The Hotbed Festival returns to The Junction this month, and this year’s edition will mark the festival’s tenth birthday with four days packed full of some of the best new writing for theatre.

Already under commission for Hotbed 2012 are an amazing variety of new writers from across the UK alongside major career writers, including Cambridge resident Steve Waters. Steve is regarded as one of the best stage writers in the UK today following hits at the Bush and Donmar Warehouse – and he is now under commission for Channel Four Films and at The Royal National Theatre.

As well as master-classes and interactive events, the festival will host the hit production of the 2011 Edinburgh Fringe Festival SILENT by one of Ireland’s leading new writing companies – Fishamble. Mixing dance and text, the play is a moving and very funny look at homelessness and mental health issues and was universally heralded by audiences and critics alike in Edinburgh, winning numerous five star reviews and a plethora of awards including the prestigious Fringe First Award.

The Hotbed Festival’s recent successes include the discovery of emerging writer Janice Okoh. Her first ever play Egusi Soup was produced script in hand at Hotbed 2009. In May 2012, Menagerie’s Artistic Director Paul Bourne will be directing the co-production of this play with SOHO theatre for touring (which includes Cambridge) before heading to SOHO for a month. Janice Okoh is now seen as one of the brightest talents in the UK, having been nominated for numerous awards including the Verity Bargate. Many other successes have emerged from Hotbed. For example, in 2009, The Company’s production of Stand By Your Van (about endurance contests) premiered in Cambridge before heading to the largest venue at the Edinburgh Fringe. It is now being produced in America where the script is being leased for potential performances at over 500 theatres. But that’s the enduring beauty of Hotbed – while providing four days of entertainment and insight, you might also find yourself watching work by some of the most significant theatrical talents of tomorrow…

Hotbed New Writing Festival, Thurs 26-Sun 29 January. The Junction, Clifton Way, T: 01223 511511