Laurie Sansom

Laurie Sansom (born 1972)[1] is an English theatre director and current Artistic Director of the National Theatre of Scotland.[2] He was Artistic Director of the Royal & Derngate Theatre in Northampton from 2006 to 2013.[3]

Early life and education

Sansom grew up in Kent.[4] He was a member of the National Youth Theatre and the National Student Drama Festival (NSDF).[5] He graduated from Cambridge University.[6]

Career

Sansom did some jobs as a professional actor but gravitated towards directing.[4] He worked at the NSDF[5] and was trainee director at the Watford Palace Theatre from 1996 to 1997.[4][5] His first professional production was Absurd Person Singular by Alan Ayckbourn.[4] Sansom later worked as associate director to Ayckbourn at the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough, North Yorkshire from 2002 to 2006,[2][5] where he directed over twenty new plays.[5]

Royal and Derngate

Sansom was appointed to be the new Artistic Director of the Royal & Derngate when it reopened in 2006 after a £14 million redevelopment.[7][8] He took up the role in March 2006 and the venue reopened later that year.[7] According to Sansom it was "a unique moment. Historically, they’d been two very separate theatres. The Derngate is a big 1,200 seat commercial touring house and the Royal is a stunningly beautiful 500 seat Victorian proscenium arch theatre".[4] Achievements during Sansom's tenure included the company winning the inaugural The Stage award for regional theatre of the year in 2010[8][9] and Michael Billington of The Guardian newspaper naming the Royal & Derngate the most exciting regional theatre of the decade.[8] In 2009, an adaptation of The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie directed by Sansom was successfully presented at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.[4][5] Sansom's productions of the rarely performed early plays Spring Storm by Tennessee Williams, and Beyond the Horizon by Eugene O'Neill, won him the 2010 TMA Award for Best Director and transferred to the UK's National Theatre.[3][5][9][10] Sansom's Festival of Chaos trilogy - consisting of new versions of The Bacchae, Blood Wedding and Hedda Gabler - featured as part of the London 2012 Festival.[3]

National Theatre of Scotland

Sansom's appointment as Artistic Director of the National Theatre of Scotland was announced in October 2012[3][6][9] and he took up the post in March 2013.[9]

References

  1. ↑ "Mr Laurie Jeffrey Sansom". Duedil. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Pauline McLean (28 June 2013). "National Theatre of Scotland's Laurie Sansom sees 'remarkable' 2014". BBC News. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Theo Bosanquet (24 October 2012). "Laurie Sansom appointed artistic director of National Theatre of Scotland". Whatsonstage.com. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 "PROFILE Laurie Sansom". National Theatre of Scotland. 1 July 2013. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 "Laurie Sansom". National Theatre of Scotland. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Brian Ferguson (24 October 2012). "National Theatre of Scotland unveils Laurie Sansom as new artistic director". Scotsman.com. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Sansom Takes Over Northampton Royal & Derngate". Whatsonstage.com. 13 January 2006. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Mark Brown (24 October 2012). "Laurie Sansom to lead National Theatre of Scotland". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Thom Dibdin (24 October 2012). "Laurie Sansom appointed to lead National Theatre of Scotland". The Stage. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
  10. ↑ Andrew Girvan (7 November 2010). "Steed, Sansom & Plowright Win 2010 TMA Awards". Whatsonstage.com. Retrieved 27 July 2013.