Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre is celebrating 50 years by inviting artistic alumni to return ‘home’ to share stories that resonate and celebrate the unique connection between artists and audiences in its distinctive,democratic in-the-round arena.
The theatre was founded by a group of international and pioneering artists in 1976 and now Artistic Director Selina Cartmell celebrates five decades of exceptional theatre with her first season of work that both salutes the past and shapes a dynamic new directionfor this iconic Northern theatrical powerhouse.
Cartmell will continue this legacy by placing artists’ and theatrical exchange at the centre of herprogramme.
The programme will see Two World Premieres, two musicals and three reimagined classics shape Cartmell’s anniversary programme, and includes returning artists and friends such as Sir Tom Courtenay, Jim Cartwright, Shobna Gulati, Matthew Dunster and David Threlfall, plus new creative collaborators Johnny Vegas, Lucy Beaumont and debut writer Tolu Okanlawon.
Selina Cartmell opens the season with ROAD by Jim Cartwright, starring Johnny Vegas, Lucy Beaumont and Shobna Gulati, with a special appearance on film by Sir Tom Courtenay, his 17th time performing at the Exchange since its opening in 1976.
PRIVATE LIVES by Noël Coward directed by Blanche McIntyre – this major revival of Coward’s iconic play is the 14th production of his work on the Royal Exchange stage.
The World Premiere EVEN THESE THINGS, an epic story of Manchester and Ireland by multi award-winning playwright Rory Mullarkey comes to the Exchange 30 years after an IRA bomb devastated the heart of the city. Directed by James Macdonald.
A regional premiere of the Tony Award-winning FUN HOME based on the Graphic Novel by Alison Bechdel, Music by Jeanine Tesori & Book and Lyrics by Lisa Kron and directed by Sarah Frankcom.
Director Matthew Dunster and actor David Threlfall return to the Exchange in anemotionally charged reimagining of William Shakespeare’s masterwork KING LEAR.
A new production of Stephen Sondheim’s Tony Award-winning masterpiece, A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC, directed by Selina Cartmell.
The 2025 Bruntwood Prize winning SHOOTERS by Tolu Okanlawon will receive its World Premiere in 2027.
Selina Cartmell said:
“There is no theatre like the Royal Exchange anywhere in the world. Its pioneering architecture and visceral relationship between artist and audience has shaped fifty exceptional years of this northern theatrical powerhouse and underpins my vision for the future. I am thrilled to finally get to share A HOMECOMING, our 50th anniversary season that takes in Shakespeare and Sondheim, contemporary classics and two world premieres.Central to this vision are audiences, both old and new, and I invite them to become active collaborators in this ambitious and eclectic season.
In this anniversary year we renew our commitment to being a world-class theatre here in the heart of Manchester and an artistic engine room for talent development in the North. I am excited to commission and create universal stories that speak both to and from our home, shaping a fiercely distinctive artistic future that is local, national and international in ambition. Essential to our future is a robust eco-system for emerging and established artists. Through nurturing these sustainable collaborations, the Royal Exchange will be a space for a Manchester canon of new plays and productions, and to achieve this, we are forging exciting plans to re-open our 90-seat studio space, which has been closed since 2020.
I cannot launch this season without acknowledging the incredible vision of our founding artistic directors and the generations of artists who followed. This anniversary programme sees artists return to the stage and others make their debuts to share transformative stories with diverse perspectives. I am excited to lead this pioneering theatre into its next chapter, and I hope that A HOMECOMING is a statement of intent of the adventure ahead.”
