David Lan is an English playwright, filmmaker and theatre director.
Born in Cape Town, South Africa in 1952, he emigrated to London in 1972. Since 2000 he has been artistic director of the Young Vic theatre in London's South Bank.
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He was writer in residence at the Royal Court Theatre from 1995 to 1997.
At the Young Vic, he led the campaign to rebuild the theatre which reopened to much acclaim in October 2006. He also initiated the Genesis Directors' Project, the Jerwood Directors Award and the Young Vic Award.
In addition to his many plays, libretti, and films, he is the author of the non-fiction work Guns and Rain: Guerrillas & Spirit Mediums in Zimbabwe ([1]) about Zimbabwe's struggle for independence from colonial rule. Some of his stage works reflect his academic interest in aspects of African religion, including spiritual possession and cargo cults. He has also written and directed a number of documentaries for the BBC, mostly set in Africa.
He has received the John Whiting Award and the George Orwell Award, and in 2004 the Young Vic received an Olivier Award for "a provocative season under the artistic leadership of David Lan". In the recent survey in The Stage of the 100 most influential people in the UK theatre, he was ranked #15.