18-20 JULY 2025

Surge welcomes applications from dancers, theatre makers, choreographers, designers, performers and directors. We are happy to receive applications from collaborating artists. We encourage applications from underrepresented voices. We also encourage applications that involve the integration of digital technologies.

 

‘it was well run with great mentors who had a lot to offer. The mix of the attendees was great with a range of disciplines and stages of development. A perfect setting to work and be inspired as it was comfortable, beautiful and the food was excellent! It enabled me to really focus on the show I had come to develop which is a complete luxury for me... and that is priceless!’

 

Gemma Mae Halligan – Amadan – previous participant.

 

Applicants should;


• Have a body of acclaimed professional work behind them in their specialist art form(s)


• Have an idea for the creation of a new work that uses movement as its primary form of expression

• The idea should be at an early stage of development


• The ideas can be for outdoor or indoor presentation

 

Surge will provide;


• Experienced mentors to lead the residency 

• A structured residency in a rural location in Scotland

• A balanced group of established artists representing a wide variety of projects

• Transport to and from residency location from Glasgow

• Accommodation and food for the duration of the residency

 

To Apply

Please send a project outline of your proposed new work in no more than 500 words plus a personal biography of you and any proposed collaborators for the project to Alan Richardson at alan@surge.scot by midnight  on Monday 17th November  2025. 

 

Applicants may be asked to attend an informal chat in person or on line on Wednesday 19th November

 

If you need further information or wish to discuss the suitability of your project, please contact Alan on alan@surge.scot 

 

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please note that the Merchant City Festival Outdoor Arts Commission at Scale(https://www.glasgowlife.org.uk/merchant-city-festival/mcf-2025-pages/opportunities ) will take place in the same venue during the same week. You are welcome to apply for both opportunities, either with the same project or with different ones.

 

Biographies

 

Gianti Giadi (Indonesia)
Gianti Giadi (Gigi) is a choreographer, dancer, artistic director, and educator, and the founder of Gigi Art of Dance, Gigi Dance Company, and Gigi Foundation (since 2009). A Lasalle College of the Arts (Singapore) graduate and former lecturer, she holds a BA (Hons) and multiple teaching certifications in CSTD Contemporary, Modern Jazz, and Musical Theatre (BDC, New York). Trained in RAD Ballet, Traditional Indonesian, Bharatanatyam, and Hip Hop, Gigi mentors six in-house crews, including Gcrew and G.O.

 

Honoured as a Singapore Tourism Board cultural ambassador in 2018, she bridges diverse cultures through her art. An associate artist with Maya Dance Theatre, she collaborates with Diverse Ability Dance Collective and mentors G-Star, a Down-syndrome dance group. Awarded Performing Arts Ambassador of Indonesia, Gigi’s latest touring work ALIH explores life, human connection, and mind-body unity. Her mission is to empower all through inclusive, expressive movement.

 

Hilary Westlake (UK)

Hilary Westlake trained at E.15 Acting School and performed with several avant-garde companies including Interaction's TOC and London La Mama before forming Lumiere & Son Theatre Company with writer, David Gale. The company produced over fifty original shows for theatres, ferry boats, botanical gardens, castles and swimming pools. The shows used text and music together with strong visual and choreographic elements. 

 

Hilary directs existing texts, operas and cabaret and creates large-scale site-specific performances. She has worked all over Europe, Australia and parts of Asia and has extensive experience running seminars and workshops for both professional and student performers, designers, writers and directors. as well creative consultancy on films, corporate presentations and live performances. In recent years, she has developed work with circus, street and other multi-artform performance practitioners and works frequently as mentor and facilitator with both emergent and established artists

 

Simon Biggs 

Simon Biggs is an award-winning writer, director, and animator based in Scotland. A graduate of Napier University with a BA in Photography, Film and Imaging, he has built a dynamic career creating innovative animated works that merge storytelling, technology, and physical experience. His films have screened internationally, earning recognition from BAFTA Scotland, the Celtic Media Festival, and the Hitchcock Jury Prize.

 

Simon has collaborated with major broadcasters and cultural institutions including CBeebies, BBC Bitesize, and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. His acclaimed works include Widdershins, The Burry Man, and Gaspard’s Foxtrot, which premiered at leading festivals and received multiple nominations. Dedicated to pushing the boundaries of animation, Simon continues to explore new forms of visual storytelling that extend beyond the screen.

 

Melanie Jordan

Melanie is a theatre maker, performer and director based in Ayrshire, who creates performance in outdoor and indoor spaces which is visually driven, physically dynamic and exposes our shared humanity with curiosity and humour. She is co-Artistic Director of multi award-winning feminist theatre company Jordan & Skinner (Sanitise, At A Stretch, A Brief History of the Fragile Male Ego, The Time Machine: A Radical Feminist Retelling) and also Physical Theatre Practitioner with Surge where she mentors and co-creates indoor and outdoor performance with community groups and professionals. 

 

Melanie was awarded Feral’s Neighbourhood Arts Residency 2023 to develop The Salty Coven, a cold-water community performance with Ayrshire’s wild swimmers. Other recent directing credits include Shrill, a Siren cabaret produced by Scissor Kick, Auntie Empire, a sing-a-long bouffon show about the horrors of empire by Disaster Plan, and Crackernuts by Hairy Heart Games, a video game using theatrical technique, physical performance and object manipulation. 

 

Alan Richardson

Alan has worked in the outdoor arts sector for 35 years as a producer, director, teacher, performer, and musical director. He has led outdoor arts training in Porto (European Capital of Culture 2001) and Liverpool (Hope St LTD) and programmed street theatre festivals in Porto, Liverpool, and Glasgow. His devised and directed performances have toured internationally with great success.

 

Currently Director of Surge, Alan promotes outdoor arts, physical theatre, and circus across Scotland. His work includes professional development, residencies, outreach programmes, and Surge Festival, Scotland’s only outdoor arts festival held each July in Glasgow.