Derbyshire, Harry ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1373-1166 (2022) ‘Creating change where it matters the most’: artistic directorship and representation in the London theatre. Comparative Drama, 56 (1-2). pp. 199-226. ISSN 0010-4078 (doi:10.1353/cdr.2022.0008)

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Abstract

This article responds to an important change in the demographic make-up of the artistic directors of London theaters in the period since 2010 – a significant increase in the representation of women and people of color. This is identified as an important and overdue advance in the capacity of British theater to represent and speak to British society in the 21st century. In the article, the change is quantified with specific reference to the mainstream subsidized theaters where most new plays are staged, and the circumstances in which this overdue shift has taken place are identified. Two case studies are then presented, focusing on Emma Rice’s brief tenure at the Globe (2016-18) and Indhu Rubasingham’s re-branding of the Tricycle Theatre as the Kiln (2018), to indicate the challenges that artistic directors from previously under-represented groups can face. The article concludes with an assessment of the situation in 2021 and what might lie ahead, taking into account the shifts in the cultural narrative caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement. The aim is to analyze a shift which is welcome if precarious, and to consider the ways in which progress has been resisted and continues to be threatened.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	theatre; artistic directors; representation
Subjects:	N Fine Arts > NX Arts in general P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN2000 Dramatic representation. The Theater
Faculty / School / Research Centre / Research Group:	Faculty of Liberal Arts & Sciences Faculty of Liberal Arts & Sciences > Drama, Theatre & Performance (DTP) Faculty of Liberal Arts & Sciences > School of Humanities & Social Sciences (HSS)
Related URLs:	Publisher
Last Modified:	12 Oct 2022 13:53
URI:	http://gala.gre.ac.uk/id/eprint/36168

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