Ellie Keel

Shrinking subsidies and dwindling support for the arts mean the number of independent producers is far below the number of new plays being written. But forget sliding into self-pity, says Ellie Keel – try self-producing instead

Producer Ellie Keel vowed that last year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe would be her last. However, as August approaches, she finds herself preparing for another stint in the Scottish capital. Would the festival be quite so crucial if the UK had a better funded theatre sector?, she wonders

Feeling uneasy after viewing new plays in the West End, producer and co-founder of the Women’s Prize for Playwriting Ellie Keel looks at the treacherous conditions for writers throughout the theatre ecosystem

Producer Ellie Keel took three shows to the Edinburgh Fringe this year. All new. All unsubsidised. Why would she want to take the risk? She explains what motivates her to keep being bold with the work and artists that she chooses to take on

Cancelled transport, funding delays, empty accounts, five-hour train journeys: producer Ellie Keel handles all of this, and more, before 10am. She takes us on her journey to Edinburgh as she prepares to take three shows to the festival