Trajectories New Writers

A development programme for early-career playwrights to grow, connect and bring bold new stories to the stage

Date of Activity: October 2025 – January 2026
Location: Glasgow and online
Bursary support: £2000 plus access, travel and accommodation support
Age Range: 18-28

Over the shoulder of a figure with a script on their lap. They have short dark hair, a gold hoop earring in their left ear, a ring on their left thumb and their legs crossed. They are wearing a white collared shirt and black sweater vest.

Trajectories New Writers is an intensive new writing programme, including a combination of in-person and online workshops, masterclasses and one-to-one sessions with Douglas Maxwell alongside a range of leading industry professionals. Over a number of months, the artists have spent time sharpening their writing skills, experimenting with new ideas and developing their unique playwriting voice, culminating in a professionally directed showcase of their work at A Play, A Pie and A Pint in January 2026 – one of Scotland’s best-loved platforms for new writing.

Directed by Fiona Mackinnon and performed by emerging young actors, these early-stage plays invite you to question, examine and absorb the compelling stories these young writers have to tell. Stories that explore identity, belonging and possibility in Scotland’s evolving new writing landscape.

The 5 brand-new plays will be staged over 2 days on Friday 16 and Saturday 17 January 2026. You can read more about the plays and purchase tickets directly from the A Play, A Pie and A Pint Box Office page using the button below.

GET YOUR TICKETS NOW

Trajectories is a fully supported bursary programme that invests in early-career theatre artists making new performance work in Scotland. The previous Trajectories programme, focusing on theatre-making and performance, took place in Spring 2025 at Assembly Roxy, Edinburgh. You can read more about that programme here and get an inside look at the young artists developing new work here.

A group of people sat huddled in chairs look intently towards a woman with short blonde hair, wearing a blue denim jumpsuit. Her hands are raised in the air, gesturing with clenched fingers

“BEING A RECENT GRADUATE FROM A WORKING-CLASS BACKGROUND, I WAS INSPIRED BY THIS PROGRAMME. I AM SO LUCKY TO HAVE HAD THE TIME AND SPACE DURING TRAJECTORIES [TO FOCUS ON MY ARTISTIC DEVELOPMENT] BECAUSE I DON’T KNOW IF I COULD HAVE CREATED SOMETHING AT THE LEVEL I DID WITHOUT IT.”
Taya Sian – Trajectories Artist

“It’s great having others to learn from/with, and to feel safe sharing work both in the really early stages and in later stages. I’ve learnt that though a lot of writing is solitary, it doesn’t have to be lonely… Knowing I have a network of writers… who are keen to give me insightful feedback… makes me feel more confident in taking the work further than just the page.”
textLAB Artist