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.
Address
Shepherd's Bush
London, W12
United Kingdom
Alternative Theatre Company
Theatre
Theatre: 180 seats
Studio: 70 seats
Seasons of guest and commissioned productions
6 April 1972 (6 April 1972)
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 , end on or in the round layout.
thrust
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.
Following the 2016/17 redevelopment, the Bush Theatre has two performance spaces:
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[edit]
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.[15]
Awards[edit]
1977 – George Devine Award to Robert Holman for German Skerries[16]
1979 – George Devine Award to Jonathan Gems for The Tax Exile
1982 – Samuel Beckett Award for Coming Clean by Kevin Elyot[17]
1986 – Laurence Olivier Award Nomination for Outstanding Achievement to Robert Holman for Making Noises Quietly[18]
1989 – John Whiting Award for Handful of Stars by Billy Roche[19]
1993 – Laurence Olivier Award Nomination for Outstanding Achievement to Billy Roche for The Wexford Trilogy[20]
1993 – Susan Smith Blackburn Award to Jane Coles for Backstroke In A Crowded Pool[21]
1993 – John Whiting Award for The Clearing by Helen Edmundson[22]
1994 – John Whiting Award for Beautiful Thing by Jonathan Harvey[23]
1995 – Laurence Olivier Award Nomination for Beautiful Thing by Jonathan Harvey[24]
1996 – Susan Smith Blackburn Award to Naomi Wallace for One Flea Spare[25]
1997 – Meyer-Whitworth Award to Conor McPherson for This Lime Tree Bower[26]
1998 – George Devine Award to Helen Blakeman for Caravan[27]
1998 – Meyer-Whitworth Award to Daragh Carville for Language Roulette[26]
1999 – George Devine Award to Mark O'Rowe for Howie the Rookie[28]
2005 – Meyer-Whitworth Award to Stephen Thompson for Damages[29]
2006 – Susan Smith Blackburn Award to Amelia Bullmore for Mammals[30]
2007 – Susan Smith Blackburn Award to Abbie Spallen for Pumpgirl[31]
2019 The Arrival by
Bijan Sheibani
2019 Strange Fruit by
Caryl Phillips
2018 Leave Taking by
Winsome Pinnock
2018 Dismantle Festival by Project 2036
[34]
2017 The Hijabi Monologues by Amal Abdi, Hanan Issa, Sahar Ullah and Nimmo Ismail
[35]
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 Royale by
Marco Ramirez
2015 Islands by Caroline Horton
2014 by Barney Norris
Visitors
2014 Albion by Chris Thompson
2014 RADAR 2014
2014 Perseverance Drive by
Robin Soans
2014 Incognito by
Nick Payne
2014 by Jackie Sibblies-Drury
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
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 Three Birds by Janice Okoh
2013 Money the game show by Clare Duffy
2012 Snookered by Ishy Din
[36]
2012 Chalet Lines by Lee Mattinson
[37]
2012 The Beloved by Amir Nizar Zuabi
[38]
2011 The Kitchen Sink by Tom Wells
[42]
2011 Moment by Deirdre Kinahan
[47]
2011 The Knowledge by John Donnelly
[49]
2010 Like A Fishbone by Anthony Weigh
[53]
2009 suddenlossofdignity.com by , James Graham, Joel Horwood, Morgan Lloyd Malcolm & Michelle Terry[62]
Zawe Ashton
2008 50 Ways to Leave your Lover at Christmas by Leah Chillery, , Stacey Gregg, Lucy Kirkwood, Morgan Lloyd Malcolm & Ben Schiffer[66]
Ben Ellis
2008 Broken Space Season by , Bryony Lavery, Simon Stephens, Declan Feenan, Mike Bartlett, Nancy Harris, Lucy Kirkwood, Ben Schiffer, Jack Thorne & Anthony Weigh[68]
Neil LaBute
2008 Turf by Simon Vinnicombe
[69]
2008 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover by Leah Chillery, , Stacey Gregg, Lucy Kirkwood & Ben Schiffer[70]
Ben Ellis
2008 2,000 Feet Away by Anthony Weigh
[71]
2007 How To Curse by Ian McHugh
[76]
2007 Flight Path by David Watson
[77]
2007 I Like Mine With a Kiss by Georgia Fitch
[81]
2006 Crooked by Catherine Trieschmann
[88]
2006 Trad by Mark Doherty
[89]
2006 Try These On For International Size by Reg Cribb, Jón Atli Jónasson, Abbie Spallen, Shoji Kokami
[91]
2005 Bottle Universe by Simon Burt
[94]
2005 The Obituary Show by The People Show
[96]
2005 Kingfisher Blue by Lin Coghlan
[97]
2005 Take Me Away by Gerald Murphy
[99]
2004 Adrenalin...Heart by Georgia Fitch
[104]
2003 Airsick by Emma Frost
[108]
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
1988 A Handful of Stars by
Billy Roche
1987 Dreams of San Francisco by Jacqueline Holborough
[115]
1987 It's A Girl by John Burrow
1987 Tattoo Theatre by Mladen Materic
[116]
1987 The Mystery of the Rose Bouquet by Mauel Puig
[117]
1987 Effies Burning by Valerie Windsor
[118]
1987 People Show No 92 Whistle Stop by People Show
[119]
1987 An Imitation of Life by Abbie Spallen
[122]
1983 Hard Feelings by Doug Lucie
[125]
1972 The Relief of Martha King by David Parker
[126]
A list of selected productions of the Bush Theatre.[33]
Burkey, Neil (2011). . London: Profile Books Limited. ISBN 978-1906-50765-7.
