Ulita are a new Northern voice in music-driven theatre, focused on creating immersive, visceral work from unexpected points of view. Our core members are Nishla Smith, Tom Harris, Luca Shaw, each well-established artists in their own fields. 

 

The Ulita team first came together on ‘What Happened to Agnes’, a visually distinctive staged song cycle commissioned by Opera North, and developed by Opera North, Leeds Playhouse, and HOME Mcr. ‘Agnes’ toured the UK in Spring 2020 with support from Arts Council England, and will be reprised for Edinburgh Fringe in Summer 2023.

 

Ulita make an episodic series of digital shorts, ‘The Secret Elevator’, originally commissioned for Lancaster Jazz Festival; and are currently developing ‘Sister’ a musical play, for two actors and improvising chamber orchestra. ‘Sister’ received funding for its R&D period through the Develop Your Creative Practice fund, and began workshops at Britten Pears Arts in 2021.

 

In 2022, Ulita made 'I Like I Hope I Am' in partnership with Olympias Music Foundation's 'Voices of Hope' choir. The piece was performed at 422 Community Hub in Longsite that December.

 

As a collective, Ulita are interested in creating authentic, multi-sensory performance experiences, blurring the genre boundaries between theatre, music and visual art. We focus on exploring unfamiliar viewpoints and stories, and enjoy bending the fragile line between reality and the imagination.

 

Our work style is collaborative, and we reject hierarchical structures. We strive for our work to be inclusive and accessible, and are committed to balancing our community-facing and performance projects.