Actors Touring Company produces and tours innovative contemporary work from the international repertoire and collaborates with emerging theatre and comedy writers, designers and choreographers both in the UK and internationally. The company also offers education and training programmes.
West End Theatre, owned by Really Useful Theatres/Nederlander, which is currently showing Michael Grandage's production of Lloyd Webber's Evita. Chicago played there from 1997 until 2006 and other long running shows include Sunset Boulevard and Me And My Girl.
Specialises in touring schools, art centres and theatres nationally throughout the year with plays and workshops specifically written and designed for nursery, infant and junior age groups.
Originally known as the New Theatre, the Albery opened in 1903. A host of famous names have appeared on-stage at the theatre including Sir John Gielgud, Sybil Thorndike, Sir Laurence Olivier and Peggy Ashcroft.
Since 2000, this theatre has hosted a mixture of plays, comedies and musical theatre productions. Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Whistle Down the Wind played until 2001, and Fame enjoyed an extended run from 2002 to 2006. Since then, the venue has hosted Dancing in the Streets, which subsequently moved to the Playhouse Theatre, and since September 2006 has been the home to the British stage version of Dirty Dancing.
The Almeida is in the heart of Islington, North London. It produce a range of British and international drama and links its work with its local community. Almeida Festival produces an annual festival of contemporary opera, music and theatre each summer.
Shaftesbury Avenue (West End) theatre which is popular with big name comedians, as well as hosting occassional drama productions. At the time of writing, Dylan Moran and Ross Noble were due to take over the venue for extended residencies.
For 18 years, the theatre was home to Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Starlight Express, for which it was extensively redesigned to accommodate a multi-tier roller skating arena. The Bee Gees musical Saturday Night Fever, which was initially put in as a short filler, then played to packed houses for the next four years. It is one of the largest theatres in the capital which a capacity of 2,208.
Arcola runs one of the largest youth and community programmes in east London. Activities include a Turkish & Kurdish Theatre Group, a writers’ group, youth theatre, annual youth music productions and capoeira classes.
Artichoke is a creative company that puts on extraordinary shows that change the way people look at the world. We work with the best creative minds to produce events that live in the memory forever.
The Barbican is Europe's largest multi-arts and conference venue presenting a diverse range of art, music, theatre, dance, film and education events. It is also home to the London Symphony Orchestra.
BAC aims to create and promote exciting, innovative, accessible, high quality and surprising arts activity through creative collaboration between artists, staff and public.
The Bloomsbury Theatre, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2008, is the only West End theatre on a university campus (University College London).
The Blue Elephant is the only professional theatre in Camberwell: a vibrant arts venue, aiming to nurture new and emerging artists across all art-forms. "Camberwell's coolest venue" The Guardian.
Box Clever is a writer-led, multi-disciplinary company that creates contemporary theatre with and for young people. The company's school tours include new writing on life issues and adaptations of curriculum set texts.
The Bush is an internationally renowned champion of playwrights. It has produced hundreds of premieres since its inception in 1972, and receives more than 1,000 scripts every year, and reads and responds to them all.
Productions at the Cambridge Theatre have been characterised by relatively short runs. Notable exceptions include Tommy Steele in Half a Sixpence in 1963 (678 performances) and Bruce Forsyth in Little Me in 1964 (334 performances). More recently the musical Return to the Forbidden Planet opened in September 1989 and lasted until early 1993. The controversial show Jerry Springer - The Opera has recently finished at the Cambridge Theatre, and was the longest running show on record at the theatre.
Camden People's Theatre is small scale experimental company dedicated to the creation of new work. It produces, promotes and supports professional theatre from innovative emerging companies.
Cardboard Citizens is the UK's only homeless people's professional theatre company and the leading practitioner of Forum Theatre in the UK. The company works with homeless and ex-homeless people, including asylum seekers and refugees.
A well-established women's circus theatre company which is know for its elaborate costumes. The octopus on our CV clinic page is from one of their shows, called Octopus Ocean.
Promotes and represents all aspects of the circus community. The forum organises a National Circus Day, annual conferences, offers a general advice service and strategic support such as lobbying.
The Circus Space is a centre of excellence in the circus arts, working in partnership with the public and private sectors at local, regional and international levels to redefine perceptions of circus and broaden its appeal.
Clean Break works with women within the criminal justice system and women ex-offenders. The company commissions and produces new plays and provides a comprehensive accredited theatre training programme.
The theatre is well-known in the arts and entertainments industry and the venue's engaging atmosphere and reputation for innovative work (and easy evening parking) makes it popular with press, VIPs and audiences alike.
A West End theatre showing a mix of drama and musicals. Rallied against censorship in the 50s, opening its own club where censored plays could be performed.
Creative Process is a regeneration agency working with the creative sector in London, mainly in Lewisham and Greenwich. It provides business support, runs a creative network, runs and supports festivals and works with the Learning and Skills Council to deliver apprenticeships for young people.
Home to The Reduced Shakespeare Company until 2005, the Criterion Theatre is currently playing The 39 Steps. Interestingly, its underground auditorium was requisitioned by the BBC during WWII and a series of light entertainment shows were broadcast from there.
Deafinitely Theatre was set up in Janurary 2002 to produce performance ideas by deaf people. All the work is Deaf led but is accessible to hearing people as well. The company also runs projects and workshops for youth theatre's, community groups, colleges and schools.
We Will Rock You, a musical based on the songs of Queen created by Queen guitarist Brian May and comedian Ben Elton has run here since 2003. Other notable shows include Jesus Christ Superstar, David Ian and Paul Nicholas' new production of Grease, Scrooge - The Musical, Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake and Disney's Beauty & The Beast.
As well as presenting at least six productions a year at its home in Covent Garden, the Donmar presents work nationally and internationally. Every year the Donmar tours one in-house production in the UK.
Notable shows at this West End theatre include The Royal Court and Ambassador Theatre Group's highly acclaimed co-production of The Weir, which ran for over two years and won the 1999 Olivier Award for Best New Play and Stones In His Pockets, winner of the 2001 Olivier Awards for Best Comedy and Best Comedy Actor.
Emergency Exit Arts is one of the UK's leading street arts companies, providing arts services for community events, public celebrations and arts in education projects. It also creates and produces one-off performances and site-specific events.
This is the UK’s leading theatre for new writing. It develops and produces new plays at its recently refurbished home in Sloane Square and also runs a dramaturgical service, comprehensive programmes for young writers and international work.
English Touring Theatre tours productions of classical plays. A broad and wide reaching programme of workshops, talks and special events accompanies every tour.
Extant challenges the idea held in mainstream theatre, that blindness impedes exciting physical performance. It has developed working methods with blind actors that have started to break down these barriers.
Previously known as Mean Fiddler, Festival Republic is the main player in the UK festivals market, promoting Reading, Leeds and Latitude Festivals. It also has operational responsibility for Glastonbury. Latitude, a music and arts festival with a big interest in theatre, was launched in 2006. It takes place annually in Suffolk.
Since 1989, The Fortune has played host to Woman in Black, adapted by Stephen Mallatratt from the book of the same name by Susan Hill. It has now been seen by over seven million people at this West End venue.
Frantic Assembly is a physical theatre company, founded in 1994. The company specialises in creating contemporary physical theatre and has a strong new writing policy. As well as working in London, Frantic Assembly tours the UK extensively and runs regular educational workshop programmes to complement its productions.
Futures Theatre Company was founded in January 1992 to promote plays written by women. It now works in theatre-in-education and claims to have reached 40,000 young people with its performances and drama workshops, across 17 London boroughs.
This West End theatre has mostly been associated with comedies and comedy dramas. Notable productions include No Sex Please We're British and the Royal National Theatre's multi-award winning production of JB Priestley's An Inspector Calls.
The Gate specialises in international work, including new plays and new work in translation. The theatre runs an education and outreach programme in its local community that has links with international aspects of the programme and is regarded as an important training ground for younger practitioners.
Germination is a creative production company, working in the spaces between society, technology and culture. Its aim is to engage audiences in ideas around positive social change through film, performance and digital media.
This Shaftesbury Avenue (West End) theatre has been known as the Gielgud since 1994, in anticipation of the opening of a reconstruction of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre on the South Bank. Called the Globe Theatre since 1909, it was the Hicks Theatre for three years previous to that. Now owned by Delfont Mackintosh Theatres (who are not planning a further name change), it has presented several Alan Ayckbourn premieres, including Man of the Moment and notable productions have included Oscar Wilde's classic comedy An Ideal Husband (1992) and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (2004).
Graeae is a disabled-led theatre company that profiles the skills of actors, writers and directors with physical and sensory impairments. Their artistic approach creates aesthetically accessible productions for disabled and non-disabled audiences.
Greenwich and Lewisham Young People's Theatre (GLTPT)provides a wide range of opportunities for young people to learn through drama and theatre arts, including workshops and its schools education programme.
London’s newest, purpose studio theatre which is located in SE10. The Greenwich Playhouse is prominently situated in the forecourt of the new Greenwich Connex South East Rail and Docklands Light Railway Station. The venue boasts state-of-the-art facilities and has a resident artistic director.
In all aspects of both programming and producing Greenwich Theatre is committed to supporting the production of musical theatre. It is also committed to providing a nationally unique programme of educational opportunities for young people, primarily through the operation of the Greenwich Musical Theatre Academy.
Built in 1901 by legendary architect Frank Matchum (who also designed Blackpool Tower), the Hackney Empire aims to present entertainment for everybody, ranging from comedy, variety, music and dance to drama, opera and family shows.
The Half Moon produces professional theatre and provides training, youth theatre, and other participatory opportunities for young people from culturally diverse backgrounds.
Throughout its fifty year history, Hampstead Theatre has been associated with new writing. Its free to join youth theatre heat&light company has opportunities for performers, writers, technicians and stage managers aged 10-25.
Since 1986 Her Majesty's has been the London home of The Phantom of the Opera. The West End venue was the setting for the popular ITV1 variety series Live from Her Majesty's, which ran on television from 1982 to 1985.
Major music venue, also hosting comedy and children's productions, the Hammersmith Apollo became the HMV Apollo in January 2009. It is one of 11 live music venues now owned by HMV and the MAMA Group. Who’s played here? Who hasn’t? The roll call includes ABBA, Aerosmith, David Bowie, Guns N’ Roses, The Jacksons, Prince, Queen and The Who.
Immediate Theatre works with community groups in and around Hackney to create theatre. Past projects have worked with 16-25-year-olds, primary schools, people at high risk of exclusion, substance misuse groups and other vulnerable young people. AS well as participatory work, they also create theatre for young people and recent shows have explored issues including childhood obesity, hoax calls to the emergency services and road safety.
Under the leadership of three artistic directors, Improbable is a theatre company committed to finding new ways to tell stories using puppetry, mask, live music and improvisation. Projects are primarily based on stories connecting people to each other and to the world.
In Toto Theatre specialise in creating ‘total theatre’ by, with and for young audiences; a highly visual, musical style of theatre using an approach which is inclusive and very accessible to a wide range of ages and abilities.
ISAN provides a range of services for promoters of street arts. Providing networking and information services in the UK, the organisation has raised the profile of the sector and the level of debate about the artform.
This provides professional development for performing arts practitioners. Its main event is an annual festival of workshops led by nationally and internationally renowned artists.
Kaos Theatre is an ensemble company that combines a cappella singing, physicality, storytelling and intimate performances to create highly original visual interpretations of classics, adaptations and new writing.
Kazzum is a company at the forefront of dynamic, creative work for younger audiences, drawing on a range of artistic and cultural influences and practices.
Kinetika has 10 years experience in the design, production and performance of extraordinary shows that retain the essence of carnival whilst telling a story, working as a team of professional artists alongside young people.
The Little Angel Theatre is "the home of British puppetry" and one of only two building-based puppet theatres in England. For over 45 years it has been providing high quality puppet theatre aimed at family audiences, and continues to extend its work for young children and adults.
The London International Mime Festival is an annual festival of mime, puppetry and visual theatre attracting the highest quality international and national work.
The Lyceum has been home to the musical version of The Lion King since 1999. In the 60s and 70s it was used as a music venue, with notable performances from The Grateful Dead, The Clash, Led Zepellin, U2 and Culture Club.
The Lyric hosts theatre, music and comedy and even boasts shows for children aged from just three months. Lyric Young Company is for young people aged 14-21 and offers workshops, masterclasses, work experience and £5 theatre tickets.
The Royal National Theatre produces a full range of new, contemporary and classic plays in its three theatres, performing to all age groups and communities. It tours and hosts work from other countries, and carries out an intensive programme of education and development in the studio.
The National Youth Theatre gives young people aged 14-21 throughout the UK the chance to participate in theatre to a high professional, artistic and practical standard. It contributes to their social and cultural development and encourages them to aspire to excellence.
The Ambassadors opened in 1913 - three years late as a result of World War I. It was built with the intention of being an intimate, smaller theatre and is situated opposite celeb-fave restaurant the Ivy.
Presents issue–led writing, including musicals, comedy and classic revivals. The building housing the New End Theatre was constructed in 1890 as the mortuary of the former New End Hospital. A tunnel connecting the hospital and mortuary allowed the bodies to be transported under the road.
This Drury Lane theatre is about as new as ABBA, opening in 1973. Between 1981 and 2002 it was home to the musical Cats, during which time it became the longest running musical in West End history.
Not new at all, being built in 1910, this Grade II listed theatre is topped by the Goddess of Gaiety, a winged angel standing high on the dome watching out over London.
A group of London theatres. On the 26th September 2005, producers Nica Burns and Max Weitzenhoffer purchased the Apollo, Lyric, Duchess and Garrick Theatres from Andrew Lloyd Webber, creating Nimax Theatres Limited. The Vaudeville Theatre, solely owned by Max Weitzenhoffer, completes the Nimax portfolio.
Named after the playwright, composer and actor who made his West End debut here in 1920, the famous dressing gown wearer is not the only major name to tread the boards at this historic theatre.
Now named after the actor who lived in the flat above the theatre for 38 years from 1913 to 1951, this West End theatre was called the Strand until 2005.
Oily Cart specialises in producing theatre for three to five-year-old children, and innovative work for young disabled people with multiple impairments.
The oldest, professional outdoor theatre in Britain has been presenting Shakespeare plays for over 75 years. It has an association with the Young Shakespeare Company and delivers workshops for primary and secondary schools.
The Orange Tree, in Richmond-upon-Thames, produces high quality theatre-in-the-round. It also provides schools’ projects and training opportunities for new directors
The Oval House supports, promotes and encourages the development of new work. It has a strong policy of supporting disability arts, Black and Asian theatre companies, and also runs an extensive programme of theatre and workshops for young people
Paines Plough is a theatre company that specialises in developing new writing talent. It tours to small and middle-scale theatres throughout the country. The company also offers education and training programmes.
The Palace Theatre was intended to be the home of British grand opera when it opened in 1891. Currently playing Priscilla Queen of the Desert staring Jason Donovan, whether it has fallen short of or indeed exceeded its expectations is a matter of taste!
The Peacock Theatre is Sadler’s Wells West End venue. The 999-seat house is part of the London School of Economics and Political Science campus, which also uses the theatre for lectures, public talks, conferences, political speeches and open days.
People Show is a long established company committed to creating multidisciplinary, multimedia live theatre. There is no artistic director and shows are developed through the ideas of the core and associate artists.
The current production Blood Brothers, a musical by Willy Russell, which transferred from the Albery in 1991, is the longest running show ever at the Phoenix.
At its grand opening in April 1928, the Piccadilly Theatre was one of the largest theatres to be built in London, as its souvenir brochure claimed, 'If all the bricks used in the building were laid in a straight line, they would stretch from London to Paris'.
Owned by the Ambassador Theatre Group, The Playhouse Theatre is in the West End, near to Trafalgar Square. It was used by the BBC for recording live performances throughout the 1950s-70s.
Polka Theatre is the only theatre venue in Britain exclusively dedicated to children. The theatre has been developing new writing for children and is at the forefront of theatre for early years (0–6 year olds).
Mamma Mia!, the musical love story featuring Abba's greatest hits, broke all previous box office records when it sold out for five years before transferring to the newly refurbished Prince of Wales Theatre in June 2004.
On 3 April 2004 Cameron Mackintosh's musical phenomenon Les Miserables transferred from the Palace Theatre where it had run for more than 18 years and 7,602 performances. It is still going strong at this Shaftesbury Avenue theatre.
The Questors is the largest community theatre in Europe, with an audience membership of around 3,000, of whom around 600 are actively involved in productions.
Quicksilver Theatre tours schools and venues in London, nationally and internationally with productions for children and young people aged three to 11.The company also offers education and training programmes specifically aimed at young people.
Red Shift is a London based company which tours nationally to small and middle-scale venues throughout the UK. The company's work combines traditional narrative with art-house performance, creating work that is both challenging and accessible.
Rich Mix is located within the buzzing heart of Shoreditch. Since opening in Spring 2006, this vast former garment factory has played host to the newest releases and exciting film festivals in our three-screen cinema and events for clients such as Lily Allen, Google, Bacardi and the BBC.
Ridiculusmus make comic theatre that is provocative, bold and unconventional. Their work is created through improvisation and is comitted to being both accessible and experimental, with the company placing particular emphasis on the nature of their relationship with the audience. The company tours both nationally and internationally.
Ripstop Productions creates visual theatre for children, with shadow theatre and live music integral to their work. It has a policy of creating theatre that can tour easily to different venues, including schools and theatres.
The Roundhouse hosts a multidisciplinary programme of theatre, physical theatre, music and performance art, and an arts training centre for young people in the Undercroft.
The Royal Albert Hall is one of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings. Since its opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from every kind of performance genre have appeared on its stage.
Britain’s first national theatre company, which sees itself as a writers’ theatre. John Osbourne’s Look Back in Anger, which opened there in 1956, is now considered the play that marks the start of modern British drama
The Royal Opera House is one of the most historic lyric theatres in the world and home to The Royal Ballet, The Royal Opera and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House.
A massive fire closed the Savoy Theatre in1990 and when it reopened in 1993, with its auditorium and public areas faithfully restored to their original 1929 glory, it received unprecedented worldwide media coverage
Scarabeus is one of the UK’s foremost exponents of multidisciplinary performance. It uses visual theatre, stilts, abseiling, dance and acrobatics to create challenging work outside conventional performance spaces.
Currently showing Hairspray with Brian Conley, the Shaftesbury is a West End theatre with a capacity of 1,400, situated on the famous Shaftesbury Avenue. On July 20 1973, part of the ceiling fell in, closing the production of the musical Hair which had been running since 1968. Recent productions include musical theatre and comedy.
The reconstructed Shakespeare's Globe on London's Bankside. Over 100,000 people of all ages and nationalities, from pre-school to postgraduates, participate in Globe Education's year-round programme of public events, workshops and courses.
Shared Experience has gained a national and international reputation for its highly physical interpretations of classic novels. It is acclaimed across the world for its powerful dramatic performances and visual imagery.
Soho Theatre produces and presents new plays, runs workshops and pre-show platform discussions, presents workshop productions and encourages the development of new writers through its Writers’ Centre.
Southbank Centre consists of the Royal Festival Hall, The Hayward, Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Saison Poetry Library. It's programme includes wide-ranging programme - classical & world music, rock & pop, jazz, dance, literature and the visual arts
Southwark Playhouse's central vision is that of a vibrant theatre in the heart of the London Borough of Southwark, serving the widest possible constituency within the borough and beyond, providing a platform for emerging theatre practitioners and a programme of performance, education work and community drama.
Spare Tyre Theatre Company uses theatre with voiceless communities to provide opportunities for people's life stories to be shared, and celebrated creating community theatre that transforms lives and challenges social prejudice.
A borough-wide partnership linking the theatre community and the education and youth sector in Southwark. STEP works with Southwark schools, youth and community groups and theatres and performing arts organisations to encourage young people to achieve their full potential.
Runs community arts projects in the outer East London boroughs. Projects have included working with story telling, creative writing, digital art, set design, puppetry, textiles and video.
Talawa is a Black producing theatre company presenting plays from the African diaspora and new interpretations of classics. The company also runs an education programme and a scheme to develop Black women writers.
Tamasha produces new and popular touring theatre productions of contemporary relevance for Asian communities and audiences in multicultural Britain. The company also provides an education programme.
The Albany, in the heart of Deptford, is a multi-use performing and digital arts venue, with a strong focus on working with diverse, local communities.
Initiation and advanced course of theatre study based on the teachings of Jacques Lecoq. It also offers an evening course for more experienced theatre practitioners from all disciplines.
Through Old Vic New Voices, The Old Vic aims to support young and emerging talent, to source and develop new work for production on The Old Vic stage, and to open up the building to new and diverse audiences.
Theatre Centre has been one of the leading companies for young people for half a century, producing high quality theatre in schools and arts venues around the country.
Théâtre de Complicité specialises in touring productions of physical-based theatre and also provides a programme of professional workshops and educational initiatives.
Theatre Peckham is based at the Magic Eye Theatre in south east London and offers training and education opportunities for all, with a particular emphasis on young people.
Theatre-Rites has been creating high quality and innovative theatre experiences for young people since 1995. They tour both nationally and internationally and also create site-specific shows performed in spaces as diverse as derelict houses to working hospitals.
Currently booking Oliver!, staring Rowan Atkinson until 2011, Theatre Royal Drury Lane has a proud history of long running shows. Schönberg and Boublil's Miss Saigon played at this West End venue for over 4,000 performances throughout the 1990s.
Maggie Smith, Simon Callow, Sir Ian Mckellan, Dame Judi Dench, Julie Walters, Rob Lowe, Ralph Fiennes, Prunella Scales, Joely Richardson and Vanessa Redgrave are just some of the acting royalty who have appeared at the Theatre Royal Haymarket over the last few years.
Theatre Venture is a long established community theatre arts resource, producing theatre and participatory arts work, primarily in the borough of Newham, for local communities.
Tiata Fahodzi produces new work that reflects and mirrors the lives of West African communities in England. The company’s work is for an all-inclusive British audience but provides a theatrical voice identifiable from a specific cultural perspective.
Time Won't Wait is a creative force dedicated to producing dynamic and honest live performance and cross-platform participatory events. It commissions and produces new projects in partnership with local communities, national partners, agencies and international artists.
Told by an Idiot specialises in devised and physical theatre led by key practitioners in the field. The company tours original productions to venues regionally, nationally and internationally.
Trafalgar Studios is a West End theatre which opened two studio spaces in 2004 on the site of the old Whitehall Theatre. It has been called ‘a revolution for the West End’ by the Daily Telegraph and sees itself as a gateway for new productions in London.
The Unicorn is the UK’s flagship theatre for young people. As well as creating its own productions, it host visits by some of the UK and world’s other great theatre companies for young people.
The home of Billy Elliot The Musical since March 2005, other long running shows at The Victoria Palace have included Buddy (1989-1995), Jolson, staring Brian Conley, Grease and Tonight’s The Night – The Rod Stewart Musical.
An award-winning new writing theatre company and theatrical network run by Anna Jordan. Shows, readings, workshops and free resources for actors and writers.
West End theatre owned by Delfont Mackintosh. Recent shows include The Play what I Wrote, Vincent in Brixton, directed by Richard Eyre, Up for Grabs in which Madonna made her West End debut, the National Theatre production of Democracy and Heroes translated from the French by Tom Stoppard.
Youth Music Theatre UK are the largest National Music Theatre company for young people aged 11 -21. We run residential courses, workshops and productions around the country; giving young people the chance to work with leading practitioners and other talented performers to create and stage new Musical Theatre.
