Bush Theatre

The Bush Theatre is located in the Passmore Edwards Public Library, Shepherd's Bush, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. It was established in 1972 as a showcase for the work of new writers.

Artistic Directors

* Brian McDermott and Nicholas Newton (1972-1975)
* Peter Wilson (1975-1977)
* Jenny Topper (1977–1988), jointly with Nicky Pallot (1979–1990)
* Dominic Dromgoole (1990–1996)
* Mike Bradwell (1996–2007)
* Josie Rourke (2007–2012)
* Madani Younis (2011–2018)
* Lynette Linton (2019–present)

History

On Thursday 6 April 1972, the Bush Theatre was established above The Bush public house on the corner of Goldhawk Road and Shepherd's Bush Green, in what was once the dance studio of Lionel Blair. It was established by a maverick actor, Brian McDermott, who used to tour the Fringe, and was shortly joined by theatre producer Nicholas Newton. The venue, despite its fame and massive output, was intimate, with a maximum audience of approximately 80. The first production was an adaption of ''The Collector'' by John Fowles, directed by John Neville and starring Annette Andre and Brian McDermott; it had previously played at the King's Head Theatre. During the next three years they produced over 30 productions including the musical ''Dick Deterred'' by David Edgar and Lindsay Kemp's ''Flowers'' both at the Bush Theatre and then at the ICA Theatre.

Throughout 1992, the Bush Theatre celebrated 20 years at the frontier of new writing. "What has held the Bush together for 20 years? Blind faith, youthful commitment and a tenacious belief in new writing: above all, perhaps, the conviction that new work deserves the highest standards in acting, direction and design", ''The Guardian''. The Bush won ''The Empty Space Award'' for the year's work, which included Billy Roche's Bush plays ''A Handful Of Stars'', ''Poor Beast in the Rain'' and ''Belfry'' playing in repertory as ''The Wexford Trilogy'', which toured to Wexford Opera House and the Abbey Theatre, Dublin.

In November 2010, the Bush Theatre announced it would be leaving its home of nearly forty years and moving to the former Passmore Edwards Public Library building, round the corner from its first home, on Uxbridge Road.

The relocation took place in 2011 and the new venue opened with the " Sixty-Six Books" project. This was a celebration of the anniversary of the publication of the King James Bible, which used 66 writers, many of whom were veterans of the Bush.

That same year, Artistic Director Josie Rourke announced her departure from the Bush to take up the position of Artistic Director of the Donmar Warehouse. The Board appointed Madani Younis as her successor from January 2012. In 2013, he programmed the theatre's most successful season to date, which saw the theatre play to 99% capacity.

In Spring 2016, the Bush Theatre relocated its plays to found spaces around Shepherd's Bush and Notting Hill, as the former library building closed for the largest capital project in the theatre's history. Borrowing new and iconic spaces with their own histories and tales of the local community, this season of work welcomed new audiences and residents by offering a number of free and subsidised theatre tickets to local people.

In March 2017, following a landmark year of taking plays into the communities of West London, the Bush Theatre returned home following a £4.3m revitalisation of the venue. The year-long redevelopment was driven by the aim of realising Younis’ vision for a theatre that reflected the diversity and vibrancy of London. Upon reopening, the building was to be more sustainable and entirely accessible, with a new entrance, front-of-house area and exterior garden terrace to the main street.

Lynette Linton became Artistic Directory in January 2019, following Younis' appointment as Creative Director at the Southbank Centre. That same year, the theatre was named London Theatre of the Year by ''The Stage''.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bush Theatre filmed several of its productions and offered them to online viewers.

Venue

Following the 2016/17 redevelopment, the Bush Theatre has two performance spaces:
* The ''Theatre'', a reserved seating venue with a maximum capacity of 180. It has remained in its original location and can be configured in a thrust, end on or in the round layout.
* The ''Studio'', an unreserved seating venue with a maximum capacity of 70, is a home for emerging artists and producers. Similarly, this space can be configured in a thrust, end on or in the round layout.

The building also contains an ''Attic'' rehearsal space and ''Writer's Room'', along with a Café Bar, garden terrace and playtext library, which is the largest public theatre reference library in the United Kingdom.

The redevelopment of the venue was 'Cultural Project of the Year' finalist at the AJ Architecture Awards 2017, and 'Highly commended Cultural Building' at the AJ Retrofit Awards 2017, and selected by the Hammersmith Society as winner of their Conservation Award for 2017.

New writing

The Literary Department at the Bush Theatre is committed to discovering the best new plays from playwrights from the widest range of backgrounds and therefore seek unsolicited submissions throughout the year in dedicated script windows. The Bush is a proud champion of playwrights, with a keen interest in those voices not often heard, and reflecting the contemporary culture of London, the UK and beyond. The Department receives nearly 2000 scripts a year from new and established playwrights, all of which are read and considered for production or development at the Bush.

Awards and Nominations

Awards

1977 – George Devine Award to Robert Holman for ''German Skerries''
1979 – George Devine Award to Jonathan Gems for ''The Tax Exile''
1982 – Samuel Beckett Award for ''Coming Clean'' by Kevin Elyot
1986 – Laurence Olivier Award Nomination for Outstanding Achievement to Robert Holman for ''Making Noises Quietly''
1989 – John Whiting Award for ''Handful of Stars'' by Billy Roche
1993 – Laurence Olivier Award Nomination for Outstanding Achievement to Billy Roche for ''The Wexford Trilogy''
1993 – Susan Smith Blackburn Award to Jane Coles for ''Backstroke In A Crowded Pool''
1993 – John Whiting Award for ''The Clearing'' by Helen Edmundson
1994 – John Whiting Award for ''Beautiful Thing'' by Jonathan Harvey
1995 – Laurence Olivier Award Nomination for ''Beautiful Thing'' by Jonathan Harvey
1996 – Susan Smith Blackburn Award to Naomi Wallace for '' One Flea Spare''
1997 – Meyer-Whitworth Award to Conor McPherson for '' This Lime Tree Bower''
1998 – George Devine Award to Helen Blakeman for ''Caravan''
1998 – Meyer-Whitworth Award to Daragh Carville for ''Language Roulette''
1999 – George Devine Award to Mark O'Rowe for ''Howie the Rookie''
2005 – Meyer-Whitworth Award to Stephen Thompson for ''Damages''
2006 – Susan Smith Blackburn Award to Amelia Bullmore for ''Mammals''
2007 – Susan Smith Blackburn Award to Abbie Spallen for ''Pumpgirl''
2018 – Laurence Olivier Award nomination - Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre for ''The B*easts''
2019 – Stage Awards - London Theatre of the Year
2019 – Laurence Olivier Award nomination - Best New Play for ''Misty''
2019 – Laurence Olivier Award nomination - Best Actor for ''Misty'' ( Arinzé Kene)
2020 – Laurence Olivier Award – Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre for '' Baby Reindeer''
2020 – Stage Debut Awards - Best Writer for ''The High Table'' (Temi Wilkey)
2022 – Laurence Olivier Award - Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre for ''Old Bridge''
2022 – Laurence Olivier Award nomination - Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre for ''10 Nights''
2022 – Evening Standard Theatre Awards - Most Promising Playwright for ''Red Pitch'' (Tyrell Williams)
2022 – Stage Debut Awards - Best Writer for ''Red Pitch'' (Tyrell Williams)
2022 – Susan Smith Blackburn Prize - Benedict Lombe for ''Lava''
2022 – George Devine Award - Tyrell Williams for ''Red Pitch''
2022 – Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards - Most Promising Playwright for ''Old Bridge'' (Igor Memic)
2022 – Evening Standard Theatre Awards nomination - Most Promising Playwright for ''The P Word'' (Waleed Akhtar)
2022 – Evening Standard Theatre Awards nomination - Most Promising Playwright for ''Old Bridge'' (Igor Memic)
2022 – Evening Standard Theatre Awards nomination - Best Play for ''Red Pitch''
2022 – Stage Debut Awards nomination - Best Designer for ''Favour'' (Liz Whitbread)
2022 – Stage Debut Awards nomination - Best Performer in a Play for ''House of Ife'' ( Michael Workeye)
2022 – Asian Media Awards nomination - Best Stage Production for ''10 Nights''
2022 – Asian Media Awards nomination - Best Stage Production for ''Favour''
2023 – Laurence Olivier Award - Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre for ''The P Word''
2023 – Stage Awards - Theatre of the Year
2023 – Stage Debut Awards - Best Writer for ''Elephant'' (Anoushka Lucas)
2023 – Stage Debut Awards - Best Director for ''A Playlist for the Revolution'' (Emily Ling Williams)
2023 – Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards- Most Promising Playwright for ''Red Pitch'' (Tyrell Williams)
2023 – SME Greater London Enterprise Awards - Most Outstanding Local Theatre
2023 – Laurence Olivier Award nomination - Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre for ''Paradise Now!''
2023 – Stage Debut Awards nomination - Best Writer for ''August in England'' (Lenny Henry)
2023 – Stage Debut Awards nomination - Best Performer in a Play for ''Sleepova'' ( Bukky Bakray)
2023 – Evening Standard Theatre Awards nomination - Most Promising Playwright for ''Elephant'' ( Anoushka Lucas)
2023 – Evening Standard Theatre Awards nomination- Most Promising Playwright for ''Sleepova'' ( Matilda Feyiṣayọ Ibini)
2023 – Asian Media Awards nomination - Best Stage Production for ''The P Word''
2023 – Asian Media Awards nomination - Outstanding Stage Performance for ''The P Word'' (Waleed Akhtar)
2024 – Laurence Olivier Award - Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre for ''Sleepova''
2024 – Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards - Most Promising Playwright for ''Sleepova'' (Matilda Feyiṣayọ Ibini)
2024 – Profile Awards, Theatre Critics’ Choice - Outstanding Achievement in Theatre for ''Red Pitch'' (Ali Hunter)
2024 – Laurence Olivier Award nomination - Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre for ''A Playlist for the Revolution''

Books

To celebrate 40 years of the Bush Theatre, ''"Close-Up Magic": 40 Years at the Bush Theatre'' was published, charting the history of the theatre and including contributions from past directors, actors, writers and audience members.

Productions

A list of selected productions of the Bush Theatre.
* 2024 ''The Cord'' by Bijan Sheibani
* 2024 ''My Father's Fable'' by Faith Omole
* 2024 ''The Real Ones'' by Waleed Akhtar
* 2024 ''Wolves on Road'' by Beru Tessema
* 2024 ''Lady Dealer'' by Martha Watson Allpress
* 2024 ''Statues'' by Azan Ahmed
* 2024 ''Tender'' by Eleanor Tindall
* 2024 ''The End'' by Jasmin Mandi-Gho
* 2024 ''Shifters'' By Benedict Lombe
* 2024 ''A Playlist for the Revolution'' by AJ Yi
* 2023 ''Elephant'' by Anoushka Lucas
* 2023 ''Red Pitch'' by Tyrell Williams
* 2023 ''Feeling Afraid As If Something Terrible is Going to Happen'' by Marcelo Dos Santos
* 2023 ''Dreaming and Drowning'' by Kwame Owusu
* 2023 ''This Might Not Be It'' by Sophia Chetin-Leuner
* 2023 ''As We Face The Sun'' by Kit Withington
* 2022 ''Red Pitch'' by Tyrell Williams
* 2022 House of Ife by Beru Tessema
* 2022 ''Favour'' by Ambreen Razia
* 2022 ''The P Word'' by Waleed Akhtar
* 2022 ''Paradise Now!'' by Margaret Perry
* 2022 ''Sleepova'' by Matilda Feyisayo Ibini
* 2022 ''August In England'' by Lenny Henry
* 2022 ''Invisible'' by Nikhil Parmar
* 2022 ''Clutch'' by Will Jackson
* 2022 ''Elephant'' by Anoushka Lucas
* 2022 ''The Kola Nut Does Not Speak English'' by Tania Nwachukwu
* 2022 ''Horizon'' by Kwame Owusu
* 2021 ''Lava'' by Benedict Lombe
* 2021 ''Overflow'' by Travis Alabanza
* 2021 ''Harm'' by Phoebe Eclair Powell
* 2021 ''Old Bridge'' by Igor Memic
* 2021 ''Fair Play'' by Ella Road
* 2021 ''10 Nights'' by Shahid Iqbal Khan
* 2021 ''Pink Lemonade'' by Mika Onyx Johnson
* 2019 ''Chiaroscuro'' by Jackie Kay
* 2019 ''Baby Reindeer'' by Richard Gadd
* 2019 ''I Wanna Be Yours'' by Zia Ahmed
* 2019 ''The Arrival'' by Bijan Sheibani
* 2019 ''Strange Fruit'' by Caryl Phillips
* 2018 '' Misty'' by Arinzé Kene
* 2018 ''Leave Taking'' by Winsome Pinnock
* 2018 ''Dismantle Festival'' by Project 2036
*2017 ''The Hijabi Monologues'' by Amal Abdi, Hanan Issa, Sahar Ullah and Nimmo Ismail
*2016 ''The Royale'' by Marco Ramirez
* 2016 ''Boys Will Be Boys'' by Melissa Bubnic
* 2016 ''Right Now'' by Catherine-Anne Toupin
* 2016 ''Pink Mist'' by Owen Sheers
* 2015 ''Forget Me Not'' by Tom Holloway
* 2015 ''RADAR 2015''
* 2015 ''F*ck the Polar Bears'' by Tanya Ronder
* 2015 ''The Invisible'' by Rebecca Lenkiewicz
* 2015 '' The Angry Brigade'' by James Graham
* 2015 ''The Royale'' by Marco Ramirez
* 2015 ''Islands'' by Caroline Horton
* 2014 '' Visitors'' by Barney Norris
* 2014 ''Albion'' by Chris Thompson
* 2014 ''RADAR 2014''
* 2014 ''Perseverance Drive'' by Robin Soans
* 2014 ''Incognito'' by Nick Payne
* 2014 '' We Are Proud to Present a Presentation by the Herero of Namibia, formerly known as South West Africa, from the German Sud-Ouest Afrika Between the Years 1895 – 1915'' by Jackie Sibblies-Drury
* 2014 ''Ciphers'' by Dawn King
* 2013 ''Jumpers for Goalposts'' by Tom Wells
* 2013 ''RADAR 2013''
* 2013 ''The Herd'' by Rory Kinnear
* 2013 ''Josephine and I'' by Cush Jumbo
* 2013 '' Disgraced'' by Ayad Akhtar (Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama)
* 2013 ''Three Birds'' by Janice Okoh
* 2013 ''Money the game show'' by Clare Duffy
* 2012 '' Straight'' by D. C. Moore
* 2012 ''Snookered'' by Ishy Din
* 2012 ''Chalet Lines'' by Lee Mattinson
* 2012 ''The Beloved'' by Amir Nizar Zuabi
* 2012 ''Mad About the Boy'' by Gbolahan Obisesan
* 2012 ''Fear'' by Dominic Savage
* 2012 ''Our New Girl'' by Nancy Harris
* 2011 ''The Kitchen Sink'' by Tom Wells
* 2011 '' Sixty-Six Books'' by Sixty-Six Writers
* 2011 ''This is where we got to when you came in'' by non zero one
* 2011 ''Where's My Seat?'' by Dierdre Kinahan, Tom Wells and Jack Thorne
* 2011 ''In The Beginning'' by Nick Payne
* 2011 ''Moment'' by Deirdre Kinahan
* 2011 ''Little Platoons'' by Steve Waters
* 2011 ''The Knowledge'' by John Donnelly
* 2010 ''My Romantic History'' by D C Jackson
* 2010 '' The Aliens'' by Annie Baker
* 2010 ''The Great British Country Fete'' by Russell Kane and Michael Bruce
* 2010 ''Like A Fishbone'' by Anthony Weigh
* 2010 '' A Little Gem'' by Elaine Murphy
* 2010 ''Eigengrau'' by Penelope Skinner
* 2010 ''The Whisky Taster'' by James Graham
* 2009 '' The Contingency Plan'' by Steve Waters
* 2009 ''The Stefan Golaszewski Plays'' by Stefan Golaszewski
* 2009 '' If There Is I Haven't Found It Yet'' by Nick Payne
* 2009 ''Sea Wall'' by Simon Stephens
* 2009 ''2 May 1997'' by Jack Thorne
* 2009 ''suddenlossofdignity.com'' by Zawe Ashton, James Graham, Joel Horwood, Morgan Lloyd Malcolm & Michelle Terry
* 2009 ''Apologia'' by Alexi Kaye Campbell
* 2009 ''Stovepipe'' by Adam Brace
* 2009 '' Wrecks'' by Neil LaBute
* 2008 ''50 Ways to Leave your Lover at Christmas'' by Leah Chillery, Ben Ellis, Stacey Gregg, Lucy Kirkwood, Morgan Lloyd Malcolm & Ben Schiffer
* 2008 ''I Caught Crabs in Walberswick'' by Joel Horwood
* 2008 ''Broken Space Season'' by Neil LaBute, Bryony Lavery, Simon Stephens, Declan Feenan, Mike Bartlett, Nancy Harris, Lucy Kirkwood, Ben Schiffer, Jack Thorne & Anthony Weigh
* 2008 ''Turf'' by Simon Vinnicombe
* 2008 ''50 Ways to Leave Your Lover'' by Leah Chillery, Ben Ellis, Stacey Gregg, Lucy Kirkwood & Ben Schiffer
* 2008 ''2,000 Feet Away'' by Anthony Weigh
* 2008, ''Tinderbox'' by Lucy Kirkwood
* 2008 ''Artefacts'' by Mike Bartlett
* 2008 ''Helter Skelter/Land of the Dead'' by Neil LaBute
* 2007 ''!'' by Mike Packer
* 2007 ''How To Curse'' by Ian McHugh
* 2007 ''Flight Path'' by David Watson
* 2007 ''Trance'' by Shoji Kokami
* 2007 '' Elling'' by Simon Bent
* 2007 ''Tom Fool'' by Franz Xaver Kroetz
* 2007 ''I Like Mine With a Kiss'' by Georgia Fitch
* 2007 ''Product: World Remix'' by Mark Ravenhill
* 2007 ''What Would Judas Do'' by Stewart Lee
* 2006 ''Whipping It Up'' by Stephen Thompson
* 2006 ''Bones'' by Kay Adshead
* 2006 '' Pumpgirl'' by Abbie Spallen
* 2006 ''Cruising'' by Alecky Blythe
* 2006 ''Crooked'' by Catherine Trieschmann
* 2006 ''Trad'' by Mark Doherty
* 2006 ''Christmas Is Miles Away'' by Chloe Moss
* 2006 ''Try These On For International Size'' by Reg Cribb, Jón Atli Jónasson, Abbie Spallen, Shoji Kokami
* 2006 '' Monsieur Ibrahim and the Flowers Of The Qur'an'' by Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt
* 2005 ''When You Cure Me'' by Jack Thorne
* 2005 ''Bottle Universe'' by Simon Burt
* 2005 '' After the End'' by Dennis Kelly
* 2005 ''The Obituary Show'' by The People Show
* 2005 ''Kingfisher Blue'' by Lin Coghlan
* 2005 ''Mammals'' by Amelia Bullmore
* 2005 ''Take Me Away'' by Gerald Murphy
* 2005 ''Bites'' by Kay Adshead
* 2004 ''Going Donkeys'' by Richard Cameron
* 2004 '' How Love Is Spelt'' by Chloe Moss
* 2004 ''Damages'' by Steve Thompson
* 2004 ''Adrenalin...Heart'' by Georgia Fitch
* 2004 ''One Minute'' by Simon Stephens
* 2004 ''Christmas'' by Simon Stephens
* 2003 ''The God Botherers'' by Richard Bean
* 2003 ''Airsick'' by Emma Frost
* 2003 ''Nine Parts of Desire'' by Heather Raffo
* 2003 ''Little Baby Nothing'' by Catherine Johnson
* 1999 ''Howie the Rookie'' by Mark O'Rowe
* 1998 "Martin and John" by Sean O'Neill adapted form Dale Peck's novel
* 1998 "Love Upon the Throne" by Patrick Barlow
* 1997 '' Disco Pigs'' by Enda Walsh
* 1997 ''Love and Understanding'' by Joe Penhall
* 1997 ''St Nicholas'' by Conor McPherson
* 1997 ''All of You Mine'' by Richard Cameron
* 1991 '' The Pitchfork Disney'' by Philip Ridley
* 1988 ''A Handful of Stars'' by Billy Roche
* 1987 ''Dreams of San Francisco'' by Jacqueline Holborough
* 1987 ''It's A Girl'' by John Burrow
* 1987 ''Tattoo Theatre'' by Mladen Materic
* 1987 ''The Mystery of the Rose Bouquet'' by Mauel Puig
* 1987 ''Effies Burning'' by Valerie Windsor
* 1987 ''People Show No 92 Whistle Stop'' by People Show
* 1987 ''Love Field'' by Stephen Davis
* 1987 ''More Light'' by Snoo Wilson
* 1987 ''An Imitation of Life'' by Abbie Spallen
* 1986 ''The Oven Glove Murders'' by Nick Darke
* 1986 ''Making Noise Quietly'' by Robert Holman
* 1985 '' Kiss of the Spider Woman'' by Manuel Puig
* 1983 ''Hard Feelings'' by Doug Lucie
* 1980 '' Duet for One'' by Tom Kempinski
* 1975 ''City Sugar'' by Stephen Poliakoff (then West End)
* 1975 ''Hitting Town'' by Stephen Poliakoff
* 1974 ''Dick Deterred'' by David Edgar (then ICA Theatre)
* 1974 ''Flowers'' by Lindsay Kemp (then West End)
* 1973 ''Under the Bamboo Tree'' by Tina Brown
* 1973 ''The Pope's Wedding'' by Edward Bond
* 1973 ''Tederella'' by David Edgar
* 1972 ''The Relief of Martha King'' by David Parker
* 1972 ''Christmas Carol'' by Frank Marcus
* 1972 ''Malcolm'' by Lewis Nkosi
* 1972 ''Plays for Rubber Gogo'' by Christopher Wilkinson
* 1972 ''The Collector'' by John Fowles adapted by David Parker

Bibliography

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References

External links

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{{Authority control

Pub theatres in London
Theatres in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
Producing house theatres in London
Shepherd's Bush