National Youth Theatre of Great Britain Marks 50 Years of New Writing, Welcomes HRH The Earl of Wessex

As the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain (NYT) marks 50 years of commissioning new writing for young people, the organisation is delighted to announce new support from Pureland Foundation, founded by Bruno Wang, for the commissioning of upcoming writers and creation of new plays specifically for young people.

On Thursday 8 June, NYT's Royal Patron HRH The Earl of Wessex visited NYT and met the organisation's Artistic Director Paul Roseby, President Barbara Broccoli, and members of the 2017 NYT REP company as they performed extracts from plays which were originally commissioned by NYT over the past 50 years. Images of the event can be downloaded here.

Inspired by the traditional repertory theatre model, the NYT REP was set up by Paul Roseby and NYT's Associate Director Anna Niland in 2012 to provide a much needed free alternative to expensive formal training. It is a unique free talent development initiative allowing the best young talent to work for nine months with leading institutions culminating in three months of performances in the West End.

Pureland Foundation's donation will enable NYT to nurture and commission young writers, develop new plays specifically for and with young performers and support the costs of producing new work.

Bruno Wang said: "London has the best theatre in the world thanks to the vital free opportunities organisations like the National Youth Theatre offer. We are delighted to be supporting the next generation of Britain's best young talent and look forward to seeing National Youth Theatre's upcoming writers produce new work."

The organisation's first commissioned play was Peter Terson's Zigger Zagger in 1967 and since then many notable writers have received early commissions such as James Graham (This House, Finding Neverland), Jack Thorne (Harry Potter and The Cursed Child) and Zawe Ashton.

NYT's 2017 season will include the REP Company's fifth year at the Ambassadors Theatre from 26 September to 8 December with a new female-led adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's classic novel Jekyll and Hyde exploring women's roles and rights in Victorian society. The production has been adapted by Evan Placey who wrote the 2015 hit Consensual and is directed by Roy Alexander Weise (JMK 2016 Winner), who most recently directed the Young Vic's acclaimed production of The Mountaintop. The second REP show, which marks an exciting new collaboration, will see NYT present Frantic Assembly's award-winning modern-day Othello under the direction of Frantic's Associate Director Simon Pittman. Their electrifying take on Shakespeare's thriller is set in 21st-century Britain and is celebrated for its physical and collaborative theatre, bringing the sex, violence and jealousy of the tragedy into the modern day.

The 2017 season will also include NYT'S first ever 'East End season' at the Yard Theatre from 8 - 26 August after the sell-out success of their season of new writing at the Finborough Theatre last year. The season will feature Olivier Award-winning Jessica Swale's Blue Stockings, the premiere of The Host, a new play commissioned by NYT in response to 23 June 2016 and the European refugee crisis by Nessah Muthy and the return of Mohsin Hamid's The Reluctant Fundamentalist. In September they will take a 50-strong cast to Wilton's Music Hall to bring back Peter Terson's iconic play about football hooliganism, Zigger Zagger. NYT's social inclusion course 'Playing Up' will also run at the Arcola Theatre with new play, Three, by Sophie Ellerby.

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