coventry for young people with disabilities and their families, featuring two-hour sensory and musical experiences inspired by Alice in Wonderland with accessible family-friendly activities.
• Search for the Second Star: Reimagined An immersive Neverland adventure with live music, gentle sensory moments and participatory elements where audiences help three Lost Boys find their lost Star, in a non-verbal 30-minute performance.
• Valued or Vanished A devised performance exploring hidden histories of learning disabled people, including unpaid labour, institutionalisation and silencing of voices, created with Di Christian and Nottingham Trent University.
• Open Theatre Ensemble A 15-strong ensemble company of young emerging performers aged 21-35 with learning disabilities who meet weekly at The Birmingham Repertory Theatre to devise original theatre work using Open Theatre's non-verbal physical theatre practice.
• Open MAC Out-of-school weekly group for children with learning disabilities aged 8-14, meeting at Midlands Arts Centre (MAC) in Birmingham using non-verbal physical theatre with play, music, props and movement.
• One Of A Kind (OOAK) Creative group for people with learning disabilities aged 18+ meeting at Birmingham Hippodrome, celebrating differences and building confidence through non-verbal physical theatre.
• Next Steps Creative programme for young people with learning disabilities in Coventry, run in partnership with The Belgrade Theatre, with weekly sessions involving Riverbank Academy and Baginton Fields students exploring live performance and film projects.
• Tiger Tiger Creative group for adults with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD) run in collaboration with Services For Education, combining non-verbal physical theatre, live music and multisensory experiences, based at Focus in Birmingham.
• Teaching Differently Three-year research and training project that trains teachers in Open Theatre's non-verbal physical theatre practice to transform teaching and learning in special schools, funded by The Paul Hamlyn Foundation and embedded in West Midlands partner schools.
• School Sessions Programme Weekly non-verbal physical theatre sessions in 19 special schools and colleges across the West Midlands, engaging over 3,000 young people annually and building connection, creativity, capability and agency in pupils.
• Career Development Support Flexible career development support for artists with learning disabilities including mentoring, funding guidance, benefits navigation, and opportunities to lead, teach and perform; over 60% of supported young people have gained paid employment in the arts.
• Open Theatre Open's Up Resources A free pack of five video guides plus themed workshop activity sheets (Opposites, Magic Wand, Spots, Silly Fashion Show) for teachers and parents to use with young people with learning disabilities at home or in school.
• Online Resources Hub Curated website resource section with themed workshop activity sheets designed to be accessible at home or in classroom settings for families and teachers of young people with learning disabilities.

Quantifiable outcome

• 5,000+ young people worked with annually
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

24 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Birmingham HippodromeminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Partnership expanded during 2012-2018 period of growth following funding cuts, transforming company's reach and creative community.
• The Birmingham Repertory TheatrecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Weekly ensemble sessions held at The REP since 2022. The REP's Youth Theatre Festival hosts Open Theatre Ensemble on main stage. Partnership for Birmingham Commonwealth Games and Coventry City of Culture.
• Birmingham City UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Long history of collaboration with Applied Theatre and Community Education programme. Open Theatre holds sessions to share practice with university students. Alumni like Cobi have progressed into Open Theatre staff roles.
• Birmingham HippodromecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011Long-term home of One of a Kind (OOAK) creative group since moving from Selly Oak School in 2011. Partnership extends into creative programming.
• Belgrade Theatre CoventrycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOriginal venue for The Shysters programme (1997-2007) at Belgrade Theatre. Current partner for Next Steps creative programme and venue for Falling 2026 tour.
• Nottingham Trent UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partner in Valued or Vanished production with Di Christian, exploring hidden histories of learning disabled people.
• Di ChristiancoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerArtist collaborator on Valued or Vanished performance exploring the lived experiences and histories of people with learning disabilities.
• Uffculme School BirminghamcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead pilot school for Teaching Differently since 2023. Eight staff across Primary and Secondary sites participated in first year training. Senior leadership team joined programme in Year Three.
• Kingsbury AcademycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner school joining Teaching Differently programme in Year Two, expanding the programme's reach across West Midlands special schools.
• Sherbourne Fields Special SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner school joining Teaching Differently programme in Year Two alongside Kingsbury Academy.
• Fox HolliescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNew partner school beginning Teaching Differently journey in Year Three, supported by those who've been part of the project from the start.
• Worcester Arts WorkshopminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOriginal programme of community engagement where the first unofficial physical theatre session took place in 1984 with 10 adults at Perryfields Adult Day Centre.
• Siberia (International)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational partnership project in Siberia (2012-2018) showcased how non-verbal physical theatre could bridge boundaries and celebrate difference globally.
• Culture CentralcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint project Opening Up Access created with Culture Central and network of disabled artists, investigating ways to increase access to volunteering for d/Deaf, disabled, neuro-divergent people and people with learning disabilities.
• Services For EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCharity partner collaborating on Tiger Tiger creative group for adults with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD), with Services For Education leading on music.
• InnerSense (Harry Dawes)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConsultant whose pioneering work with people with PMLD inspired the Tiger Tiger project and continues as ongoing consultant.
• Focus BirminghamcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVenue base for Tiger Tiger sessions, delivered in equal partnership with Focus staff and participants.
• Geese Theatre CompanyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with Geese Theatre Company, Fierce, MAIA, Ort Gallery, and Talking Birds to create the Ethical Fundraising Toolkit for small arts organisations.
• FierceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on Ethical Fundraising Toolkit with Geese Theatre Company, MAIA, Ort Gallery, and Talking Birds.
• MAIAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on Ethical Fundraising Toolkit with Geese Theatre Company, Fierce, Ort Gallery, and Talking Birds.
• Ort GalleryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on Ethical Fundraising Toolkit with Geese Theatre Company, Fierce, MAIA, and Talking Birds.
• Talking BirdsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead collaborator on Ethical Fundraising Toolkit project with Geese Theatre Company, Fierce, MAIA, and Ort Gallery.
• Told By An IdiotminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTheatre company that ran clowning workshop with Millie and collaborated on Cops & Robbers silent film during first lockdown 2020.
• The REP (Birmingham Repertory Theatre)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOffered Jake an apprenticeship working in special schools and supporting younger participants, eventually awarding him Apprentice of the Year.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Belgrade Theatre: Coventry-based producing theatre and historic Open Theatre partner (since 1997) for the Next Steps programme and Falling tour venue. Comparable as a broader-incumbent theatre with community programming, but with a much wider remit beyond learning-disability focus.
• Birmingham Hippodrome: Major West Midlands venue that has hosted One of a Kind since 2011. Comparable as a regional incumbent theatre partner, though its programming spans mainstream commercial theatre far beyond inclusive practice.
• Birmingham Repertory Theatre: Large regional producing theatre and confirmed venue partner hosting Open Theatre Ensemble's weekly sessions. Comparable as a broader-incumbent performing arts organisation in the same geography, with overlapping inclusive programming but a much larger portfolio and scale.

Direct peers

• Geese Theatre Company: UK theatre company with a strong participatory and applied theatre practice. Already a confirmed collaborator with Open Theatre on the Ethical Fundraising Toolkit, and operates with comparable scale, methodology emphasis, and small-team operating model.
• Told by an Idiot: UK theatre company developing original devised theatre with an ensemble methodology. Confirmed collaborator with Open Theatre (Cops & Robbers silent film during 2020 lockdown), and comparable in scale, devised-physical-theatre practice, and ensemble operating model.
• Talking Birds: Coventry-based participatory theatre and performance company with a comparable small-team, project-based operating model. Lead collaborator with Open Theatre on the Ethical Fundraising Toolkit, making it a strong methodological and geographically proximate peer.
• Access All Areas: London-based inclusive theatre company producing work with learning-disabled and autistic performers, with embedded training and participation strands. Directly comparable as a UK learning-disability-led performing arts organisation with an integrated education arm.
• Mind the Gap: UK-based theatre company working specifically with learning-disabled artists, producing professional performances and running learning and participation programmes. Strongest direct peer given the closely aligned mission, methodology focus on learning disability, and touring/production model.
• MAIA: UK small arts organisation focused on inclusive, participatory practice. Collaborator on the Ethical Fundraising Toolkit alongside Open Theatre; relevant as a peer in mission, scale, and inclusive-practice positioning.
• Fierce: Birmingham-based disability- and queer-led arts organisation producing live performance and participation programmes. Directly comparable as a West Midlands-based disability-led peer with collaborative ties confirmed in the Ethical Fundraising Toolkit partnership.

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@OpenTheatreCompany
• Facebookfacebook.com/OpenTheatreCompany
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/opentheatre
• Instagraminstagram.com/open_theatre_co

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Open Theatre