BENGAL TIGER AT THE BAGHDAD ZOO and More Set For 2025/26 Season at the Young Vic Theatre

The Young Vic Theatre has announced the inaugural season from new Artistic Director and CEO Nadia Fall - a programme of timely reimaginings of classic work, UK, European and World premieres and creatively bold, inventive productions from internationally acclaimed theatre makers and exciting new voices.

Running from September 2025 - July 2026 across the Main House and The Maria Studio the Young Vic's 25/26 Season features seven productions, six from directors making their Young Vic directorial debuts.

In the Main House

• Opening the 25/26 Season, Young Vic Artistic Director and CEO Nadia Fall (Three Sisters) will direct Tamzin Outhwaite (Abigail's Party) and Daniel Cerqueira (A Gentleman in Moscow) in Joe Orton's queer cult classic Entertaining Mr Sloane - a ruthless, dark comedy that remains as provocative and shocking today as it did 62 years ago. 15 Sep - 8 Nov. 

• Rajiv Joseph's Pulitzer and Tony-nominated Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo - a high-octane, funny yet moving examination of the futility of war - receives its European Premiere at the Young Vic. Directed by Omar Elerian (Rhinoceros) this new production stars Olivier and BAFTA award-winner David Threlfall (Hangmen), Olivier Award-nominee Arinzé Kene (Misty), Ammar Haj Ahmad (The Jungle) and Hala Omran (I Medea).  2 Dec - 31 Jan.

• Olivier Award-nominee Jordan Fein (Fiddler on the Roof) directs a timely revival of Arthur Miller's rarely-performed play Broken Glass. Set in Brooklyn in 1938 and written in response to the rise of fascism in Europe, Broken Glass is a passionate story about the consequences of disconnecting with the realities of our world. 21 Feb - 18 Apr. 

• Alexander Zeldin (The Other Place) writes and directs the UK premiere CARE. Co-produced with A Zeldin Company, CARE is a life affirming examination of the realities of ageing and the elusive connection between loss and rebirth. 11 May - 11 Jul.

The 25/26 season will see the Maria Studio programmed alongside the Main House as a space for creative and imaginative approaches to storytelling that include gig theatre, installations and fearless new writing. 

In The Maria

• An intimate and rousing new musical experience from Obie Award-winning duo Abigail and Shaun Bengson (The Bengsons) and directed by Caitlin Sullivan. Ohio is a celebratory true story about losing faith and finding hope in the darkest of places, bringing together creative captions, evocative Indie-folk music and deeply personal storytelling. Following its initial debut at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2025, Ohio is produced by Francesca Moody Productions and piece by piece productions in association with the Young Vic. 30 Sep - 24 Oct.

• An arresting mixed reality installation from theatre/XR director Sacha Wares and editor of Disability News Service John Pring, the award-winning Museum of Austerity will bring the human stories of Austerity Britain to the Young Vic,  laying bare the consequences when state safety nets fail. A number of supporting events will accompany the run, including an event with Healing Justice Ldn, further details to be announced. An ETT, Trial and Error Studio, and The National Theatre co-production, presented in association with the Young Vic, supported by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. 5 Dec - 16 Jan. 

• Casting a scathing light on systemic injustice in the institutions that are sworn to protect us, Sophie Swithinbank (Bacon), winner of the 2023 Peggy Ramsay/Film4 Award and the Sonia Friedman Productions Prize for Best Play, will present the world premiere of her urgent new play Sting directed by NANCY MEDINA (A Good House). 18 Jun - 18 Jul. 

As part of the Young Vic's ongoing commitment to supporting the next generation of theatre makers, this season will see The JMK Award return to the Young Vic, offering an early career director the opportunity to direct a full-scale professional play in the Young Vic's Maria Studio. Applications for the Award will open in autumn 2025.

Nadia Fall, Artistic Director and CEO of the Young Vic said:  “Vivid stories are the key to this season. We have seven wildly different works across our Main House and The Maria Studio Theatre, which journey from the shady underbelly of the London suburbs to the chaos of Baghdad after the toppling of Saddam Hussein. We will time travel to Brooklyn in 1938 where fascism is on the rise in Europe, on to a residential care home for a tender and surprisingly joyful look at life in our winter years, before returning to the streets of our metropolis for an eerily modern tale involving misogyny within the MET Police. 

Alongside the shows in our Main House, we are delighted to be cracking open our studio theatres this season for new forms and voices. Some of the most arresting theatre I have ever experienced was in the Maria and Clare spaces; productions which have stayed with me over the years. Studio theatres can conjure an immersive and potent connection with an audience, achieving a close up and unparalleled intimacy.   

I can't wait to share this work with our audience. It's a season that invites us to hold a mirror up to ourselves and see the unflinching truth about who we really are. Behind closed doors, beyond curated online profiles, and painted smiles: it's  an interrogation of who we are, at our core.” 

Nadia Fall on the 25/26 Season, show by show:

“I'm so excited to be directing Joe Orton's audacious cult-classic Entertaining Mr Sloane. I was particularly drawn to the way Orton calls us all out, in a world where humankind is demonstrating a scarcity of both humanity and kindness. Orton's dark play pokes fun at our incessant dog eat dog nature and still remains downright shocking, sixty-two years after it was first written.”

“Ohio is autobiographical gig-theatre at its best, brought to us by the connoisseurs of platforming fresh talent Francesca Moody Productions. The piece sees real-life husband and wife The Bengsons tell their story of being raised in the church and then losing faith, it explores living with congenital hearing loss as a musician. The soulful folk music is woven with the storytelling. It's a magical tonic of a show.”

“The European premiere of Rajiv Joseph's Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo is an adrenaline shot - a striking and imaginative commentary on war. With director Omar Elerian at the helm we have a dexterous navigator of the political and the poetic.” 

“Museum of Austerity is the creation of master craftswoman Sacha Wares together with John Pring, Founder of Disability News Service. An installation that unlocks real-life testimonials from people who have lost disabled family members due to changes to the benefit system. The multitude of stories appear as audiences move around the space, it's an emotional and necessary work.”

“Arthur Miller's Broken Glass feels achingly prescient. Miller examines how world events, with the rise of hate and fascism, can infiltrate and impact our psyche, our relationships and our bodies. It's a beautiful study of marriage and intimacy, of connection and the fractures between couples over time. Director Jordan Fein is an exciting talent and I can't wait to see his modern take on this powerful play.”

“CARE from true auteur Alexander Zeldin, is a finely drawn and disarmingly recognisable family portrait where a grandmother has no choice but to live in a care home. Care looks at ageing and life in a delicately, affecting yet uplifting way.”

“Sting is a riveting new play by Sophie Swithinbank which follows a young woman, Ash, who at first glance seems to be her own worst enemy. As the play unfolds, we see there are darker forces deliberately working to undo her. The story exposes a disturbing misogyny within the police force. Sophie is a young writer with a deliciously witty and disconcerting voice. NANCY MEDINA will be directing Sting and the partnership of these two women promises to be dynamite.” 

“I am also delighted to announce as part of my inaugural season the return of the JMK Award for emerging Directors to the Young Vic. We have long been known as a directors theatre and this award gives young directors time and space to practice and experiment, but also, most importantly, to direct!”

Co-Chairs of the JMK award Emma Baggott & Derek Bond said, “We are so delighted that the JMK is coming back to its spiritual home at the Young Vic, and  we would like to thank the executive team for their support of emerging directors. In an increasingly risk-averse landscape, the JMK award can provide producers with the nudge they need to take a risk on emerging artists."

Throughout the 25/26 season the Young Vic will continue to foster deep, lasting relationships with both the communities of Southwark and Lambeth through Young Vic Taking Part and with early career artists and producers through the Creator's Program. Young Vic Taking Part provides year-round creative and artistic opportunities that range from developing, producing and performing shows and offering skills-based workshops, to providing free tickets to all Young Vic productions. With a network of over 2,500 artists and producers, The Creator's Program provides support and development opportunities for multi and anti-disciplinary artists that range from workshops to Assistant Director roles. Details of the Young Vic Taking Part programme for 25/26 and opportunities via the Creators Program will be announced in due course. 

Tickets for Entertaining Mr Sloane, Ohio, Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, and Museum of Austerity go on sale to supporters from 12 noon on Wednesday 14 May, and to the general public at 12 noon on Monday 19 May. 

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