New Theatre Royal Associate Artists
Our Associate Artists are our partners in fulfilling our artistic vision in and around the Portsmouth area.
The Fabulous Josh
Josh is a performance-based artist working within a variety of disciplines, focused on bringing community activism with colourful accessibility. Drawing inspiration from working class culture The Fabulous Josh explores LGBTQ+ identity through pop culture, using their own autobiography as the practice helping manoeuvre important and poignant questions about what It means to be an ‘artist’ and ‘activist’
From nightclubs and galleries to community centres and theatres Josh eagerly lisps about all things queer, class and local – showing up and showing off.
As an award winning community activist Josh’s work within this sector directly feeds into the art created, trying to find meaningful ways to bridge gaps with communities but also to find a place where ‘community art’ has value and integrity, they do this through their company Downtown exploring the Portsmouth landscape to create bridges and physical spaces in the heart of Portsmouth, starting conversations on identity, placement and belonging, whether that’s through garden parties, workshops or classic cabaret performances. www.joshisfab.com
Filskit Theatre
Filskit is a Shetland word meaning “highly spirited, mischievous and excitable”.
Formed in 2009, Filskit Theatre’s mission is to ignite the imaginations of children & their families whilst developing artists, accessibility and engaging hard to reach audiences. They are committed to building future family audiences and working towards a more inclusive, diverse and sustainable sector by developing the art form and skills of their collaborators.
At the heart of their work is their interest in technology and how it can be used to help immerse young audiences in the world of a story. Filskit Theatre work with lighting, projection and puppetry to create a visual language that is both engaging and accessible. They place their young audiences at the centre of their devising process and strive to explore themes and issues that are relevant to them. As a touring company they have taken our unique blend of theatre to children and their families in arts venues, schools and festivals both nationally and internationally.
Some of Filskit’s past shows include Breaking The Ice, The Artist, Stella, award winning Huddle and our baby show, Kaleidoscope.
Naomi Gibbs
Naomi is a Southsea based costume designer, in residence at New Theatre Royal. Here, she works with a team of freelance makers, building costumes for new productions and clients in the entertainment and music industries all year round. She’s been designing for stage for over a decade. In 2009 Naomi set up business ‘Society Belle’ and in 2019 expanded to form a collective of skilled professionals under the name ‘Portsmouth Costumiers’.
Costume design and supervision credits include; Dream (supervision, RSC, Sarah Ellis), Jane Eyre (Blackeyed Theatre, Adrian McDougall), Alice in Wonderland (South Hill Park, Rosie Hill), Moon Language (Stopgap Dance Company, Siobhan Hayes), The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr Hyde (Blackeyed Theatre, Nick Lane), Beauty and the Beast (New Theatre Royal, Scott Ramsay), Teechers, (Blackeyed Theatre, Adrian McDougall), Sherlock Holmes and the Sign of Four, (Blackeyed Theatre, Nick Lane), Peter Pan, (New Theatre Royal, Scott Ramsay) Grimm Tales (South Hill Park, Julian Hirst), The Nutcracker (New Theatre Royal Portsmouth, Scott Ramsay), Aladdin (South Hill Park, Adam Stafford), Adventures in Slumberton (Stopgap Dance Company, Siobhan Hayes).
For a more comprehensive look at Naomi’s work, visit www.societybelle.co.uk
Instagram: @portsmouth_costumiers