We hope you all got a good break over Christmas (seems like a distant memory now) and that 2017 is treating you well. This year is packed full of exciting projects for Unlimited...

There's details below about how to download our fabulous Astro Science Challenge app, new tour dates for Am I Dead Yet?, including 4 nights in home town Leeds at the end of March. And also a NEW SHOW called How I Hacked My Way Into Space about Jon's journey from garden shed dreamer to actually being in space.

Further treats being developed in 2017 include:

• a collaboration with the wonderful Rash Dash called In The Future that will investigate the ethical, political and social impacts of cutting-edge biotechnology practice.
• led by Clare, And It Does Make Anybody Nervous. will involve a diverse group of artists, who will be invited to collaborate to explore the myriad possibilities and impossibilities of representation on stage.
• a collaboration with Slung Low, Look, I See You will be a promenade performance that takes place on the streets, in the shop windows and in the public squares of Leeds City Centre about many different types of love – romantic love, but also love for family, for friends, for place and for community.

2017 will also be a year of celebration as 20 years ago this month, a year after leaving Leeds University, the six founding members of Unlimited gave up their part time jobs and started working full time as Unlimited.

Welcome to the shows, we hope you can join us.

Alison
on behalf of all of us at Unlimited

Am I Dead Yet? continues to go down brilliantly on tour. We've recently had some excellent shows at ARC in Stockton, The Civic Barnsley, The Lowry in Salford as part of Manchester Science Festival, Arts Centre Washington, Lincoln Arts Centre and Rabenhof Theatre Vienna - many as part of our Strategic Touring project, Together.

We're very excited that the next dates on the tour are four nights at very different venues in our hometown of Leeds. Links below for more information and tickets.

Thursday 30 March, 7.30pm - Duke Studios, Leeds City Centre
Friday 31 March, 8pm - Seven Arts, Chapel Allerton
Saturday 1 April - Trouble at Mill, Farsley (ticket sales coming soon)
Sunday 2 April, 5pm - HUB, Holbeck

Then we head on to Birmingham Rep and Berlin's English Theatre in May, Pulse Festival in June and a London run in November. You might also like to check out the excellent trailers for the show at our YouTube channel.

Am I Dead Yet? is written and performed by Jon Spooner and Chris Thorpe, in consultation with Dr Andy Lockey

"Death is no longer a moment. It is a process. A process that can be reversed."

Am I Dead Yet? sees two friends, talking (and singing) about what happens when we die, how we think about dying, how we don't talk about it enough... and how some of us might be brought back.

It's a funny and moving look at death, inspired by research into contemporary developments in resuscitation science and made in collaboration with Emergency Care doctors and professionals.

“An enjoyable, poignant cabaret piece about death in the distant and all-too-near future” *** The Guardian

“Chris Thorpe and Jon Spooner’s electric view on the dying process will rewrite your expectations for your final end” **** The Stage

We're also holding events as part of the tour, including Death Cafes where people, often strangers, gather to eat cake, drink tea and discuss death. Check the venues own sites for details on any other events they are hosting.

Supported by The Wellcome Trust and Resuscitation Council (UK)

You can now download our brand new Astro Science Challenge app for Apple or Android devices from the Astro Science Challenge website.

The Astro Science Challenge is a space science adventure for schools and children aged 7-11 and Tim Peake (patron of the Unlimited Space Agency) thinks it's fabulous.

We'd love some reviews/star ratings to help get the app more visible in the App Store and on Google Play. So if you could download it and have a little look around and then give us a review or just a star rating that would be amazingly helpful.

For a chance to win an Unlimited Space Agency t-shirt (just like the one Tim Peake wore IN SPACE!) check our post on Facebook.

Just going into development now is How I Hacked My Way Into Space, which will tell the story of the formation of the Unlimited Space Agency from Jon's garden shed in St Albans, via the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, to Johnson Space Centre in Houston Texas and a rocket launch at Cape Canaveral in Florida.

It is a show about technology and art coming together, the power of stories to create new realities and the thin lines between obsession and madness. It’s about the glorious possibilities for scientists and artists to work together and how even the smallest person can make a difference and achieve their seemingly impossible dreams.

How I Hacked My Way Into Space has been commissioned by Without Walls and we will be touring it to festivals from June this year, so keep an eye out for further information.

We are all delighted to welcome Matt Burman as Associate Producer. We've known and worked with Matt for many years, since before he was producer at Norwich & Norfolk festival and then Head of Programme at Warwick Arts Centre and also Director of the Yorkshire Festival. Matt will be working closely with Christie and Jon to produce all our new projects.

Chris has just been named as a Jerwood New Writer at the Royal Court and has a play scheduled for production in their main space directed by Vicky Featherstone in October 2017

Clare has recently written and made this beautiful film in Shetland for her Extreme Light North project and her version of CBeebies Midsummer Night's Dream has been shortlisted for Broadcast's (*the* TV industry magazine) Best Pre-School Programme.

WE RECOMMEND...

Rash Dash's Two Man Show won a Fringe First in Edinburgh over the summer and is now on tour, as part of our Strategic Touring project, Together. Dates and ticket links below:

The Civic, Barnsley - Wed 4 Feb
ARC, Stockton - Wed 8 Feb
CAST, Doncaster - Thurs 9 Feb
Arts Centre, Washington - Thurs 16 Feb

"We want to talk about masculinity and patriarchy but the words that exist aren’t good enough. So there’s music and dance too. Fringe First Winners 2010 & 2011 return with their playful new show about gender and language."

As you can see we have a lot planned for 2017, which we think is the best way to celebrate our 20th anniversary year! We hope you can join us.