Our programmes are strategic initiatives through which we develop & deliver our mission
Story Systems are designed to be versatile, so you can engage with them in the way that suits you, your audiences, your participants. See how our four major programmes of work connect Story Systems to people and places, whoever or wherever they are.
Programmes are the long-term strategic initiatives through which C&T develop our Story Systems, build partnerships and create lasting impact. They bring together our Story Systems methodology, artistic practice and digital infrastructure to address some of the most important opportunities and challenges facing communities today.
ACTSmart is C&T's innovative creative technology and future skills programme for young people. Combining storytelling, drama, digital media, game design, and creative problem-solving, ACTSmart helps participants develop the skills increasingly valued by employers, educators, and the creative industries. Through hands-on projects, collaborative challenges, and digital creation, young people build confidence, communication, creativity, technical literacy, and leadership skills.
Rooted in C&T's internationally recognised Story Systems methodology, ACTSmart connects arts practice with emerging technologies to create engaging learning experiences that are practical, inclusive, and relevant to the modern world. Participants learn by making, experimenting, and reflecting, developing both creative and transferable skills that support progression into education, employment, and creative careers.
Designed for schools, youth organisations, community settings, and cultural partners, ACTSmart demonstrates how creativity and technology can work together to unlock potential, widen opportunity, and prepare young people for the challenges and possibilities of the future.
Smart Plays are C&T's distinctive approach to creating immersive theatre and participatory performance for the digital age. Combining live performance, storytelling, mobile technology, game mechanics, and audience interaction, Smart Plays invite people to become active participants rather than passive spectators.
Built using C&T's Story Systems methodology and powered by Prospero, Smart Plays can take place in theatres, schools, museums, public spaces, heritage sites, and online environments. Audiences may follow location-based narratives, unlock hidden content, make choices that influence events, contribute creative responses, or explore multiple perspectives within a shared story world.
From heritage interpretation and cultural engagement to education and community participation, Smart Plays create rich, accessible experiences that blend artistic excellence with meaningful interaction. They offer new ways for organisations to engage audiences, animate places, share stories, and encourage deeper participation. By bringing together theatre, digital technology, and co-creation, Smart Plays expand what performance can be and who gets to take part.
C&T creates and delivers ambitious participatory arts, education, and community projects that bring people together through storytelling, creativity, and digital innovation. Working across schools, cultural organisations, universities, community settings, and public spaces, our projects explore how theatre, technology, and co-creation can generate meaningful social, educational, and cultural impact.
Every project is built around a Story System: a carefully designed framework that enables participants to contribute ideas, shape experiences, and become active creators of content. Our work ranges from creative learning programmes and digital heritage experiences to community storytelling initiatives, inclusive arts projects, research collaborations, and large-scale public engagement programmes.
We specialise in working with children and young people, learning-disabled adults, educators, artists, researchers, and local communities. Whether creating immersive performances, digital story trails, participatory research projects, or creative technology programmes, our projects are designed to foster creativity, build skills, strengthen connections, and ensure that diverse voices are heard, valued, and shared.
Prospero Commons is C&T's long-term vision for a shared participation infrastructure that enables organisations, educators, artists, researchers, and communities to create, share, and learn from participatory experiences. Building on the foundations of the Prospero platform and our Story Systems methodology, it seeks to make powerful creative tools more accessible, collaborative, and sustainable.
We believe that many organisations face similar challenges: engaging audiences, supporting learning, gathering evidence, amplifying community voice, and creating meaningful opportunities for participation. Prospero Commons explores how shared digital infrastructure can help address these challenges collectively rather than in isolation.
Our ambition is to develop an ecosystem where projects, resources, research, methodologies, and creative experiences can be adapted, reused, and remixed by others while respecting authorship, inclusion, and ethical practice. By connecting people, ideas, and organisations, Prospero Commons aims to strengthen the cultural sector's capacity to innovate, collaborate, and create lasting public value through participation.