Our Story...
Once upon a time, a theatre-maker met a therapist. It turned out they had a lot in common. First and foremost, they both believed in stories. They knew that the tales people tell about their lives and experiences can be a rich source of insight and possibility. If you listen carefully.
They also knew that the world was in pretty bad shape, and that a lot of people didn’t know what to do about it. So they dreamed up a place called Vesper Hill – a place to gather and talk about what’s happening.
Think of us as meeting around a campfire. We’ll need to talk honestly about uncertainty, and anger, and grief, and injustice. But we’ll also need to laugh and play and sing. Just to celebrate being alive.
Maybe you’ll join us there?
Vesper Hill was founded as a social enterprise in 2022, by Steve and Angel Scott-Bottoms. Created as a meeting place for our complementary passions and expertise, we named it after the hill where we first met. (It was at a summer camp, many years ago – in a galaxy far, far away.)
We’re pleased to say that other collaborators have now joined us on Vesper Hill. In fact, we’d like it to be a party. But we’d also like it to be a prayer.
Vespers is an old term for evening prayers. It’s a word that asks for quiet reflection – and perhaps confession – in the evening of the world we’ve known until now.
Steve Scott-Bottoms
Storyteller-in-Chief. Steve has three decades of experience as a theatre-maker, workshop facilitator, and researcher. He is currently Professor of Contemporary Theatre and Performance at the University of Manchester. His work with Vesper Hill builds on earlier research for the Multi-Story Water project and the UK Climate Resilience programme, in which he developed interactive performances through direct engagement with communities and professional stakeholders. Steve is an Associate of the Yorkshire and Humber Climate Commission.
Connect with Steve on LinkedIn
Angel Scott-Bottoms
Managing Partner. Angel is a therapist and creative entrepreneur with 15 years of experience running values-led businesses. Alongside her work at Vesper Hill, she offers ecocentric counselling and psychotherapy services in her private practice in south Manchester. Angel is also an experienced business coach and trainer who has owned and managed companies on both sides of the Atlantic. She is a member and former Brand Leader of the Women in Business Network (WIBN).
Connect with Angel on LinkedIn
Si Brewis
Creative Associate. Si has been making social storytelling theatre for audiences in unusual spaces like housing estates, the countryside, historic Churches, festivals, and on canal boats, for almost twenty years. For much of that time they’ve been working with Steve to shape oral histories into thoughtful stories about waterways, flooding, and climate change. At the moment Si is also developing a new body of work about the uncomfortable cultural legacies of Empire.
Sam Fillingham
Creative Associate. Sam is an experienced community organiser and certified Yoga Nidra facilitator. Her classes, sessions and retreats help participants to reduce burnout, stress, and anxiety while improving sleep and enhancing well-being. Sam specialises in using somatic practices to support groups and individuals in expressing creativity and finding fresh perspectives on their world. (Note: yoga nidra does not involve poses and stretches! It’s a guided meditation method that explores mental imagery and semi-dream states.)
Milo Harries
Creative Associate. Milo is a researcher and performer who specialises in dialogue as a mode of exploration and communication. Having studied at the University of Cambridge and the Royal College of Music, he is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Manchester, studying climate resilience narratives in the catchment of the River Aire. Milo is also an opera singer and singing coach who has worked at the Royal Opera House, Glyndebourne, Waterperry Opera Festival, and Opera North.
