The VAULT adventure started in 2012, when The Heritage Arts Company found their way into the secret Leake Street tunnels just around the corner from Waterloo station and opened the space up to the public and theatre makers alike. The second edition of the festival saw it grow into a 6 week affair; this year the audiences can relish in 500 events by 80 artists and companies. Highlights include Filter’s Macbeth, a new HighTide Festival Theatre production and appearances by Sam Lee’s The Nest Collective – but that’s just the tip of the iceberg: VAULT’s programme comes packed with theatre, performance, dance, music, debates and one-offs from exciting and experimental emerging forces and established names, plus an inspiring venue to wrap it all into. Excited by the prospects, we got hold of VAULT producers and the team behind The Heritage Arts Company: say hello to Mat Burt, Tim Wilson and Andy George.

Run Riot: Let’s start at the beginning - how did VAULT come to be? What motivated you to plunge into such a big adventure?

Mat Burt, Tim Wilson and Andy George: VAULT started out of a desire to bring together emerging creatives under one roof in a space where they could take risks. The idea spawned in 2011 when we first came across the space – it was still full of tonnes of old paperwork and documents and hadn’t been opened up to the public before – but immediately the potential of the space jumped out at us. We began to imagine what it would be like to run it as a venue; as a festival. From our background in large scale installation work, site-specific theatre, and a good amount of festival programming and curating, we knew lots of companies and artists who had stimulating new work to show and about the most energetic and ambitious thing we could do was to bring it together; inviting all these exciting emerging companies into one place. That’s how VAULT 2012 was born – and now we’re a destination.

Run Riot: The festival has grown immensely from 2012 to today, over just three editions, despite fierce competition for attention in London. What do you think enabled that?

MB, TW, AG: It’s the atmosphere of exploration, adventure, illicit meetings and of course, it’s the people. The audiences, the companies, our staff and volunteers, our partners, supporters, and sponsors. So many people come together to make the festival and without them willing to take a leap with us we wouldn’t have been able to grow the way we have.

Run Riot: VAULT is curated in three strands: one third comes from companies and artists you invite to present (mostly) new work, one half from open submissions and the rest from partner organisations. You’re adamant the festival is not themed - what do you look out for when curating?

MB, TW, AG: The creativity, the idea and the passion. Creativity is the heart, the idea is the soul, and the passion is what sets it apart. We want to be presenting the artists of tomorrow, today.

Run Riot: It goes without saying the festival emerges from its location - how do individual artists work with it when creating new work, or ‘adapting’ existing pieces to the new environment?

MB, TW, AG: A lot of VAULT’s work is new, made for the strange blend of earthy, underground caverns and industrial, modernist infrastructure that have become so important to Londoners looking for something truthful in a very commercial world. We try and help artists towards making work that’s about here and now, about you.

Run Riot: You emphasise that one of your goals is to ‘help emerging companies control how their work is brought to an audience or a market’. What does the VAULT model offer to younger companies that’s different to the traditional fringe model?

MB, TW, AG: We don’t charge upfront hire fees, and we hand over 80% of the box office income to the companies. Aside from commissioned festivals (who have to scrape along to state-funding requirements) that’s the best deal emerging companies will ever find.

VAULT aims to minimise risk and to free up the financial worries to be able to focus more on the creative side. We also put the companies in close contact with each other, and with each other’s audiences. That’s really important – sharing practice, resource, and audience.

Run Riot: There are 500 events to choose from in 2015. How should our readers go about navigating this abundance? What should they look out for and how should they plan their night at the festival?

MB, TW, AG: Get lost in the website, download the App in January, pick up a free programme in the venue. Mainly though – take a punt, come down, see a few things over the course of an evening, grab some great Italian food at our restaurant and then stick around for a party. That’s how VAULT works. Don’t overthink it!

Run Riot: Finally, can we get to know the people behind the festival? How did you start working together? What keeps the collaboration going?

MB, TW, AG: Always looking forward to the next bite at the apple. Always making the best version of the present possible. Always making sure we’re enjoying being fair. Always listening. Always trying hard!

VAULT

28 January – 8 March