Rost Productions devises and performs street theatre and walkabout in collaboration with a group of associates; performers, makers, musicians, techies and others -under the Artistic direction of Jessica Rost.
The company provides a safe play space and opportunities for partners to come together, to continue developing as producers, performers and as divisors of street theatre and of outdoor arts.
“Thank you so much for your hard work and commitment as we battled the wind and rain to stage a really memorable night for Milton Keynes’ birthday. There’s always things we’d change if we were doing it all again, of course, but the feedback has been very good, from both clients and audiences, with the response on social media overwhelmingly positive. And we reached audiences that were truly reflective of Milton Keynes population as a whole, which is one of the strengths of working in the public realm. The Futurists was one of the highlights of the Fire Garden.”
Liz Pugh, Creative Producer – Walk the Plank, Nov 2017
The company has produced many exciting projects and new work including: Pockets of Resistance and Cuckoo Takeover.
You can find out more about current productions, availability and booking information here
As well as making and touring new work Rost Productions works in collaboration with Vagabondi Puppets, Annual Daydream Harvest and with Nick Garnett to create outdoor art performance and events.
2018 our collaborations led to the devising and creation of: The Annual Steam Hammer Rally and Picnic which was created especially for the SpareParts festivals in the North West and is a perambulating show based on ‘Art bikes’.
Artistic Director, Jessica Rost also created Peddlers Pack: so many things you never saw before, another perambulating show, (still available for bookings) which offers audiences one to one interactions, human connections and an alternative to the common place commercial experiences! The show was commissioned by Pedalling Culture, Milton Keynes.
Between 2012-2017 as Artistic Director, Jessica devised and directed many touring shows for the Milton Keynes based company, Festive Road, including: The Futurists which toured in the North West in 2017, Best Company, which was part of WW1 commemorations Jun-Sept 2015 and a ‘green’ show called Fair Play which used cycle power for sound and projection and which toured primary schools across SE England in 2013.
She directed several outdoor events including Paraffinalia, an annual winter festival in Milton Keynes, held three years consecutively between 2014-2016 and which centred around a large scale puppet spectacle which she devised, created and produced.
Jessica received the London 2012 Inspire Mark project for the touring show Brewing Up; a visual and musical experiment, created for Festive Road, which saw collaborations with many arts organisations, artists and schools across the SE England and which celebrated the great English obsession with drinking tea.
“Jessica is a truly creative artist. Undaunted by the scale of a challenge, she always delivers extraordinary work that delights, amuses and engages audiences with surprising moments. We have commissioned her to lead and work on many making projects as Director of Festive Road and worked closely with her as she led on the development of the official Fringe for IF: Milton Keynes International Festival. She works tirelessly to achieve what she sets out to do and is always willing to explore new ideas with partners.”
Monica Ferguson, Chief Executive & Artistic Director, The Stables, May 2018
Jessica was the Artistic Director of Milton Keynes Festival Fringe, 2012 -2017; a vibrant and engaging, fringe arts festival showcasing some of the most pioneering and experimental work in outdoor arts, immersive theatre, visual arts, performance, comedy, music and dance! During this time she produced, commissioned and curated numerous outdoor theatre pieces, interventions and installations, providing a platform for many emerging artists. She remains an active member of the board.
Previously she curated public exhibition spaces in Central Milton Keynes for Fringemk:Westbury, now Westbury Arts Centre. She also developed and ran three International artist residency programmes and Biannual International Artist Symposia/workshops at Westbury Arts Centre in Milton Keynes.
You can see examples of Jessica’s Performance and Outdoor Theatre work here