MAYFLOWER Theatre, in partnership with ArtfulScribe, has announced the appointment of Dinos Aristidou as Writer in Residence for 2017 as part of the SO:Write Literature Development Project.

Mayflower Theatre Head of Creative Learning, Sara Scott said, “We are delighted to welcome Dinos to the team here. He will be in post from January until December 2017, and during this time will deliver workshops to engage with Mayflower visitors and the general public. It will be exciting to see how his own writing develops over his time with us to celebrate the work of Mayflower Theatre”.

A writer based in the South East, Dinos is passionate about using literature as a form of empowerment and as a strong instrument for bringing people together to share, voice and celebrate ideas and perspectives. Dinos said, “I feel very honoured to have been offered this wonderful position and I'm very excited and inspired by its possibilities. It gives me the opportunity to work with and engage the communities of Mayflower Theatre and the City of Southampton with the written word. I hope to spend this year capturing the vibrant life of the theatre, meeting and working with a whole range of different people and producing some gifts of writing that can act as a lasting legacy.”

An impressive candidate from a strong field of applicants, Dinos has an MA in Cultural Memory from University of London, and has experience as a Programme Leader for New Writing South and Theatre Royal Brighton. Dinos’ plays ‘Leaves on the Line’ and ‘Orpheus’ have featured at Forest Forge and Nuffield Southampton Theatres.

ArtfulScribe director Matt West said, “Dinos comes from an extremely strong field of applicants and particularly impressed at interview by showing great creative vision for the residency’s potential. We’re really looking forward to working with Dinos and to helping him achieve his writing ambitions.”