International Playwrights at the Royal Court Theatre

Tuesday, 14 September 2010

To celebrate the success of the International Playwrights at the Royal Court Theatre, we are pleased to present this documentary which features Elyse Dodgson, head of the theatre’s International department, and many of the participants from the 2010 International Residency. The residency is an intensive four week workshop for emerging writers and directors from all parts of the world, and this is just one element of the International programme.

Since 1997 John Studzinski, and latterly the Genesis Foundation, have supported the Royal Court Theatre’s groundbreaking work with emerging playwrights from around the world. He first became interested in the work of the Royal Court Theatre in the 1990s, admiring the company’s policy of finding and nurturing new English language playwrights. He was also enthused by the pioneering work of Elyse Dodgson, head of the theatre’s International Department.

The Royal Court Theatre has a tradition of presenting new plays by authors from around the world, among them figures such as Samuel Beckett, Bertolt Brecht, Max Frisch, Jean Genet, Eugène Ionesco and Arthur Miller.  In the 1990s, Elyse Dodgson spearheaded a renewed emphasis on the development and production of international work at the Royal Court Theatre, first through the International Residency programme and by early 1996 at the head of a dedicated International Department.

With the support of the Genesis Foundation, the Royal Court Theatre now enjoys a creative dialogue with hundreds of playwrights and theatre makers all over the world.  Recent work includes workshops in Mexico, Nigeria, Russia and across the Middle East, in addition to long term relationships with playwrights in Brazil, France, Germany, India, Romania, Spain, Uganda and many other countries.  The Royal Court also stages this work, and since 1997 have produced dozens of full productions, staged readings and one-off events with the support of the Genesis Foundation.

For more information on the Royal Court Theatre’s international work, click here.