SIDEKICK
Sidekick is a residency in which pairs of artists who have wanted to but have not yet worked with each other spend a week together testing the waters. Each pair is composed of one artist from dance and another artist from some other field. Shotput was born out of a dance person and a theatre person experimenting with an idea in a church hall. We didn't know if anything would come of it. Similarly, during Sidekick, no output is expected. The week will be facilitated by independent artist Neil Callaghan, who will provide some structure, possibly some provocations, begin conversations, and offer feedback as desired by each pair. Shotput's co-Artistic Directors, Lucy Ireland and Jim Manganello, will cook lunch each day for the group, and they can also be approached for creative conversation or pastoral care, if that's desired (and if it isn’t, they will stay away).
This is the first year of what we hope will be an annual residency. For that reason, while artist-pairs are testing out their relationships, Shotput is also testing out how Sidekick works. So a very small, time-limited portion of the week will also involve group reflection on that. For this first year, there will be 3 artist-pairs, a consciously small group while we test things out.
Shotput is working in partnership with The Work Room for this year’s iteration of Sidekick.
Where?
The Pyramid at Anderston
759 Argyle St, Glasgow G3 8DS
When?
Monday-Friday 12-16 January 2026
10.00-17.00
Money.
Each artist will be paid £750. Travel and accommodation will be given to artists from outwith Glasgow, who will also receive £200 in subsistence.
Key dates
Deadline for applications: 27th October at 5pm.
All applicants notified: 5th November.
The application process.
You apply as a pair of artists.
At least one member of the pair works in dance and/or movement.
At least one member of the pair is based in Scotland.
You have not worked together before (see Q&A’s below).
You fill in this jotform, which has 3 prompts (250 word max answers for each):
Tell us about your separate practices.
Tell us what interests you about each other.
What questions might you want to work through in a residency like this?
Any other information you’d like us to know?
Alternatively, you can send a video/audio file with answers to these prompts, limiting responses to approximately 1.5 minutes each (6 minutes total). Please send this to info@shotput.org. A panel composed of co-Artistic Director Lucy Ireland, Sidekick facilitator Neil Callaghan, and Freelance Dance Artist Marios Ento-Engkolo, will read through the applications and make a selection.
Questions
Please read through this list before getting in touch with us - but please do not hesitate to get in touch (info@shotput.org) if you have any questions not answered here. We will update this list as other questions come in.
Can I apply as an individual artist?
No, you apply as a pair of artists. We won’t be matchmaking for this process - the idea is that there’s an existing desire to get to know each other better.
What does the ‘facilitator’ do during Sidekick?
Neil wears many hats - you can read about them on his website - and he is also a very responsive human being, so this question is a bit hard to answer. We anticipate that at the beginning of the week, there might be some structured times together, and that as the week goes on, Neil’s role as facilitator will differentiate according to the desires and needs of each pair.
What do you mean we haven’t worked together?
We acknowledge there is nuance to this, so please do get in touch in advance if you’re unsure. We mean that you haven’t initiated a project together, you haven’t co-created something. If you’ve worked with each other on someone else’s project, you’re eligible. If you are a dance artist and a playwright, and one of you danced in the production of the other one’s play, you would be eligible - this is the first time you are co-creating something. Another example: You are a designer and a director who have worked on a show together but the show was a play, and plays ‘aren’t really your thing’ - you want to make something together - you are eligible.
You say ‘no output’ - what if we want there to be an output?
That’s fine, it’s just not the focus of this residency. It may naturally develop during the week that informally ‘sharing’ something - a plan, a dance, a drawing, etc - would be beneficial to the ongoing conversation you are having with each other. We would advise you not to spend too much of your application describing a ‘project’, though: your focus should be on why you are interested in each other.
What do you mean by dance?
We are not in the business of policing what is dance and what is not. If movement forms a major part of your practice, that’s enough.
I’m not used to generating projects, is this residency really for me?
Maybe. If you are curious about co-creating work with another artist then this could be perfect. The facilitator will help you structure your work throughout the week if you desire that, so if you don’t know where to start that’s okay.
Do I need to be a freelancer?
No.
Can the non-Scottish-based artist be based outside of the UK?
Yes, although our travel budget is limited, so please get in touch if return travel is likely to be more than £400. Shotput doesn’t have the means to sponsor a visa for this person.
I have dietary restrictions - can you accommodate them?
Yes. We’ll ask all selected members of the Sidekick cohort for allergies, etc. before beginning. The lunch will be vegetarian.
How strict are the word/time limits for our application responses?
We don’t want to create more work from you in terms of editing, so not very strict. But we recommend going straight to the heart of your answer - that will make for the most effective read/watch/listen.
About Neil Callaghan
Neil Callaghan (he/they) works between theatres, galleries and specific sites as a dancer, choreographer and director. They work across Europe with various constellations of people and companies. Their own work has been shown at venues and festivals including: Sadlers Wells, Somerset House, Hepworth Gallery, NOTTdance, Fierce, Undercurrent, amongst others. They are involved in an ongoing collaboration with Simone Kenyon with whom they have been working for over 15 years. Neil also works as a therapist and Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP).
Most recently, Neil has also been exploring the idea of being an 'artistic companion' in several different processes, offering artists and choreographers the support to make the work they want to make. Helping artists to be experimental and playful whilst holding onto their artistic integrity. Alongside this they have been working as a performer on the creation of a new work from Tim Etchells and NTGent - 'How Goes The World'.
About Shotput
Shotput is a dance-theatre company based in Glasgow, founded by and led by co-Artistic Directors Lucy Ireland and Jim Manganello. Shotput makes live performance as a shared space where together we explore difficult ideas, collective joy, and uncontainable human nature. Our productions are physically and visually rigorous, rooted in experimentation and collaboration. Though live shows are the heart of the company, we define our work not as a collection of shows, but as a web of relationships - collaborating with artists, audiences and communities. We are an engine of experimentation in Scotland - while being committed to international connection. Shotput is also deeply invested in experimenting with the artistic process, and this is reflected in our artistic development strand which includes podcasts, workshops and residencies.