Alistair Smith

London

Editor @TheStage, trustee @GetIntoTheatre, author of the London Theatre Report and Theatre Workforce Review. All views my own etc

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Articles

Why DCMS abolition could be a disaster

2 days ago | thestage.co.uk | Alistair Smith

DCMS abolition could be a disaster: culture must not lose its seat at the top tableThangam Debbonaire at the 2024 Future of Theatre conference, in association with Moore Kingston Smith – what a difference a year makes, says Alistair Smith.
UK theatre touring needs a clearer roadmap

1 week ago | thestage.co.uk | Alistair Smith

UK theatre touring needs a clearer roadmapPhoto: ShutterstockThe current crisis in touring feels particularly severe. The foundation of the Local Theatre Touring Alliance offers hope but cannot risk neglecting the mid-scale, says Alistair SmithSupport The Stage by registering or subscribingTo continue reading this article you must be logged in. Register or login below to unlock 3 free articles every month. OR Or subscribe from just £7.99 and get unlimited access to thestage.co.uk.
Indhu Rubasingham's National Theatre is spreading its wings globally

2 weeks ago | thestage.co.uk | Alistair Smith

Indhu Rubasingham's National Theatre is spreading its wings globallyIndhu Rubasingham. Photo: Antonio OlmosIndhu Rubasingham’s inaugural season announcement demonstrates an exciting vision with a broad and global outlook, says Alistair SmithSupport The Stage by registering or subscribingTo continue reading this article you must be logged in. Register or login below to unlock 3 free articles every month. OR Or subscribe from just £7.99 and get unlimited access to thestage.co.uk.
Is the UK theatre sector shrinking?

1 month ago | thestage.co.uk | Alistair Smith

Is the theatre sector shrinking? Photo: ShutterstockResearch suggests a contraction in theatre activity across the UK beyond the West End, with a reduction in creative opportunities, says Alistair Smith, though there are signs of recoverySupport The Stage by registering or subscribingTo continue reading this article you must be logged in. Register or login below to unlock 3 free articles every month. OR Or subscribe from just £7.99 and get unlimited access to thestage.co.uk.
leading London's Royal Court Theatre

1 month ago | thestage.co.uk | Alistair Smith

“I thought this job would be the biggest adventure that I could have”As artistic director and chief executive of the Royal Court Theatre in London, David Byrne has a job that might intimidate many.
Indhu Rubasingham at the National Theatre – what should we expect?

1 month ago | thestage.co.uk | Alistair Smith

Her programming suggests a broad and nuanced approach to multiculturalism – the kind that would feel entirely mainstream in television or film. There’s a consistent liveliness to her work, a strong instinct for contemporary relevance, and a clear desire to connect with modern audiences. When she took over at the Kiln, she declared her ambition to “bring unheard voices into the mainstream”. I’d argue that the ‘mainstream’ part of that statement is every bit as significant as the ‘unheard’.
Covid continues to shape theatre five years on

1 month ago | thestage.co.uk | Alistair Smith

It’s almost inconceivable that this week marks five years since the UK entered its first Covid lockdown – and with it, the official closure of all UK theatres for the first time since the Second World War. The experience feels strangely unreal in hindsight. It exists in that liminal space of memory: somehow both distant and something that only happened yesterday. The immediate impact on the theatre sector was stark. And brutal.
Labour planning proposals pose a serious threat to the theatre sector

1 month ago | thestage.co.uk | Alistair Smith

It seems almost unimaginable now, but in the early 1970s, there was a real possibility that Theatreland as we know it might have ceased to exist. Several historic West End theatres had already been lost to redevelopment, including the St James’s and the Gaiety. Then, in 1972, the Greater London Council put forward a radical overhaul of Covent Garden – one that would have resulted in the demolition of 12 West End theatres and left at least four more unviable.
Royal Exchange and Globe cases highlight one of theatre's biggest challenges

2 months ago | thestage.co.uk | Alistair Smith

Opinion On first glance, two stories from the past week cover very different topics: potential artistic censorship and issues of disability discrimination and safeguarding. But there is a crucial thread connecting them – one of the biggest challenges facing the theatre sector today: the breakdown in the relationship between freelancers and institutions.
Is the West End really ‘maxed out’?

2 months ago | thestage.co.uk | Alistair Smith

Alistair SmithEditorAlistair Smith is editor of The Stage. He is also the author of two major industry reports (the London Theatre Report and the Theatre Workforce Review) and is the chair of theatre careers charity Get Into Theatre. Is the West End really ‘maxed out’? As Trafalgar Entertainment continues its rapid regional expansion, co-founder Howard Panter declares London’s theatre scene ’maxed out’.