Meet this year’s Make It Happen recipients 

Eldon Bradfield (BMus Performance, 2025) 

People, Places, Pieces, Pictures is an annual concert series that uses the music and photography of Ernest Bloch to explore connections between self-representation in music and the visual arts.

Concerts feature chamber music and a temporary art gallery, tied together by Eldon’s research into the composer’s work and personal life. 

Eldon said: “Support from the Make It Happen Fund is pivotal to me making People, Places, Pieces, Pictures transition from a student project to a professional concert series with long-term potential.

“As an early-career musician myself, I know how important it is to get paid for one’s skill and time. Being able to provide compensation for my fellow musicians and visual artists enables us to focus on creating the best experience possible.” 

Emma Coles (BA Acting, 2024) 

Hot Air is a new collaborative theatre project about the way we hope, dream and fear. Framed through the materials required to make a hot air balloon, it follows two inventors and a girl navigating a world at war.

Through movement, puppetry and sound, Emma and her collaborators will explore existential dilemmas brought to us by technology in today’s political climate. 

Emma said: “I’m so grateful to The Make It Happen Fund for giving me the support to take the collaborative and devising skills I developed at RCS into the professional world.

“It’s an invaluable opportunity to create new work alongside a brilliant group of artists and broaden my own practice. I’m really excited to see where this takes us!” 

 Jazzi Hart (BA Production Technology & Management, 2026) 

The funding will support a series of rehearsal and development sessions for the emerging show concept Ali in Wonderland, loosely based on Lewis Carroll’s famous story.

Through the project, Jazzi is looking to develop her directing skills, explore physical and technical theatre approaches, and establish professional creative relationships with peers, with the aim of building future collaborations. 

Jazzi said: “The Make It Happen funding is enabling me to put this project into practice by giving me the opportunity to pay for the time of my collaborators and rehearsal room space to explore my ideas.” 

Paul Michael Henry (PhD, 2025) 

The Great Attractor is a new interdisciplinary performance bringing together experimental music, operatic voice, Butoh dance and live projection.

Inspired by a mysterious gravitational region drawing our galaxy through space, the work creates an interconnected audiovisual world in which sound, body and image exert forces upon one another.

Cosmic expansion and attraction become a lens through which to explore human trajectories, endless growth, ecological crisis, and finite existence on Earth. 

Paul Michael said: “Make It Happen funding will give me space to explore an ambitious idea without knowing exactly what it will become.

“It allows me to work across art forms with trusted collaborators and discover the project through making. This kind of supported exploration is vital to how my practice grows and how The Great Attractor can find its own form.” 

Ava Hickey (BA Acting, 2024) 

ShowWoman is a research and development project exploring untold histories of women from Scotland and the UK’s travelling Showmen community.

Through oral histories, archival research and new writing, it shares stories of extraordinary Showwomen – from sideshow and sharpshooters to boxers and performers – and explores how their experiences have shaped women working in the fairground today. 

Ava said: “Getting new projects off the ground can be difficult. The Make It Happen Fund gives me the time, space, and resources to explore stories that are very close to home.

“It means I can properly research and record oral histories and begin to develop this piece with other Showmen artists.” 

Clare Hume (MEd Learning and Teaching in the Arts, 2024) 

Clare’s project explores how support staff in the drama room can become ‘Charismatic Advisers’ to better facilitate the creative potential of performers with learning disabilities.

The funding will support the design, testing and development of a workshop that encourages those involved in inclusive art-making and performance to examine their own values, strengths and mindset, while championing the talents of the individuals they support. 

Clare said: “The development of this workshop will instil me with the confidence to promote and deliver an impactful piece of professional development for others.

“This workshop is aimed at support staff but, with some adaptation, could form the basis of a programme to train arts practitioners and other educators. Charismatic Advisers can be found amongst these groups too.” 

Bohdan Ilnytskyi (BMus Jazz, 2026) 

Ukrainian composer and musician Bohdan Ilnytskyi will use his funding to create a cinematic performance film for Vershe, the first single from his debut album Thunder in the Dark.

Based on a traditional Lemko song, the film will combine contemporary jazz, cinematic storytelling and live performance to explore memory, displacement and the emotional experience of living far from home. 

Bohdan said: “Make It Happen funding gives me the opportunity to take Thunder in the Dark beyond music and explore how my work can exist through cinema and visual storytelling.

“It will allow me to collaborate with filmmakers, develop new creative skills, and create an ambitious visual world for Vershe that I would not otherwise have the resources to realise.” 

Kelly King (BA Acting, 2025) 

Kelly’s award will support the research and development of a new interpretation of George Brant’s 2013 play Grounded in the age of AI, algorithms and automated decision-making, exploring how these themes can inform performance, staging and directorial choices. 

Kelly said: “The funding will allow me to take the first step in getting this play from page to stage. It will help create a space for my collaborators and me to develop our ideas, redefining the material through research, exploration and experimentation, and laying the groundwork for a fully realised production.

“As a first-time producer and solo performer, this project is a considerable undertaking that will expand and evolve my creative practice.” 

Gem Kinley (BA Contemporary Performance Practice, 2025) 

Sacred Noise merges the worlds of church and hardcore and related genres in one noisy ritual of music, Scots’ storytelling and poetry. The show is inspired by Gem’s lived experience and how it has influenced her self-expression and understanding of the world.

The performance explores the tensions between sacred and secular, tradition and change, convention and rebellion, and the experiences we carry in our bodies as individuals and as a community. 

Gem said: “I am thrilled to be receiving a Make It Happen award. This funding is supporting a research and development process to expand Sacred Noise after its run at Into the New Festival in February 2025.

“I will, with the support of mentors, undertake professional development in music-making, vocals and performance writing, which are all key elements in the piece.” 

Nikita Lukinov (Advanced Artist Diploma in Music Performance, 2024) 

The Make It Happen Fund will support the first steps towards Scotland’s first destination piano festival on the Isle of Bute.

A residential academy where adult amateur pianists, who love the instrument most and are served least, study and perform alongside professional artists. A first course in 2027 will establish the foundations for a small-scale festival to follow in 2028. 

Nikita said: “The funding lets me research this properly rather than guess, connecting with comparable festivals and learning from directors who have built established programmes.

“It funds the unglamorous groundwork that decides whether an idea becomes an institution. For me, it marks a real shift from performing at other people’s festivals to building my own, and from pianist to artistic director.” 

 Isla Lynch (BA Filmmaking, 2025) 

The Fish with the Girl is a micro-budget, magical realism short film about a young girl’s mission to free a fish from its dinner table destiny.

For Isla, the piece marks an important step in developing her practice and building her professional body of work.  

Isla said: “The smaller scale of this film combined with the generous support of the Make It Happen Fund will allow me to fully realise my first funded writing-directing project since graduation while financially compensating my collaborators along the way.” 

Tom Macfadyen (MMus Composition, 2026) and Fionnlagh Mac A’Phiocair (BMus Traditional Music, 2024) 

Piper and Gàidhlig singer Fionnlagh Mac A’Phiocair and electroacoustic composer Tom Macfadyen create world-blending, atmospheric textures, combining bagpipes and custom-designed electronic instruments.

Having collaborated for several years and performing as part of Sòlás Collective alongside Irish violist Sarah Hanniffy, their innovative approach to traditional music transports listeners into deep musical landscapes with inflections of experimental music and electronica. 

Tom said: “The support from the Make It Happen Fund will allow us to produce, record and release a studio recording of a new piece which explores the sound world of Fionnlagh’s pipe-making workshop as a rhythmic accompaniment for solo smallpipes and voice.” 

Francesca McBride and Molly Keating (MA Acting Classical and Contemporary Text, 2025) 

Box Them Out is a dramatic short film co-written by acting graduates Francesca McBride and Molly Keating, exploring institutional silence, gender and accountability through the lens of amateur boxing. 

Francesca and Molly said: “We’re so grateful to receive this funding, which will give us time to develop our screenplay with professional dramaturgical support, strengthen our industry networks, and pursue production funding.

“As emerging actor-writers, it enables us to create ambitious original work, grow sustainable careers by generating our own performance opportunities, and amplify a female-centred story.” 

Kim McClelland (MEd Learning and Teaching in the Arts, 2024) 

Bu! Am Bocan Beag is a Gaelic children’s picture book about a small, anxious ghost who rarely leaves the safety of his library.

Blending textured mixed-media artwork with a sensory-rich reading experience, it offers children a reassuring adventure about courage, kindness and finding support when the world feels overwhelming. 

Kim said: “The award will give me the support I need to finish the book despite complex caring responsibilities. Mentoring will guide the development of the story, language, and illustrations, while improved digital capacity will make editing and layout work manageable and efficient.

“This combination of expert input and practical tools will help me progress the project to a professional, publishable standard and move it toward the next stage.” 

Charlotte Perkins (MMus Performance, 2025) 

Folk(ish) is the first full-length album by Harver Quartet, an international string quartet with community at its heart.

Inspired by the people and music the ensemble has encountered on their travels throughout Scotland, the album will include original music and fresh arrangements alongside well-known tunes and international influences, all performed with characteristic string quartet warmth and a uniquely Haver Quartet sense of fun. 

Charlotte said: “Make It Happen funding will allow us to get in the studio and bring our album, which has been three years in the making, into the world.

“Covering our artist fees, the award enables us to make the recording without worrying about sacrificing other income, a guarantee without which the project wouldn’t be possible. We’re so excited to be moving Folk(ish) forward, after years of planning and creating!” 

 Joanna Stark (MMus Performance, 2024) 

No Borders string trio, made up of Joanna Stark, Suzanne Godet, and Frances Patterson, has been awarded funding for New Music & Botanical Gardens, a new series of live performances in Scottish botanical gardens.

Showcasing new commissions by Scottish composers, the project aims to raise awareness of endangered plants and wildlife in Scotland. 

Joanna said: “Make It Happen funding represents a very important step in the development of the trio, as it will enable us to commission new music for the very first time. We are very grateful for the support, which means we can pursue our passion and dreams!” 

Cecilia Thoden van Velzen (MFA Directing CCT, 2024) and Matthew Schwarz (MA Acting CCT, 2024) 

Yorick or the Skull is an original play Matthew and Cecilia are developing about the man behind Hamlet’s skull. After performing an early version of the work at Shakespeare festivals in Germany, Romania and Oxford, they are now diving deeper into the world of Elsinore with some dedicated research and development time. 

Cecilia and Matthew said: “We’re very excited by the support RCS is giving us through the Make It Happen Fund. The classical canon has been adapted many times.

“This support allows us to further explore what it means when new writing meets both classical text and classical characters, and how those can help build entirely new narratives and highlight forgotten perspectives.” 

Louise van Tassel (BA Contemporary Performance Practice, 2025) 

Spine is a Glasgow-based, experimental pop duo that explores the space between fragility and chaotic density. Funding will support a two-week development residency focused on streamlining the band’s live performance setup. 

Louise said: “This funding will allow us to replace some of our more temperamental equipment with reliable units. This means our times of eternal troubleshooting are over; we can close our computers, open our ears and mouths, and spend more time looking at people and less at machines.” 

Isaac Vincent (BA Acting, 2025) 

Isaac’s play, PIECE, explores themes of neurodivergence, grief, masculinity and the criminal justice system. It follows a neurodivergent boy who finds solace and purpose through becoming a graffiti writer.

After being misunderstood in school due to his undiagnosed ADHD and the lack of a father figure, he embarks on a string of dangerous adrenaline-fuelled missions with his newfound community, the local graffiti crew. 

Isaac said: “Make It Happen funding will pave the way towards bringing my play to the stage. The funding will enable me to collaborate with a respected director and sound designer to build the world of my play, in the hope of getting it commissioned.” 

Dale Williamson (BA Contemporary Performance Practice, 2024) 

ThE ReAlLy CuTe ShOw is a new darkly comedic, non-verbal visual theatre piece developed by Dale Williamson and Romi Safarty, exploring society’s obsession with violence, spectacle and morbid curiosity.

Through handmade sets and props, costume, physical performance, moving image and sound, the work creates a world of ‘painful cuteness’ contrasted with brutal, cartoonish violence.

Inspired by horror, news media and children’s television, it explores how constant exposure to violence shapes our emotions. 

Dale said: “This funding gives us the time and space to really build the strange, playful world of this piece. Making is such a huge part of our practice, and having dedicated time to experiment with costumes, props and set will let us push the visual language much further.

“It feels like a really exciting next step for us as emerging artists, helping turn a weird little idea into a fully realised piece of visual theatre.” 

Lee Young (BMus Performance, 2024) 

For their project, Lee will record John Cage’s Thirteen Harmonies, a collection of pieces derived from Cage’s larger work Apartment House 1776.

Working with collaborator Nola McLean, the pair have adapted Thirteen Harmonies for violin and electric guitar, with the blend of these instruments mirroring and extending the way the piece integrates old and new. 

Lee said: “After performing Thirteen Harmonies earlier this year, we decided to record and release it. There exist very few recordings of the piece, and none for our combination of instruments. We want to make this music more widely available so more people can discover it! This funding gives us the chance to focus on quality, recording in a studio, and getting it professionally mixed and mastered.” 

Tyler Zwink (MMus Composition, 2025) 

With support from the Make It Happen Fund, Tyler will present the first public performance of his recent composition, And There Will Be a Great Calm, for solo baritone voice and piano.

Exploring themes of peace, conflict, memory and reconciliation, the free recital at Jordanhill Parish Church will feature four emerging singers alongside pianist Meghan Rhoades. 

Tyler said: “The funding will enable me to develop an essential aspect of my career as an emerging composer: creating, curating and leading performance opportunities for my own work.

“While I have gained valuable experience composing and collaborating with performers, this project will allow me to take responsibility for the artistic direction of a complete public event, from programming and artist coordination to audience engagement and project management.” 

Main image © BasyaVolodarskaya