• Maketank // Making Space For Live Performance

      WHAT IS IT ABOUT?

      We are on a mission

      Maketank is an artist-led grassroots organisation. Its mission is to build a sustainable community-based platform for performance practitioners within the city to pioneer experimentation, collaboration, and creative civic engagement.

       

      Maketank aims to provide space for local artists to keep in practice, create new performance work, and exchange knowledge and resources.

      We see Maketank as a window to:

      • devising, with a flexible open-floor plan; adaptable to  embodied practices such as dance, physical theatre,  and immersive performance
      • workshop spaces for prop, set, object making of different kinds
      • a rehearsal space for local and visiting companies and artists 
      • a central location for creative community to think, meet, share ideas in co-working or conferencing environments

      Who is it for?

      Maketank is membership based & open to artists across disciplines: theatre, live art, experimental music, dance, performance writing, performance poetry, scenography, expanded film and video, cabaret, site responsive and site specific interventions, participatory and social practice, etc.

       

      Run by volunteers, Maketank relies on community support to cover its monthly overhead.

       

       

      Where is it happening?

      Maketank occupies a large disused commercial space in the city centre’s former Sofa Workshop on 3-5 Paris Street, Exeter EX1 2JB. On a ground floor it has a large rehearsal & workshop space for costume/scenography making, co-working area, on the upper floor it has co-working Writers Den space with tea/coffee service, and a bank of resources for artists to share with each other. ACCESSIBILITY: We are located at street level, and toilets are on the 2nd floor. There are accessible toilets approx 50m away at St Stephens House.

      Maketank is made possible with the support of the following organisations:

       

      Exeter City Council

      Exeter Phoenix

      Princesshay

      MacArthur Wilson

    • People

      who make it happen

      Charlotte Evans

      founder/Co-Director

      Charlotte Evans is a theatre director, performer and (occasional) stage manager. She is a recent graduate from the University of Exeter Drama Department. In 2018 she directed Valeriy Pecheykin's 'A Little Hero' at the White Bear in London. Notably, this work had never been performed in the author's country in its entirety due to Russian "homosexual propaganda" laws. In March 2019, Charlotte became one of four Centre Stage Creatives to represent the National Youth Theatre. The scheme is made possible by the Foyle Foundation and supports Charlotte's work at Maketank.

      Olya Petrakova

      founder/Co-Director

      Olya Petrakova is an actor, director and creative industries practitioner with over fifteen years’ experience. With an emphasis on creative entrepreneurship, Olya specialises in transforming disused urban and rural spaces into performance venues. With a track record in producing, curating, and organising festivals and conferences, Olya is passionate about cross-disciplinary working and community engagement. In addition, Olya is co-Artistic Director of ARTEL (American Russian Theatre Ensemble Laboratory), a visual theatre company and Lecturer/MA Creativity at the University of Exeter, College of Humanities.