The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a non-commercial theatre in

Sloane Square Sloane Square is a small hard-landscaped square on the boundaries of the central London districts of Belgravia and Chelsea, London, Chelsea, located southwest of Charing Cross, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. The area forms a ...

, London, England, opened in 1870; the current building was completed in 1888. The capacity of the theatre has varied between 728 seats and today's 380 seats (with a smaller upstairs theatre opened in 1969). In 1956 it was acquired by and remains the home of the English Stage Company, which focuses on contemporary theatre and won the Europe Prize Theatrical Realities in 1999.

History

The first theatre

The first theatre on Lower George Street, off Sloane Square, was the converted Nonconformist Ranelagh Chapel, opened as a theatre in 1870 under the name The New Chelsea Theatre. Marie Litton became its manager in 1871, hiring Walter Emden to remodel the interior, and it was renamed the Court Theatre. Several of W. S. Gilbert's early plays were staged here, including '' Randall's Thumb'', '' Creatures of Impulse'' (with music by Alberto Randegger), ''Great Expectations'' (adapted from the

Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by many as the great ...

novel), and ''On Guard'' (all in 1871); '' The Happy Land'' (1873, with Gilbert Abbott à Beckett; Gilbert's most controversial play); ''The Wedding March'', translated from ''Un Chapeau de Paille d'Italie'' by Eugène Marin Labiche (1873); ''The Blue-Legged Lady'', translated from ''La Dame aux Jambes d'Azur'' by Labiche and Marc-Michel (1874); and '' Broken Hearts'' (1875). By 1878, management of the theatre was shared by John Hare and W. H. Kendal. Further alterations were made in 1882 by Alexander Peebles, after which its capacity was 728 (including stalls and boxes, dress circle and balcony, amphitheatre, and gallery).''Social history: Social and cultural activities, A History of the County of Middlesex''
Volume 12: Chelsea (2004), pp. 166–76. Date accessed: 22 March 2007. After that, Arthur Cecil (who had joined the theatre's company in 1881) was co-manager of the theatre with John Clayton.Knight, Joseph, rev. Nilanjana Banerji
"Cecil, Arthur (1843–1896)"
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004, accessed 7 October 2008, Among other works, they produced a series of Arthur Wing Pinero's farces, including ''The Rector'', ''The Magistrate'' (1885), ''The Schoolmistress'' (1886), and ''Dandy Dick'' (1887), among others. The theatre closed on 22 July 1887 and was demolished.

The current theatre: 1888–WWII

The present building was built on the east side of Sloane Square, replacing the earlier building, and opened on 24 September 1888 as the New Court Theatre. Designed by Walter Emden and Bertie Crewe, it is constructed of fine red brick, moulded brick, and a stone facade in free Italianate style. Originally the theatre had a capacity of 841 in the stalls, dress circle, amphitheatre, and a gallery. Cecil and Clayton yielded management of the theatre to Mrs. John Wood and Arthur Chudleigh in 1887, although Cecil continued acting in their company (and others) until 1895. The first production in the new building was a play by

Sydney Grundy Sydney Grundy (23 March 1848 – 4 July 1914) was an English dramatist. Most of his works were adaptations of European plays, and many became successful enough to tour throughout the English-speaking world. He is, however, perhaps best remembe ...

titled ''Mamma'', starring Mrs. John Wood and John Hare, with Arthur Cecil and Eric Lewis. By the end of the century, the theatre was again called the "Royal Court Theatre". Harley Granville-Barker managed the theatre for the first few years of the 20th century, and

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 188 ...

's plays were produced at the New Court for a period. It ceased to be used as a theatre in 1932, but was used as a cinema from 1935 to 1940, until

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

bomb damage closed it.

The English Stage Company

After the war, the interior was reconstructed as a stage theatre by Robert Cromie, and the number of seats was reduced to under 500. The theatre re-opened in 1952, with Oscar Lewenstein as the general manager. In 1954, Lewenstein, together with

George Devine George Alexander Cassady Devine (20 November 1910 – 20 January 1966) was an English theatrical manager, director, teacher, and actor based in London from the early 1930s until his death. He also worked in TV and film. Early life and education ...

Ronald Duncan Ronald Frederick Henry Duncan (6 August 1914 – 3 June 1982) was an English writer, poet and playwright of German descent, now best known for his poem ''The Horse (poem), The Horse'' and for preparing the libretto for Benjamin Britten's opera ' ...

and Greville Poke, founded the English Stage Company (ESC) with a mission to present plays by young and experimental dramatists and "the best contemporary plays from abroad". Devine served as the first artistic director of the ESC, while Poke was its Honorary Secretary. The ESC purchased the Royal Court in 1956 and began to produce adventurous new and foreign works, together with some classical revivals. The new company's third production in 1956,

John Osborne John James Osborne (12 December 1929 – 24 December 1994) was an English playwright, screenwriter, actor, and entrepreneur, who is regarded as one of the most influential figures in post-war theatre. Born in London, he briefly worked as a jo ...

's '' Look Back in Anger'', was a play by one of the Angry Young Men. The director was

Tony Richardson Cecil Antonio Richardson (5 June 1928 – 14 November 1991) was an English theatre and film director, producer and screenwriter, whose career spanned five decades. He was identified with the "angry young men" group of British directors and play ...

. Osborne followed ''Look Back in Anger'' with '' The Entertainer'', starring

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier ( ; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director. He and his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud made up a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the m ...

as Archie Rice, a play the actor effectively commissioned from the playwright. The artistic board of the ESC initially rejected the play, although they soon reversed that decision. Two members of the board opposed ''The Entertainer'': Duncan disliked Osborne's work, according to the biographer

John Heilpern John David Heilpern (8 April 1942 – 7 January 2021) was a British theatre critic, journalist, and author who worked both in the United Kingdom and the United States. He was a contributing editor to '' Vanity Fair'' (where he wrote the "Out To ...

, Heilpern, John
''John Osborne: A Patriot for Us''
London: Vintage, 2007

006 Alec Trevelyan is a fictional character who is the main antagonist in the 1995 James Bond film ''GoldenEye,'' portrayed by actor Sean Bean. Bean's likeness was also used as the model for Alec Trevelyan in the 1997 video game '' GoldenEye 007' ...

p.216
"'It's me, isn't it?'"
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', 6 March 2007 (extract) while Lewenstein, a former

Communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

,Murphy, Robert
"Lewenstein, (Silvion) Oscar (1917–1997)"
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' did not want one of the theatre's new plays to be overwhelmed by its star and did not think much of the play. In the mid-1960s, the ESC became involved in issues of

censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governmen ...

. Their premiere productions of Osborne's '' A Patriot for Me'' and '' Saved'' by

Edward Bond Thomas Edward Bond (18 July 1934 – 3 March 2024) was an English playwright, theatre director, poet, dramatic theorist and screenwriter. He was the author of some 50 plays, among them '' Saved'' (1965), the production of which was instrument ...

(both 1965) necessitated the theatre turning itself into a "private members club" to circumvent the

Lord Chamberlain The Lord Chamberlain of the Household is the most senior officer of the Royal Households of the United Kingdom, Royal Household of the United Kingdom, supervising the departments which support and provide advice to the Monarchy of the United Ki ...

, formally responsible for the licensing of plays until the

Theatres Act 1968 The Theatres Act 1968 (c. 54) abolished stage censorship in the United Kingdom, receiving royal assent on 26 July 1968, after passing both Houses of Parliament.succès de scandale'' of the two plays helped to bring about the abolition of

theatre censorship The Lord Chamberlain's Office is a department within the British Royal Households of the United Kingdom, Royal Household. It is concerned with matters such as protocol (diplomacy), protocol, state visits, investitures, garden party, garden parties ...

in the UK. During the period of Devine's directorship, besides Osborne and Bond, the Royal Court premiered works by Arnold Wesker, John Arden,

Ann Jellicoe Patricia Ann Jellicoe (15 July 1927 – 31 August 2017) was an English playwright, theatre director and actress. Although her work covered many areas of theatre and film, she is best known for "pushing the envelope" of the stage play, devisin ...

and N.F. Simpson. Subsequent Artistic Directors of the Royal Court premiered work by

Christopher Hampton Sir Christopher James Hampton (born 26 January 1946) is a British playwright, screenwriter, translator and film director. He is best known for his play Les Liaisons Dangereuses (play), ''Les Liaisons Dangereuses'' based on the Les Liaisons da ...

Athol Fugard Harold Athol Lanigan Fugard (; 11 June 19328 March 2025) was a South African playwright, novelist, actor and director. Widely regarded as South Africa's greatest playwright and acclaimed as "the greatest active playwright in the English-speaki ...

Howard Brenton Howard John Brenton FRSL (born 13 December 1942) is an English playwright and screenwriter, often ranked alongside contemporaries such as Edward Bond, Caryl Churchill, and David Hare. Early years Brenton was born in Portsmouth, Hampshire, so ...

Caryl Churchill Caryl Lesley Churchill (born 3 September 1938) is a British playwright known for dramatising the abuses of power, for her use of non- naturalistic techniques, and for her exploration of sexual politics and feminist themes.

, Hanif Kureishi, Sarah Daniels, Errol John, David Storey,

Timberlake Wertenbaker Timberlake Wertenbaker is a British-based playwright, screenplay writer, and translator who has written plays for the Royal Court, the Royal Shakespeare Company and others. She has been described in ''The Washington Post'' as "the doyenne of po ...

, Martin Crimp,

Sarah Kane Sarah Kane (3 February 1971 – 20 February 1999) was an English playwright, screenwriter and theatre director. She is known for her plays that deal with themes of redemptive love, sexual desire, pain, torture—both physical and psychological ...

, Sylvia Wynter,

Mark Ravenhill Mark Ravenhill (born 7 June 1966) is an English playwright, actor and journalist. Ravenhill is one of the most widely performed playwrights in British theatre of the late-twentieth and twenty-first centuries. His major plays include '' Shoppi ...

Martin McDonagh Martin Faranan McDonagh ( ; born 26 March 1970) is a British-Irish playwright and filmmaker. He is known for his Absurdism, absurdist Black comedy, dark humour which often challenges the modern theatre aesthetic. He has won List of awards and no ...

, Simon Stephens,

Leo Butler Leo Butler (born 1974 in Sheffield) is a British playwright. His plays have been staged, among others, by the Royal Court, the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Almeida Theatre. His plays have been published by Bloomsbury A & C Black.

, Polly Stenham and Nick Payne. Early seasons included new international plays by

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known as Bertolt Brecht and Bert Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...

Eugène Ionesco Eugène Ionesco (; ; born Eugen Ionescu, ; 26 November 1909 – 28 March 1994) was a Romanian-French playwright who wrote mostly in French, and was one of the foremost figures of the French avant-garde theatre#Avant-garde, French avant-garde th ...

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish writer of novels, plays, short stories, and poems. Writing in both English and French, his literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal, and Tragicomedy, tra ...

Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was a French philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary criticism, literary critic, considered a leading figure in 20th ...

, and

Marguerite Duras Marguerite Germaine Marie Donnadieu (, 4 April 1914 – 3 March 1996), known as Marguerite Duras (), was a French novelist, playwright, screenwriter, essayist, and experimental filmmaker. Her script for the film ''Hiroshima mon amour'' (1959) ea ...

. In addition to the 400-seat proscenium arch Theatre Downstairs, the much smaller studio Theatre Upstairs was opened in 1969, at the time a 63-seat facility. ''

The Rocky Horror Show ''The Rocky Horror Show'' is a Musical theatre, musical with music, lyrics and book by Richard O'Brien. A humorous tribute to various B movies associated with the Science fiction film, science fiction and Horror film, horror genres from the 193 ...

'' premiered there in 1973. The theatre was

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

in June 1972. Though the main auditorium and the façade were attractive, the remainder of the building provided poor facilities for both audience and performers, and throughout the 20th century the stalls and understage often flooded. By the early 1990s the building had deteriorated dangerously, and the theatre was threatened with closure in 1995. The Royal Court received a grant of £16.2 million from the National Lottery and the

Arts Council An arts council is a government or private non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the arts; mainly by funding local artists, awarding prizes, and organizing arts events. They often operate at arms-length from the government to prevent pol ...

for redevelopment, and beginning in 1996, under the artistic directorship of

Stephen Daldry Stephen David Daldry Commander of the Order of the British Empire, CBE (born 2 May 1960) is an English director and producer of film, theatre, and television. He has won three Tony Awards for his work on Broadway theatre, Broadway and an Olivie ...

, it was completely rebuilt, except for the façade and the intimate auditorium. The architects for this were Haworth Tompkins. The theatre reopened in February 2000, with the 380-seat Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, and the 85-seat studio theatre, now the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs. Since 1994, a new generation of playwrights debuting at the theatre has included Joe Penhall,

, and Roy Williams, among others. Since the 1990s the Royal Court has placed an emphasis on the development and production of international plays. By 1993, the

British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lang ...

had begun its support of the International Residency programme (which started in 1989 as the Royal Court International Summer School), and more recently the Genesis Foundation has also supported the production of international plays. The theatre received a 1999 International Theatre Institute award. In May 2008, the English Stage Company presented ''The Ugly One'' by Marius von Mayenburg at the "Contact International Theatre Festival" in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. Artistic Directors have included

(1956–1965), William Gaskill (1965–1972), Lindsay Anderson and

Anthony Page Anthony Page (born 21 September 1935 in Bangalore, Karnataka, India) is a British stage director, stage and film director. Biography When Page was 19, he went to Canada on a free passage with the Royal Canadian Air Force and hitchhiked to New Yo ...

(1969–1972), Oscar Lewenstein (1972–1975), Nicholas Wright and Robert Kidd (1975–1977), Stuart Burge (1977–1979), Max Stafford-Clark (1979–1992),

(1992–1998),

Ian Rickson Ian David Rickson (born 1963) is a British theatre director. He was the artistic director at the Royal Court Theatre in London from 1998 to 2006.

(1998–2006) and

Dominic Cooke Dominic Cooke (born 1966) is an English director and writer. Early life Born in Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, south London, Cooke was brought up seeing a lot of theatre as a teenager from free theatre tickets provided by the Inner London Ed ...

(2007 to 2012). Vicky Featherstone was the first female artistic director (2013–2024).

David Byrne David Byrne (; born May 14, 1952) is an American musician, writer, visual artist, and filmmaker. He was a founding member, principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of the American New wave music, new wave band Talking Heads. Byrne has ...

took over the role in early 2024.

Antisemitism controversies

In 1987,

Ken Loach Kenneth Charles Loach (born 17 June 1936) is a retiredhttps://variety.com/2024/film/global/ken-loach-retirement-the-old-oak-jonathan-glazer-oscars-speech-1235956589/ English filmmaker. His socially critical directing style and socialist views ar ...

's production of '' Perdition'' at the Royal Court Theatre was abandoned after protests and commissioned reviews from two historians,

Martin Gilbert Sir Martin John Gilbert (25 October 1936 – 3 February 2015) was a British historian and honorary Fellow of Merton College, Oxford. He was the author of 88 books, including works on Winston Churchill, the 20th century, and Jewish history inc ...

and

David Cesarani David Ian Cesarani (13 November 1956 – 25 October 2015) was a British historian who specialised in Jewish history, especially the Holocaust. He also wrote several biographies, including ''Arthur Koestler: The Homeless Mind'' (1998). Academic ...

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

historian Gilbert said the play was "a travesty of the facts" and "deeply

antisemitic Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...

". Loach and the play's author, Jim Allen, denied the accusations and accused the " Zionist lobby" and "the

Zionist Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...

machine" of stirring up controversy unfairly.

's play '' Seven Jewish Children'' played at the theatre in 2009. Many Jewish leaders and journalists criticised the play as antisemitic.Symons, Leon
"Outrage over 'demonising' play for Gaza,"
''The Jewish Chronicle'', 12 February 2009Goldberg, Jeffrey
"The Royal Court Theatre's Blood Libel"
''Atlantic Monthly'' 9 February 2009Healy, Patrick

''New York Times'', 17 February 2009 One called it "a libellous and despicable demonisation of Israeli parents and grandparents" and a modern

blood libel Blood libel or ritual murder libel (also blood accusation) is an antisemitic canardTurvey, Brent E. ''Criminal Profiling: An Introduction to Behavioral Evidence Analysis'', Academic Press, 2008, p. 3. "Blood libel: An accusation of ritual mu ...

drawing on old antisemitic myths. Michael Billington in ''

'' described the play as "a heartfelt lamentation for the future generations" and contended that the play, though controversial, is not antisemitic. Another ''Guardian'' writer viewed ''Seven Jewish Children'' as historically inaccurate and harshly critical of Jews. The Royal Court denied the accusations, saying: "In keeping with its philosophy, the Royal Court Theatre presents a multiplicity of viewpoints." In November 2021, the theatre renamed the lead character of the play ''Rare Earth Mettle'' by

Al Smith Alfred Emanuel Smith (December 30, 1873 – October 4, 1944) was the 42nd governor of New York, serving from 1919 to 1920 and again from 1923 to 1928. He was the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party's presidential nominee in the 1 ...

from "Hershel Fink" to "Henry Finn" following criticism of perpetuating anti-Semitic stereotypes. The Royal Court Theatre also made an apology.

Europe Theatre Prize

In 1999, the theatre was awarded the " Europe Prize Theatrical Realities". The prize organization stated:

e Royal Court Theatre ... has done more than any other institution to promote new writing. Since 1956 it has premiered the work of many of the best-known British dramatists: Osborne, Wesker,
Pinter Harold Pinter (; 10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A Nobel Prize winner, Pinter was one of the most influential modern British dramatists with a writing career that spanned ...
, Bond, Barker, Brenton,
Hare Hares and jackrabbits are mammals belonging to the genus ''Lepus''. They are herbivores and live Solitary animal, solitarily or in pairs. They nest in slight depressions called forms, and their young are precociality, able to fend for themselves ...
and Churchill. But this Award is given not so much for the Court's distinguished history as for its championship ... of new generation of challenging, often profoundly disturbing, writers ... like
Sarah Kane Sarah Kane (3 February 1971 – 20 February 1999) was an English playwright, screenwriter and theatre director. She is known for her plays that deal with themes of redemptive love, sexual desire, pain, torture—both physical and psychological ...
('' Blasted'' and '' Cleansed''),
Mark Ravenhill Mark Ravenhill (born 7 June 1966) is an English playwright, actor and journalist. Ravenhill is one of the most widely performed playwrights in British theatre of the late-twentieth and twenty-first centuries. His major plays include '' Shoppi ...
('' Shopping and Fucking'') and Jez Butterworth ('' Mojo'') ... ndpresented outstanding plays by young Irish writers such as
Conor McPherson Conor McPherson (born 6 August 1971) is an Irish playwright, screenwriter and director of stage and film. In recognition of his contribution to world theatre, McPherson was awarded an honorary doctorate of literature in June 2013 by University C ...
and
Martin McDonagh Martin Faranan McDonagh ( ; born 26 March 1970) is a British-Irish playwright and filmmaker. He is known for his Absurdism, absurdist Black comedy, dark humour which often challenges the modern theatre aesthetic. He has won List of awards and no ...
. It ... has given voice to a new generation of young writers whose moral anger, urban despair and political disillusion have sent shockwaves throughout the whole of Europe.

Notable productions since the 1950s

1950s–1970s

* '' Look Back in Anger'' by

, directed by

, music for songs by Tom Eastwood, starring Kenneth Haigh (1956) * '' The Entertainer'' by

, directed by

, starring

(1957) * ''The Knack'' by

(1962) * '' Exit the King'' by

, directed by

, starring

Alec Guinness Sir Alec Guinness (born Alec Guinness de Cuffe; 2 April 1914 – 5 August 2000) was an English actor. In the BFI, British Film Institute listing of 1999 of BFI Top 100 British films, the 100 most important British films of the 20th century ...

(1963) * '' A Patriot for Me'' by

(1965) * '' Saved'' by

, directed by William Gaskill (1965) * ''

Owners Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as ''title'', which may be separated and held by diffe ...

'' by

(1972) * ''

'' with music, lyrics and book by

Richard O'Brien Richard O'Brien (born Richard Timothy Smith; 25 March 1942) is a British-New Zealand actor, writer, musician, and television presenter. He wrote the musical stage show ''The Rocky Horror Show'' in 1973, which has since remained in continuous p ...

, directed by

Jim Sharman James David Sharman (born 12 March 1945) is an Australian director and writer for film and stage with more than 70 productions to his credit. He is renowned in Australia for his work as a theatre director since the 1960s, and is best known in ...

(1973) * '' Not I'' by

(1973) * '' Class Enemy'' by Nigel Williams (1978) * '' Bent'' by Martin Sherman (1979)

1980s–1990s

* ''The Arbor'' by Andrea Dunbar, directed by Max Stafford-Clark (1980) * ''Insignificance'' by Terry Johnson (1982)The play was later adapted as a film. Sinyard, Neil. ''The Films of Nicolas Roeg'', Charles Letts & Co. (1991), p. 97 * '' Top Girls'' by

(1982) * ''

Road A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. Th ...

'' by

Jim Cartwright Jim Cartwright (born 27 June 1958) is an English dramatist, born in Municipal Borough of Farnworth, Farnworth, Lancashire. Cartwright's first play, Road (play), ''Road'', won a number of awards before being adapted for TV and broadcast by the B ...

(1986) * '' Our Country's Good'' by

, adapted from the

Thomas Keneally Thomas Michael Keneally, Officer of the Order of Australia, AO (born 7 October 1935) is an Australian novelist, playwright, essayist, and actor. He is best known for his historical fiction novel ''Schindler's Ark'', the story of Oskar Schindler' ...

novel '' The Playmaker'' (1988) * '' Death and the Maiden'' by

Ariel Dorfman Vladimiro Ariel Dorfman (born May 6, 1942) is an Argentine-Chilean- American novelist, playwright, essayist, academic and human rights activist. A citizen of the United States since 2004, he has been a professor of literature and Latin American s ...

, directed by Lindsay Posner, starring

Juliet Stevenson Juliet Anne Virginia Stevenson, (born 30 October 1956) is an English actress of stage and screen. She is known for her role in the film '' Truly, Madly, Deeply'' (1991), for which she was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Le ...

(1991) * ''

Hysteria Hysteria is a term used to mean ungovernable emotional excess and can refer to a temporary state of mind or emotion. In the nineteenth century, female hysteria was considered a diagnosable physical illness in women. It is assumed that the bas ...

'' by Terry Johnson, directed by Phyllida Lloyd (1993) * '' My Night with Reg'' by Kevin Elyot, directed by Roger Michell (1994) * '' Blasted'' by

, directed by James Macdonald (1995) * '' Mojo'' by Jez Butterworth, directed by

Ian Rickson Ian David Rickson (born 1963) is a British theatre director. He was the artistic director at the Royal Court Theatre in London from 1998 to 2006.

(1995) * '' Shopping and Fucking'' by

, directed by Max Stafford-Clark (1996) * '' The Weir'' by

Conor McPherson Conor McPherson (born 6 August 1971) is an Irish playwright, screenwriter and director of stage and film. In recognition of his contribution to world theatre, McPherson was awarded an honorary doctorate of literature in June 2013 by University C ...

(1997) * '' Cleansed'' by

, directed by James Macdonald (1998)

2000s–2010s

* '' Dublin Carol'' by

, directed by

Ian Rickson Ian David Rickson (born 1963) is a British theatre director. He was the artistic director at the Royal Court Theatre in London from 1998 to 2006.

, starring Brian Cox (2000) * '' 4.48 Psychosis'' by

, directed by James Macdonald (2000) * '' Crave'' by

, directed by Vicky Featherstone (2001) * '' The Sugar Syndrome'' by Lucy Prebble, directed by Marianne Elliott (2003) * '' Drunk Enough to Say I Love You?'' by

, directed by James Macdonald (2006) * ''

The Seagull ''The Seagull'' () is a play by Russian dramatist Anton Chekhov, written in 1895 in literature, 1895 and first produced in 1896 in literature#Drama, 1896. ''The Seagull'' is generally considered to be the first of his four major plays. It dramati ...

'' by

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; ; 29 January 1860 – 15 July 1904) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer, widely considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career as a playwright produced four classics, and his b ...

, in a new version by

, directed by

Ian Rickson Ian David Rickson (born 1963) is a British theatre director. He was the artistic director at the Royal Court Theatre in London from 1998 to 2006.

, starring Kristin Scott Thomas,

Mackenzie Crook Mackenzie Crook (born Paul James Crook, 29 September 1971) is an English actor, director, comedian and writer best known for his roles in television and film. He gained widespread recognition for portraying Gareth Keenan in the British sitcom '' ...

and Chiwetel Ejiofor (2007) * '' That Face'' by Polly Stenham, directed by Jeremy Herrin, starring Felicity Jones,

Matt Smith Matthew Robert Smith (born 28 October 1982) is an English actor. He is known for playing the Eleventh Doctor in the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' (2010–2013), Prince Philip in Netflix's historical series ''The Crown ( ...

, Julian Wadham, and Lindsay Duncan (2007) * ''

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

'' by Jez Butterworth, directed by

Ian Rickson Ian David Rickson (born 1963) is a British theatre director. He was the artistic director at the Royal Court Theatre in London from 1998 to 2006.

, starring Mark Rylance and

(2009) * '' Seven Jewish Children'' by

, directed by

, starring Ben Caplan, David Horovitch, Daisy Lewis, Ruth Posner, Samuel Roukin, Susannah Wise and Alexis Zegerman (2009) * '' Posh'' by Laura Wade, starring Simon Sheperd, Joshua McGuire, Daniel Ryan, Richard Goulding, Kit Harington, Harry Hadden-Paton, Leo Bill, David Dawson, James Norton,

Henry Lloyd-Hughes Henry Alexander Lloyd-Hughes is an English actor. He is known for his roles in ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' (2005), '' Unrelated'' (2007), ''The Inbetweeners'' (2008–2010), '' Miliband of Brothers'' (2010), '' Weekender'' (2011), ' ...

, Tom Mison, Fiona Button and Charlotte Lucas (2010) * '' Spur of the Moment'' by Anya Reiss, directed by Jeremy Herrin (2010) * ''Hangmen'' by

, directed by Matthew Dunster, starring Johnny Flynn and David Morrissey (2015) * '' The Ferryman'' by Jez Butterworth, directed by

Sam Mendes Sir Samuel Alexander Mendes (born 1 August 1965) is a British film and stage director, producer, and screenwriter. In 2000, Mendes was appointed a CBE for his services to drama, and he was Knight Bachelor, knighted in the 2020 New Year Honours ...

, starring

Paddy Considine Patrick George Considine (born 5 September 1973) is an English actor, director, screenwriter and musician. He is known for playing antiheros in independent films. He has received two British Academy Film Awards, three Evening Standard British ...

, Laura Donnelly,

Genevieve O'Reilly Genevieve O'Reilly (born 6 January 1977) is an Irish-born Australian actress. She is best known for portraying Mon Mothma in the '' Star Wars'' franchise beginning with ''Revenge of the Sith'' (2005), a role which earned her a Saturn Award nom ...

, Bríd Brennan,

Fra Fee Fra Fee (born 20 May 1987) is a Northern Irish actor and singer. He is best known for playing Courfeyrac in Tom Hooper's 2012 film adaptation of ''Les Misérables'', and for his role as Kazi in the Disney+ series ''Hawkeye'', which is set in ...

, Stuart Graham, Gerard Horan, Conor MacNeill, Dearbhla Molloy, Tom Glynn-Carney, and Niall Wright (2017)

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * *
History of the theatre

* (Includes a detailed comparison of the Royal Court and a theater in New York City that was influenced by it; also includes discussion of Royal Court plays that the Chelsea presented, including ''Saved'', ''Total Eclipse'', and ''The Contractor'')

External links

*
English Stage Company/Royal Court Theatre Archive
at the Victoria & Albert Museum
English Stage Company Correspondence Collection
at the

Harry Ransom Center The Harry Ransom Center, known as the Humanities Research Center until 1983, is an archive, library, and museum at the University of Texas at Austin, specializing in the collection of literary and cultural artifacts from the Americas and Europe ...

"The Royal Court Upstairs marks 40 years of scaling new heights"
''

'', 21 July 2009 {{Authority control 1870 establishments in England Theatres completed in 1888 Grade II listed theatres Grade II listed buildings in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Theatre companies in London Theatres in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Producing house theatres in London