Dame Judi Dench Has 'Great Hope' For the Future of Theatre After Retirement

Judi Dench has "great hope" for the future of theatre after she recently announced that she was effectively retired from acting.

This week, the acting legend celebrated the opening of 50 Stories for 50 Years, The National Theatre's anniversary exhibition marking 50 years of its iconic building. The digital and audio exhibition features personal stories from long-term National Theatre supporters and collaborators.

In the installation, Dench recalls a moment of pre-show calm playfully disrupted by an unexpected intervention from a fellow actor.

Celebrating the opening, she told the Press Association that she has "great hope" for the future of theatre.

“When you speak to a lot of young people, I do have great hope," the 91-year-old stated. “I’ve just met a little girl who is doing her show at school and is very, very excited about it."

While Dench is no longer acting, she hopes conversation surrounding theatre continues. This month, she revealed that she can no longer act due to severe vision loss that is caused by age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

“As long as that goes on and people see shows that they want to see, and see people and then they enjoy it, or maybe they don’t enjoy it, but at least it promotes a conversation, and that is exciting and wonderful.”

Photo: Dave Bennett