The Old Vic Announces Its 'Back Together' Season

Today, on The Old Vic's 203rd birthday, THE Old Vic: BACK TOGETHER Season. This Season has been announced. The seventh from Artistic Director Matthew Warchus will run from July 2021 to July 2022, and will be an uplifting and thought-provoking combination of both streamed and live shows.

Summer - Digital And Live:

• In celebration of Pride Month our 2017 monologue series Queers, curated by Mark Gatiss, will be re-released on BBC iPlayer to accompany two brand new One Voice monologues for Your Old Vic on YouTube

• To mark Refugee Week we will present HOME?, three new One Voice monologues curated by Noma Dumezweni for Your Old Vic on YouTube

• Jeremy Herrin directs the sixth in the live streamed Old Vic: IN CAMERA series, Harold Pinter's The Dumb Waiter with Daniel Mays and David Thewlis which will also welcome a small live 'studio' audience within the auditorium itself

• Company in Residence Wise Children will return to The Old Vic's auditorium in our world premiere co-production of Emma Rice's joyful adaptation of the 1987 film Bagdad Cafe. An ensemble cast will include Patrycja Kujawska, Le Gateau Chocolat and Sandra Marvin, and the show will also be presented live with an Old Vic: IN CAMERA at the end of the run.

From Autumn - Live:

• Old Vic Baylis Director, Katy Rudd, directs the world premiere of Bess Wohl's Camp Siegfried starring Patsy Ferran and Luke Thallon

• Following last year's live streamed Old Vic: IN CAMERA version, we are delighted that our annual festive favourite A Christmas Carol, written by Jack Thorne and directed by Matthew Warchus, will return for live audiences

• Lyndsey Turner will direct Caryl Churchill's classic play A Number starring Paapa Essiedu and Lennie James

• Long-time collaborators Terry Gilliam and Leah Hausman co-direct Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Into the Woods.

New Baylis Director:

• The appointment of the theatre's next Baylis Director, Tinuke Craig, has been announced. Craig joins for 12 months to direct a full-scale production, receive a fund with which to commission a new piece of work, and shadow the Artistic Director, using The Old Vic's space and resources to research and develop projects.

New Commissions:

• Four new commissions for writers Diana Nneka Atuona, Natasha Gordon, Regina Taylor and Roy Williams

• An adaptation of When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr adapted for the stage with Book and Lyrics by Caroline Bird and Music by Miranda Cooper & Nick Coler

• The NHS Play in development with Atri Banerjee, Sarah Frankcom and Paul Unwin

• Our current Old Vic 12 cohort continue their development of three new play commissions, culminating in a week of digital celebration in June.

Matthew Warchus, Artistic Director said:

'How do you come back from a year of separation? A year filled with fear, shock, loss, anger, debilitating powerlessness and exhausting lurches between hope and despair. Yet also a year filled with new discoveries, new ways of connecting, new priorities and new solidarity and support for each other. A year which has changed everything and everyone. Our children have taught us how. I watched mine go back to school weeks ago, back on the bus, back through the gates shoulder to shoulder with their peers. They didn't go back alone. They went back together.

We are absolutely delighted to be reopening our doors to live audiences and rebooting in person all of the other important work that The Old Vic engages in alongside its main stage productions. It's particularly gratifying to be able to play our part in bringing theatre freelancers (including writers, directors, designers, choreographers, musicians and performers) back to work after an impossibly challenging period.

There were times during the last year when the neon sign on the front of our building, declaring 'We'll Be Back', seemed less confidently assertive and more poignantly hopeful... even over-optimistic. But through astonishing efforts and support from friends old and new, we've made it to reopening. We don't take that for granted. We feel incredibly fortunate to be back. Very grateful to all those who made it happen. And very excited to be Back Together.'