Creative Production Consultancy

Carlos Acosta's Nutcracker in Havana at The Southbank Centre

When Carlos Acosta wanted to create his own re-imagining of Tchaikovski's iconic "Nutcracker" ballet, relocating it in his native Cuba, he knew he wanted to make it extremely magical, so he called-in Neil Kelso.

This production features dozens of magical moments including illusions of small, medium, and grand scale. Neil Kelso worked in collaboration with Carlos Acosta and the cast, crew and creatives to ensure the solutions offered never distracted from the story, but helped to bring his vision to life. In ballet it is essential not only for the calibre of the production, but for the safety of the performers and the audience, that every detail be planned meticulously, built to the highest specification, integrated into the production with training and safeguards, and that a system of quality control is put into place to ensure the magical things happen perfectly at every show.

The production performed perfectly throughout the entire tour. It was so well received that a second tour has already been announced.

Maddie Moate's Very Curious Christmas

When Scientist, TV Presenter, Writer, Performer and all-round superstar Maddie Moate embarked on creating her very first West End show, she knew she wanted it to have really magical feeling but also really robust clear storytelling, so she called-in Neil Kelso.

Neil Kelso collaborated with Maddie to plan the dramaturgical storytelling of the show to ensure the theatrical devices all aligned to support a show that must be just as gripping for the youngest audience members as the rest of their family. Ensuring that the experience is memorable and thought-provoking as well as exciting is a crucial balance for this type of show. This built upon work Neil Kelso has done before for the British Interactive Group, Copernicus Science Centre, The Royal Institution of Great Britain and The Wellcome Collection.

Maddies show was a huge sucess and has been nominated for an Olivier Award.

Belarus Free Theatre / Barbican

When The Barbican invited Belarus Free Theatre to stage their production of Dogs of War, they wanted to be sure that the show was given full support to fill the large stage and deliver the high calibre experience to audiences in London, so they called-in Neil Kelso.

Working with the gifted cast, crew and creatives of the Belarus Free Theatre Company, as well as The Barbican team, and some expert translators, we provided consultation, support and training to find solutions that helped the story to fill the venue in the most impactful ways without changing the heart of each delicate moment in the process. A methodical artistic collaborative process ensured a smooth creation and deployment process, and the show was successful, well-received, and even more magical thanks to special performance techniques Neil Kelso had learned when he travelled as a juggler with a circus when he was a young boy.

We also provide a discreet consultancy service which can be white-labelled. If you need solutions for events, theatrical productions, television and film services, and other activities, our network of highly skilled experts can make all manner of things happen. Who you gonna call?

"Neil Kelso can indeed make people disappear." - Lyn Gardner, The Guardian