About Us

Founded in 2020, Cup of Ambition is a collective of skilled freelancers: providing marketing support for creative people, by creative people. 

We are Izzi and Grace. With over a decade of experience each, as both theatre makers and marketeers, we know first hand just how difficult it can be to balance the artistic needs of a production with the pressure to sell tickets. We hear the same problem time and time again from our fellow creatives: if you’re an artist with limited time and limited budget, how can you best promote your show whilst looking after yourself and your bottom line?

That’s where we come in.

We believe a good communication strategy is not just about filling seats, but creating tailored marketing campaigns to attract the right kind of audiences to your work. 

We provide bespoke campaigns and packages to help you do just that. Whether it’s workshops and consultancy, managing your full marketing campaign or coming 'in house’ to work closely with your teams, our support can be tailored to you, whatever your needs and budget. 

Combining our experience and contacts as communications experts with the enthusiasm and passion of our work as theatre-makers, we’re here to support your work in a way that’s resourceful, time-effective and - crucially - affordable.

We also love Dolly Parton. Hence the name.

IZZI DIXON - CO-FOUNDER AND DIRECTOR

Izzi was previously Theatre & Arts Manager at the Space, and Marketing Manager at the Pleasance, where she oversaw the organisation’s communications strategy for both London and Edinburgh. As a freelancer in arts communications, she has worked for organisations such as VAULT Festival (as Press & Media Officer) and Chloe Nelkin Consulting (as Edinburgh PR Executive), along with countless theatre companies.

Also a playwright, dramaturg and theatremaker, she was a writer on attachment at the RSC in 2022. She won the Adopt a Playwright Award in 2019, allowing her to develop new play Kaleidoscopes, and won the Jack Wills Bursary for Creativity in 2015. Her work has been performed, read and/or developed at theatres including the Old Vic, the Arcola, RichMix and BAFTA. She co-founded Burn Bright Theatre in 2015 and is co-producer of London’s longest running new writing night, The Miniaturists.

GRACE CHAPMAN - CO-FOUNDER AND DIRECTOR

Grace is an award winning playwright, theatre maker, producer and freelance marketeer. Previously Co-Artistic Director of Idle Motion (Resident Ensemble at New Diorama) she co-devised seven critically acclaimed productions. Her marketing experience includes Marketing Manager at The Space and Marketing Manager at VAULT Festival.

Her plays have been nominated for the Adopt A Playwright Award, longlisted for the Papatango Playwriting Prize and Popcorn Writing Award, and shortlisted for Hampstead Theatre's INSPIRE Programme. They include Don’t Look Away (A co-production with Pleasance, Harrogate Theatre, Birmingham Hippodrome, The Cornerstone and The Civic), It’s Not A Sprint (the Space / Pleasance / VAULT Festival) and OffWestEnd Award winning May Day (the Space, 2.0 Fest). Her latest work Matter was included in the Criterion New Writing Showcase 2023.

PHOEBE HOPWOOD - CONTENT CREATOR

Phoebe has worked in theatre and arts marketing, programming and production since the age of 16, but began her 'big girl' career at The Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury. There she quickly made a name for herself with her unique and sometimes off-the-wall social media and marketing ideas - some were approved, some still lie on the cutting room floor. Over the years, Phoebe developed her skills in PR, production, graphic and web design, and now works freelance supporting theatre companies and arts organisations in these areas.

Phoebe met Cup of Ambition during the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, when they both worked on Dark Noon, produced by The Pleasance and Glynis Henderson Productions. She also manages a comedy club and has her own massage business. 

AVA ELDRED - TICKETING AND AUDIENCES MANAGER

Ava is a ticketing manager with a particular passion for accessibility in theatre, and the ways that creative ticketing can enhance a production. She has previously worked for Punchdrunk, The Royal Court Theatre, TodayTix and KX Tickets, and is currently freelancing as a ticketing consultant across multiple clients in the immersive theatre, off-west end and attraction industries.

Her first novel The Boyband Murder Mystery was published by Penguin Random House in 2021, and while she would not recommend releasing a book during a global pandemic, is has not put her off that much, as her second novel will be published in 2025. 

ROSIE BLACKADDER - SOCIAL MEDIA AND CONTENT CONSULTANT

Rosie is a writer, freelance marketing consultant and ticketing specialist. After graduating from the University of Birmingham with a BA in Drama & Theatre Arts, she worked in ticketing for the Edinburgh Fringe and subsequently Adelaide Fringe, Melbourne International Comedy Festival, Sydney Festival, Melbourne Festival, Dark Mofo and Brighton Fringe. She started her marketing career as a Copywriter and then became Marketing Officer at Royal & Derngate in Northampton and went on to be the Marketing & Development Manager for The Core at Corby Cube. She was previously Sales & Ticketing Manager at VAULT Festival and then became the Marketing Manager at Avalon, working with clients such as Russell Howard, Al Murray and Ed Gamble. She is now a freelance marketing and ticketing consultant working across theatre, comedy and NPOs.

As a writer, she co-wrote and performed in ‘Mirrors’ at Adelaide Fringe in 2018 and was longlisted for the Shortcom Sitcom Award in 2021 for her sitcom pilot ‘Brand New You’. She is currently developing a comedy play ‘Higher Ups’ for stage.