Paines Plough is a British touring

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...

company founded in 1974, currently led by artistic directors Charlotte Bennett and Katie Posner. The company commissions, develops and produces new plays for touring, and helps playwrights develop their craft. Since its foundation, it has commissioned the early works of hundreds of writers, including James Graham,

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 ...

, Dennis Kelly, Miriam Battye, Nick Payne, Abi Morgan, Duncan Macmillan, Mike Bartlett, Anna Jordan, Sam Steiner, Vinay Patel, Zia Ahmed and Kae Tempest. Over the past five decades, Paines Plough has produced work by a wide range of playwrights across the UK and abroad. Collaboration with other theatre organisations is a feature of the company’s work; since 2010 the company has co-produced every show it has worked on with either a venue or a touring partner.

History

Paines Plough was formed over a pint of Paines bitter in the Plough pub in Bolnhurst,

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population was 106,940. Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire and seat of the Borough of Bedford local government district. Bedford was founded at a ford (crossin ...

, by writer David Pownall, director John Adams, with the actor Chris Crooks. Their first play ''Crates on Barrels'', written by Pownall for Crooks to perform, opened at the

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as the Edinburgh Fringe, the Fringe or the Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest performance arts festival, which in 2024 spanned 25 days, sold more than 2.6 million tickets and featur ...

in August 1975. In 1976, the company achieved further success with Pownall’s play, ''Music to Murder By'', leading to a Fringe First and

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 ...

funding. In 2019, the joint artistic directors Katie Posner and Charlotte Bennett were approached by producer Ellie Keel to co-found an award for female and non-binary playwrights. They launched the Women's Prize for Playwriting together at the end of that year and have continued their support for the prize since then, co-producing the 2021 winners ''Reasons You Should(n't) Love Me'' by Amy Trigg and ''You Bury Me'' by Ahlam, and the 2022 winner ''Consumed'' by Karis Kelly which will tour in 2025.

Artistic directors

Roundabout

Roundabout is Paines Plough's touring in-the-round auditorium. Roundabout was designed by Lucy Osborne and Emma Chapman in collaboration with Charcoalblue and Howard Eaton. It was built and developed by Factory Settings. In 2010, Roundabout was commissioned, with a prototype built in 2011 with

Sheffield Theatres Sheffield Theatres is a theatre complex in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. It comprises four theatres: the Crucible, the Lyceum, the Tanya Moiseiwitsch Playhouse, and (as of January 2025) the Montgomery Theatre. These theatres make up ...

. The opening season of Roundabout consisted of three new plays performed in

repertory A repertory theatre, also called repertory, rep, true rep or stock, which are also called producing theatres, is a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation. United Kingdom ...

''One Day When We Were Young'' by Nick Payne, ''Lungs'' by Duncan Macmillan and ''The Sound of Heavy Rain'' by Penelope Skinner. In 2014, Roundabout was re-imagined to allow for touring. As part of Paines Plough's 40th anniversary celebrations a new season was commissioned for Roundabout. The plays debuted at

at Summerhall: ''Our Teacher's A Troll'' by Dennis Kelly, ''The Initiate'' by Alexandra Wood and

Lungs The lungs are the primary organs of the respiratory system in many animals, including humans. In mammals and most other tetrapods, two lungs are located near the backbone on either side of the heart. Their function in the respiratory syste ...

and '' Every Brilliant Thing'' by Duncan Macmillan. After the run in Edinburgh, Roundabout toured nationally to:

Corn Exchange A corn exchange is a building where merchants trade grains. The word "corn" in British English denotes all cereal grains, such as wheat and barley; in the United States these buildings were called grain exchanges. Such trade was common in towns ...

, Margate Theatre Royal, Hackney Showroom and The Civic in Barnsley. Roundabout won the Theatre Building of the Year award at The Stage Awards in 2015.

Notable productions

* ''Crates on Barrels'' by David Pownall * ''Music to Murder'' ''By'' by David Pownall * ''Songs for Stray Cats and Other Living Creatures'' by Donna Franceschild * ''The Clink'' by Stephen Jeffreys * '' Crave'' by

* ''Splendour'' by Abi Morgan * ''Orphans'' by Dennis Kelly * '' After the End'' by Dennis Kelly * '' Mercury Fur'' by Philip Ridley * ''Wasted'' by Kae Tempest * ''Every Brilliant Thing'' by Duncan Macmillan with Jonny Donahoe * ''Lungs'' by Duncan Macmillan * ''The Angry Brigade'' by James Graham * ''Love Love Love'' by Mike Bartlett * ''One Day When We Were Young'' by Nick Payne * ''Sticks and Stones'' by Vinay Patel * ''You Stupid Darkess!'' by Sam Steiner * ''Pop Music'' by Anna Jordan * ''Run Sister Run'' by Chloe Moss * ''I Wanna Be Yours'' by Zia Ahmed * ''Dexter & Winter's Detective Agency'' by Nathan Bryon * ''Hungry'' by Chris Bush * ''Reasons You Should(n't) Love Me'' by Amy Trigg * ''You Bury Me'' by Ahlam * ''Strategic Love Play'' by Miriam Battye * ''Bullring Techno Makeout Jamz'' by Nathan Queeley-Dennis * ''My Mother's Funeral: The Show'' by Kelly Jones

References

External links

* {{authority control 1974 establishments in the United Kingdom Theatre companies in the United Kingdom