Wise Children Will Become Emma Rice Company

Wise Children becomes Emma Rice Company. Based in the South-West, the company continues its commitment to create ground-breaking work with  artists, global touring, sitting alongside programme at their home base The Lucky Chance, and a comprehensive education and outreach programme.

Emma Rice said , “The only certain thing in life is change, and change is what is happening! It is with a heady mix of pride and excitement that we are announcing our new company name, the Emma Rice Company. 

“We haven't taken this decision lightly as we've truly loved being Wise Children! I carry the book in my heart, and its spirit will always be at the centre of the company's ethos and story. However, the need for change has become compelling and we are nothing if not brave and smart. 

“We've been forced to admit that the name we love so much is not helping us communicate the kind of work we make. We cannot keep explaining to partners near and far that we are not a children's company! We also have exciting plans to celebrate and remount some of my past work, from my glorious time at Kneehigh, and less glorious time at Shakespeare's Globe. It's time to join the dots, tell the big story and bring all these wonderful chapters together under the simple and authentic banner: Emma Rice Company. I couldn't be prouder.”

Emma Rice Company and Theatre Royal Bath announce a three-year partnership, The Director's Cut, which will see the two companies working together to revive some of Rice's most iconic and beloved productions. The extended season will kick off with Malory Towers in May 2026, followed by Tristan & Yseult in September 2026. Further programming for future years will be announced in due course.

Danny Moar, Director, Theatre Royal Bath said, “It is an enormous privilege for Theatre Royal Bath and its audiences to collaborate with the Emma Rice Company in this way. We look forward to two great productions opening with us in 2026 with more to come in the years ahead.”

The Director's Cut will also tour the UK, with Emma Rice Company's signature ‘slow tour' network of partners collaborating to bring these works to audiences across the UK. Slow touring is the name for a slower, kinder way of working that the company has been exploring since the end of the pandemic and, alongside original partners York Theatre Royal and HOME Manchester, the network now includes Belgrade Theatre, Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse, The Royal Lyceum Edinburgh, Nottingham Playhouse and Theatre Royal Plymouth.

After opening at Theatre Royal Bath, Malory Towers will embark on a 10-venue UK tour. The production has been supported by Incentivising Touring: Repayable Grants for Theatre and Dance, a pilot scheme developed by Arts Council England to support UK regional touring. Malory Towers was amongst the first to receive a share of over £2 million as part of the first round of the scheme.

Also announced today, is the company's brand-new production – an adaptation of Dylan Thomas' A Child's Christmas in Wales, adapted and directed by Rice, which runs at The Lucky Chance from 25 November continuing the company's tradition of staging family theatre at their home in Frome at Christmas.

In addition, continuing the company's commitment to international touring, their recent adaptation of Hitchcock's North by Northwest will open at The Old Globe in San Diego next July, before embarking on a US tour.