Finborough Theatre
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Founded in 1980, the Finborough Theatre in London's Earls Court area presents new British writing, UK premieres of overseas drama (particularly from the United States, Canada, and Ireland), music theatre, and rarely performed rediscovered plays from the last 150 years.
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[edit] History
[edit] 1980s
In its first decade, artists working at the theatre included Clive Barker, Kathy Burke, Ken Campbell, Mark Rylance and Clare Dowie (the world premiere of Adult Child/Dead Child).
[edit] 1990s
From 1991-1994, the theatre was at the forefront of the explosion of new writing with Naomi Wallace’s first play The War Boys; Rachel Weisz in David Farr’s Neville Southall’s Washbag which later became the award-winning West End play, Elton John’s Glasses; and three plays by Anthony Neilson: The Year of the Family; Normal: the Dusseldorf Ripper; and Penetrator, which transferred from the Traverse and went on to play at the Royal Court Upstairs. From 1994, the theatre was run by The Steam Industry under Artistic Director Phil Willmott. Highlights included new plays by Tony Marchant, David Eldridge, Mark Ravenhill, and Phil Willmott. New writing development including Mark Ravenhill’s Shopping and Fucking (Royal Court, West End and Broadway) and Naomi Wallace’s Slaughter City (Royal Shakespeare Company), the UK premiere of David Mamet’s The Woods, and Anthony Neilson’s The Censor, which transferred to the Royal Court.
Neil McPherson became Artistic Director in January 1999.
[edit] 2000s
Time Out Critics’ Choice winners since 1999 have included the UK premieres of Brad Fraser’s Wolfboy; Lanford Wilson’s Sympathetic Magic; Tennessee Williams’ Something Cloudy, Something Clear; and Frank McGuinness’ Gates of Gold with William Gaunt and the late John Bennett in his last stage role which transferred to the West End; the London premiere of Sonja Linden’s I Have Before Me a Remarkable Document Given to Me by a Young Lady from Rwanda; the specially commissioned adaptation of W.H. Davies’ Young Emma by Laura Wade and directed by Tamara Harvey; Lynn Siefert’s Coyote Ugly; the first London revival for more than 40 years of Rolf Hochhuth’s Soldiers; the major revival of Keith Dewhurst's Lark Rise to Candleford, performed in promenade and in repertoire, the Great War drama Red Night, and five first plays by new writers: Jason Hall’s Eyes Catch Fire; Chris Dunkley’s Mirita; Dameon Garnett’s Break Away (published by Oberon Books), Simon Vinnicombe’s Year 10 (published by Methuen), Joy Wilkinson's Fair (published by Nick Hern Books) whcih transferred to the West End.
Other productions have included Waterloo Day with Robert Lang; Sarah Phelps’ Modern Dance for Beginners, subsequently produced at the Soho Theatre; Carolyn Scott-Jeffs’ sell-out comedy Out in the Garden, which transferred to the Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh; the London premiere of Larry Kramer’s The Destiny of Me (No 1 Critics Choice in The Evening Standard); The Women’s War – an evening of original suffragette plays; Steve Hennessy’s Lullabies of Broadmoor (about the Finborough Road murder of 1922); the Victorian era comedy Masks and Faces; Etta Jenks with Clarke Peters and Daniela Nardini; The Gigli Concert with Niall Buggy, Catherine Cusack and Paul McGann which transferred to the Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh),; Hortensia and the Museum of Dreams with Linda Bassett, Albert's Boy by James Graham starring Victor Spinetti, (published by Methuen), Peter Oswald’s Lucifer Saved with Mark Rylance, Blackwater Angel, the UK debut of Irish playwright Jim Nolan with Sean Campion and the first London revival for over seventy years of Loyalties by John Galsworthy.
Since 2006, Neil has handed over the keys to Emma Reed, the general manager.
Chris Reed is the I.T Technician of the Finborough Theatre. In fairness he runs it more than Emma and Neil put together!
[edit] Musical Theatre
The Finborough is becoming increasingly known for its productions of musical theatre, including the UK premiere of Darius Milhaud’s opera Médée; the musical Schwartz It All About which transferred to Edinburgh and the King's Head Theatre, the UK premiere of Lucky Nurse and Other Short Musical Plays by John Michael LaChuisa, Three Sides by Grant Olding, and an acclaimed series of musical theatre - The Finborough Gaieties – celebrating British musical theatre from the Victorian and Edwardian era with Florodora, Our Miss Gibbs, and The Maid of the Mountains.
[edit] Awards
The Finborough Theatre won the Guinness Award for Theatrical Ingenuity in 1996 and 1997; the prestigious Pearson Award bursary for writers Chris Lee in 2000, Laura Wade in 2005 (also for Pearson Award Best Play), James Graham in 2006 and Al Smith in 2007; was shortlisted for the Empty Space Peter Brook Award in 2003; won the Empty Space Peter Brook Mark Marvin Award in 2004; and the Empty Space Peter Brook Award's Dan Crawford Pub Theatre Award in 2005. In 2004, the theatre was named by Variety as one of the top five fringe venues in London.
