SOUTH West-based theatre company Pipeline has been awarded funding to develop a new play, George and the Drag Queen, for a national tour this autumn. The company has been commissioned to develop the project by the Create Tour Connect partnership.

The Falmouth-based company won the commission after a competitive application process. The selection process for the south west was led by Dorset’s rural touring charity Artsreach. Director Kerry Bartlett says: “Pipeline has a vast amount of experience in touring to rural venues across the country. They understand and appreciate the value they bring to local communities by involving them in their stories and we’re all very excited to welcome them as part of Create Tour Connect.”

Pipeline, set up by writer/director Jon Welch and designers/makers Alan and Jude Munden, has already successfully produced six new studio plays and two large community productions spanning eight national tours, including Edinburgh Fringe runs and a sell out at The Drum, Plymouth.

Create Tour Connect is led by Kent-based arts charity Applause Rural Touring and funded by Arts Council England. It aims to reverse the decline in small scale touring theatre for contemporary rural audiences. This innovative approach reflects how the rural touring sector is addressing systemic issues and providing practical solutions to support artists and companies.

The CTC project will see four new productions, touring nationally over the next two years, taking stories to communities who have little access to high quality theatre.

The project is collaborative and brings together 17 arts organisations across the country to share local knowledge, resources and expertise on rural touring and developing new work. It is the first time that shows have been toured in this way on a national scale. The West Country partners are Artsreach (Dorset), Carn to Cove (Cornwall), Take Art (Somerset), Beaford Arts (north Devon), Villages in Action (Devon) and Air in G (Gloucestershire.)

Pipeline director Jon Welch says: “We have always had rural touring at heart and we take special delight in transforming venues into spaces that astonish audiences. We look forward to creating this show and being part of this national project.”

George and the Drag Queen features three actors, a transforming set and Pipeline’s trademark immersive soundscape. The show will take audiences on a provocative, darkly funny, but life-affirming theatrical journey about wise-cracking eccentric characters, set in a bastion of Englishness – a St John Ambulance gazebo at a village fete.

The show will be touring from September-November 2026 – tour dates will be announced later this year.