Residency

Places that slow us down enough to listen.

Places where story sits in the rock, where weather shapes memory, and where the landscape becomes collaborator rather than backdrop.

Led by the Land is an invitation to step into that way of working.

Led by Mydd Pharo, Mercedes Kemp, Ellie Williams and Vicky Abbott, this three day residential creative residency shares over twenty five years of pioneering practice in creating theatre and art in collaboration with the landscape.

Whether you’re a theatre maker, writer, visual artist, musician, designer, filmmaker, dancer, maker, performer, photographer, or work in another creative discipline entirely, you’ll find practical tools, generous conversation and the freedom to experiment.

No previous experience of creating outdoor work is necessary, but curiosity is.

Led by the Land welcomes artists working across every discipline.

Whether you’re at the beginning of your journey or have decades of experience, this residency is for anyone interested in creating work through deeper relationships with landscape, ecology and place.

The richest conversations happen when different disciplines meet.

Bring your experience.

Bring your questions.

Leave with a different way of seeing.

This residency is rooted in practice. Every session is designed to help you develop your own way of making work in collaboration with the landscape.

Every session is rooted in practice rather than theory.

Together we’ll investigate:

• Reading and responding creatively to place.
• Walking as artistic research.
• Landscape as scenographer, dramaturg and performer.
• Working with weather, season and natural cycles.
• Sound and song
• Site responsive performance.
• Temporary interventions using natural materials.
• Place writing and observational drawing.
• Immersive storytelling.
• Audience journeys.
• Practical methods for developing ambitious landscape based projects.

This isn’t about reproducing someone else’s way of working.

It’s about discovering your own.

Alongside workshops there will be generous time for conversation, reflection, mentoring, independent making and simply being present within the landscape.

Morning

Shared breakfast, followed by practical workshops, making and creative practice in the landscape.

Late Morning

Field walks, site responsive exploration, conversation and collaborative making.

Afternoon

Group and independent exploration, mentoring, field research and time to develop your own ideas in response to the landscape.

Evening

Shared meal, work sharing, conversation, story and ritual, gathered around the fire as the day draws to a close.

For more than twenty five years the lead artists have developed internationally recognised approaches to landscape theatre, site responsive performance and place based art.

Collectively they have created acclaimed work with companies including Kneehigh, WildWorks, Punchdrunk and many other leading cultural organisations, transforming forests, beaches, castles, harbours, quarries, mines and historic landscapes into extraordinary artistic experiences.

Alongside their own practice they have mentored many artists through workshops, residencies and professional development programmes across the UK and internationally.

This residency offers rare access to that shared practice.

Participants will stay in comfortable accommodation within the main house, with a choice of private en suite room or shared twin and triple rooms.

Rosemerryn offers generous communal spaces for gathering, reading, making and conversation, alongside seven acres of private woodland to explore. The house includes a large dining room, sitting rooms with open fires, a library, gardens and outdoor spaces for working, reflecting and spending time together.

All meals and refreshments are provided throughout the residency and are prepared using seasonal, vegetarian ingredients. Vegan, gluten free and other dietary requirements can be catered for with advance notice.

Free Wi-Fi is available throughout the house, although we encourage participants to disconnect where possible and immerse themselves in the experience of the residency. Laundry facilities available.

The house sits within one of Europe’s richest cultural landscapes.

Ancient woodland, granite tors, standing stones, prehistoric settlements, holy wells, abandoned mines, hidden coves and dramatic Atlantic coastline all lie within minutes of the house.

This is a landscape where myth, geology, ecology and human history continually overlap.

Just beyond Rosemerryn lies the Boleigh Fogou, an underground Iron Age passage whose purpose remains unknown. Ceremony. Refuge. Storage. Ritual. No one can say for certain.

That mystery matters.

Because making work in landscape isn’t about finding answers.

It’s about learning to ask better questions.

Across the residency we’ll work amongst woodland, moorland, coastline and ancient sites, allowing each place to shape the work we make.

We want Led by the Land to be an intimate, accessible and welcoming experience. Places are limited to ensure meaningful conversation, generous support and a close creative community.

Shared Room – £650 per person

Comfortable shared accommodation with another participant. Note: All single beds.

Private Double Room with En Suite – £850 (Single occupancy) – NOW SOLD

Non-Residential Place – £400 – NOW SOLD

Ideal for those living locally or staying nearby. Camping options are available locally.

Bursary Places – £175 – NOW SOLD

A limited number of part funded non-residential places are available for artists who would benefit from financial support. Camping options are available locally.

Every Place Includes

• Three full days of workshops, field practice, mentoring and discussion.
• Four nights’ accommodation (residential places).
• Breakfast, lunch, evening meal, refreshments and snacks throughout the residency.
• Guided walks, collaborative making and field research.
• Time for independent exploration and reflection.
• A supportive community of artists from a wide range of disciplines.

All participants, including non-residential attendees, are fully catered for throughout the residency.

All meals are vegetarian, with vegan, gluten free and other dietary requirements happily catered for.

Please include details of any allergies or dietary requirements when booking.

We want Led by the Land to be as welcoming and accessible as we can make it, and we encourage anyone with access requirements to get in touch with us before applying or booking so that we can have an open conversation about what you might need to take part.

Rosemerryn Wood is an old house in a rural woodland setting. The house has stairs and steps, although there are bedrooms and bathrooms on the ground floor that are described as suitable for people with some mobility difficulties. The venue is not considered fully wheelchair accessible.

The nature of Led by the Land also means that a significant part of the residency will take place outdoors. We will be spending time in the woodland at Rosemerryn and exploring some of the surrounding landscape of West Penwith. This is natural terrain and can include uneven ground, slopes, tree roots, mud and varying walking distances. Some of the places we may explore will therefore not be physically accessible to everyone.

We don’t want to take a one-size-fits-all approach to access. Where reasonably possible, we will make adjustments, adapt activities or explore alternative ways of participating. We also recognise that disability and access requirements are individual, and that a general description of a venue doesn’t necessarily tell you whether something will be accessible for you.

If you use a wheelchair or mobility aid, require step-free access or particular bathroom facilities, need shorter walking distances or regular opportunities to sit and rest, or have any other physical, sensory, communication, neurodivergent or access requirements, please get in touch with us before booking.

We will be happy to talk through your requirements, check specific details with the venue where necessary, and give you as clear and accurate a picture as possible of the accommodation, working spaces and landscapes we expect to use. We would much rather have a conversation with you than have you assume that the residency isn’t possible for you.

We want everyone considering Led by the Land to have the information they need to make an informed decision about whether the residency is right for them, and we will always be honest about any limitations of the site.

For access questions or to arrange an informal conversation with us, please contact [email protected].

A non-refundable deposit is required to secure your place: £150 for all standard bookings and £75 for bursary places. Deposit must be paid in full by Tuesday 1st September 2026 via BACS transfer.

The remaining balance must be paid in full by Friday 16 October 2026 via BACS transfer.

In the unlikely event that the residency is cancelled by DAUR or is unable to go ahead for any reason, all deposits and payments received will be refunded in full.

Funded Places & Access

We believe opportunities like this should be as accessible as possible.

A limited number of part funded bursary places are available for artists who may need financial support to attend.

Access is important to us. If there is anything that might make attending difficult, please let us know when applying. We’ll do everything we reasonably can to support your participation.

Places are limited to ensure an intimate, generous and deeply collaborative experience.

Applications: Open

Application deadline: 6pm, 1st September 2026

At DAUR we believe the landscape is never simply where work happens.

It is a collaborator.

A teacher.

A keeper of stories.

Led by the Land is an invitation to slow down, pay attention and discover what becomes possible when theatre and art are created in genuine collaboration with the landscape.

We’d love you to join us.

For any further queries please email: [email protected]