The Soho Theatre is a theatre and registered charity in the Soho district of the City of Westminster, in London, England. It produces and presents new works of theatre, together with comedy and cabaret, across three performance spaces.
The theatre has established itself as a vital launchpad for new artists[1] and offers commissions, attachments and residencies for both emerging and established writers. It has launched the careers of numerous screenwriters and comedians in theatre, film, TV and radio.
The theatre's programme is a mix of comedy, cabaret and theatre, with a particular focus on new writing and alternative comedy.
Soho Theatre Company
The Soho Theatre Company was formed in 1969 by Verity Bargate and Fred Proud, and initially performed at a venue in New Compton Street.[2] Soon, the company moved to a small basement leased from the Soho Polytechnic, where it would remain for eighteen years.[2] Sue Dunderdale was artistic director of the company for several years in the 1980s.[3][4]
In 1997, work began on a new venue for the Soho Theatre on Dean Street, after securing an £8 million Lottery grant and raising an additional £2.6 million in funds.[2] In 2000, the building opened.[2]
Soho Theatre on Dean Street
A mizrach in the Soho Theatre marking the former site of the West End Great Synagogue
In 2000, the theatre moved to its current home on Dean Street. The purpose-built venue houses the 165-seat Main House, the 90-seat Studio (upstairs), and the 140-seat Cabaret Space (downstairs).[6] The ground and lower-ground floors are also occupied by the Soho Theatre Bar.
Its current executive director is Mark Godfrey and its Creative Director is David Luff. Following his 2018 appointment as Creative Director, Soho Theatre has undertaken a re-investment in commissioning and producing new plays, moving towards a producer-led playhouse model.[7] Their creative team is a tight-knit group of associates including Head of Comedy Steve Lock, Associate Directors Lakesha Arie-Angelo and Adam Brace, Touring Producer Sarah Dodd[8] and their newly appointed Literary Manager, Gillian Greer.[9]
In 2014, the theatre was fined £20,000 for a health and safety incident in which a stage manager, Rachael Presdee, was paralysed in a fall through an unmarked balcony door on to the stage some three metres below. Compensation of £3.7m was agreed with Presdee.[10]
Soho Theatre Walthamstow
In 2012, Soho Theatre, Walthamstow Forest Council and Waltham Forest Cinema Trust won a public enquiry securing the future of the Walthamstow Granada building as an entertainment venue. In 2019 the Council funds purchased the building with Soho Theatre announced as its operator.[11]
Currently undergoing a £30m redevelopment,[12] the venue is now scheduled to open in 2024.[13]
The Verity Bargate Award
The Verity Bargate Award is Soho Theatre's flagship new writing award with the winning play produced in a full production on their stages. For almost 50 years, Soho Theatre has championed new writing and since 1982, the Verity Bargate Award has uncovered the best new and emerging writers. It has launched the careers of some of Britain's most established playwrights and screenwriters including Matt Charman (Bridge of Spies), Vicky Jones (Touch at Soho Theatre), Toby Whithouse (Doctor Who) and many, many more.
↑ "About Us". Soho Theatre. Archived from the original on 1 May 2013. Retrieved 7 May 2023. Soho Theatre owns its own Central London venue housing the intimate 150-seat Soho Theatre, our 90-seat Soho Upstairs and our cabaret space, Soho Downstairs.
The Soho Repertory Theatre, known as Soho Rep, is an American Off-Broadway theater company based in New York City which is notable for producing avant-garde plays by contemporary writers. The company, described as a "cultural pillar", is currently located in a 65-seat theatre in the TriBeCa section of lower Manhattan. The company, and the projects it has produced, have won multiple prizes and earned critical acclaim, including numerous Obie Awards, Drama Desk Awards, Drama Critics' Circle Awards, and a Pulitzer Prize. A recent highlight was winning the Drama Desk Award for Sustained Achievement for "nearly four decades of artistic distinction, innovative production, and provocative play selection."
Craig Warner is a multiple award-winning playwright and screenwriter who lives and works in Suffolk, England.
Matthew Charman is a British screenwriter, playwright, and producer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for his 2015 film Bridge of Spies, directed by Steven Spielberg and co-written with Joel and Ethan Coen. Charman started out writing for theatre, making a breakthrough as writer-in-residence at the National Theatre in London, where then-director Nicholas Hytner described Charman as having "a priceless nose for a story".
Arinzé Mokwe Kene is a Nigerian-born British actor and playwright.
Michael Wynne is an Olivier Award winning playwright and screenwriter.
Queens Theatre, formerly Queens Theatre in the Park and before that Queens Playhouse, is an American professional theatre, located in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, Queens, New York City, New York. Artistic and Executive Directors have included Joseph S. Kutrzeba, founder and producer; Robert Moss, Sue Lawless, Jeffrey Rosenstock and Ray Cullom, formerly Managing Director of Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, CT, and currently, Taryn Sacramone, former Executive Director of Astoria Performing Arts Center.
The North Wall Arts Centre is a performing arts centre in Oxford, owned by St Edward's School and shared with the city. It houses a 200-seat theatre, plus a rehearsal space, dance studio and a visual art gallery. The arts centre hosts touring theatre companies, musicians and other public events, as well as events by the school, with the aim to provide facilities and arts events both for St Edward's students and for the public at large.
Anders Lustgarten is a British playwright, who resides in London.
Phoebe Mary Waller-Bridge is an English actress, screenwriter and producer. As the creator, head writer, and lead star of the comedy series Fleabag (2016–2019), she won various accolades, including three Primetime Emmy Awards, two Golden Globes and a British Academy Television Award. She received further Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for writing and producing the spy thriller series Killing Eve (2018–2022).
The Verity Bargate Award is a biennial British theatre award for new writing. It was established in 1981–82 in memory of Verity Bargate, the co-founder of Soho Poly, precursor to Soho Theatre.
Verity Eileen Bargate (1940–1981) was an English novelist and theatre director.
Moses Raine is an English playwright and screenwriter. He was born in Oxford and is the son of the poet and critic Craig Raine and Ann Pasternak Slater; he is also a grand nephew of the Russian novelist Boris Pasternak. He attended the Dragon School and St. Edward's School, in Oxford.
Lisa Goldman is a British theatre director, dramaturg, writer and author. She was Artistic Director and joint Chief Executive of Soho Theatre (2006–10) and The Red Room Theatre Company which she founded (1995-2006). In 2008 Lisa was included in the London Evening Standard’s ‘Influentials’ list as one of the 1000 most influential people in London.
Phoebe Eclair-Powell is a British playwright from South-East London. Her plays include WINK (Theatre503) and One Under. As an actress, she appeared in Peckham: The Soap Opera at the Royal Court. Her play Fury was a finalist for the Verity Bargate Award at Soho Theatre In the summer of 2016, Eclair Powell had three new shows running: Fury, at Soho Theatre, Torch at Underbelly and Epic Love and Pop Songs at Pleasance, both at the Edinburgh Fringe. In 2019, Eclair Powell won the Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting for her play Shed: Exploded View.
Walthamstow Granada is a Grade II* listed building housing a pub, cinema and cultural centre in Walthamstow, London. The building is famous for having been frequented by Alfred Hitchcock during its time as a cinema. It was built on a site where films were shown as early as 1896.
Theatre Renegade is a theatre company based in the United Kingdom which produces socio-political theatre and has a strong focus on putting story, engagement and empathy at the heart of the theatrical experience.
Jenny Rainsford is an English actress.
The Off West End Theatre Awards, nicknamed The Offies, were launched in 2010 to recognise and celebrate excellence, innovation and ingenuity of independent Off West End theatres across London. Over 80 theatres participate in the awards, with more than 400 productions being considered annually by a team of 40 assessors, with the winners chosen by a select panel of critics.
Iman Qureshi is a London-based writer, awarded the PAPAtango prize for new writing for her play 'The Funeral Director' in 2018. Her work explores themes of race, gender, and sexuality, and she has spoken openly about her identity as a Muslim and her desire to create community and political change through her work.
Ava Wong Davies is a British playwright and theatre critic. Her debut play i will still be whole premiered at the Bunker Theatre in 2019. She was shortlisted for the Verity Bargate Award, the Tony Craze Award and the Women's Prize for Playwriting for her 2020 play scum. Her play Graceland was performed at the Royal Court Theatre in March 2023.
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