Account
Work Experience
Our work experience programme has been designed in response to the high number of enquiries we receive from school and college students for work experience opportunities. These opportunities are available to 15 – 19-year-olds and we have capacity for 6 students for a one-week work experience placement in June each year. We spread our programme across two weeks (with a cohort of 3 students attending each week).
Student feedback….
‘Working with the Theatre Royal was a great experience where I gained lots of skills working in many parts of the Theatre. I improved a lot in my confidence from doing customer service for the first time and my increased sales and communication skills showed in the opportunities I got to interact with customers and help them and sell them products. The staff at the Theatre were very kind and welcoming and always helped me make sure that I knew what I was doing and had useful things to help out with, but also gave me independence to learn on the spot when I had to use problem solving to fix an issue I had or something I was unused to, which always made me a lot better and confident in what I was doing.’
Work experience student studying Travel and Tourism Level 3, June 2025
“The entire staff were incredibly welcoming and friendly which made me feel less stressed and made the experience overall more enjoyable. Not only that but I had the opportunity to make two really lovely friends. The week was really well structured and gave brilliant insight into how the theatre runs and the community outreach it does. I would love to come back and help out again at the theatre and take part in future events.”
Work experience student June 2024
What will you learn?
Our work experience students work across all Theatre Royal departments and will be mentored by our Creative Learning team throughout the week. During the placement, students will gain valuable insight into the operation of a theatre and charity, discover job prospects, learn new skills and support our team to deliver our Doorstep Theatre Festival. To learn more about Doorstep Festival click here.
Learn more about Doorstep Festival.
Work experience students from our 2024 cohort.
What will you be doing?
Duties include (but are not limited to):
- Acting as a Doorstep Ambassador in our partner schools, representing Theatre Royal.
- Learning from the theatre companies involved and gaining insight into regional touring.
- Working across different departments, learning how they contribute to our organisation and then implementing your knowledge with real world experiences.
- Training in IT and phone enquiries where necessary.
- Undertake a workplace induction.
- Attend a CV writing and interview skills workshop.
Person Criteria:
- Have a passion for the performing arts and live events.
- Are looking to pursue a career in the arts.
- Are curious, proactive and reflective in their work.
- They can present themselves professionally and represent the theatre entirely during their time with us.
- Live within a 20-mile radius of Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds.
Do you want to see what it’s like to work inside a theatre?
Join us for work experience in 2026!
Get in touch
Explore more education options
Take a closer look…
Theatre Royal offers a range of opportunities, workshops and activities, from Youth Theatre to Teacher Networks.