Theatre News

New Diorama Theatre announces 2017/18 season

The theatre announces debut shows and visiting companies for both its main space and new ND2 venue in Regent’s Place

© Lap Fung Chan (Flickr)

The New Diorama today announces its 2017/18 season, with a number of companies debuting new work as well as two site-specific productions being launched at their ND2 space.

Hot off an Edinburgh Fringe run, The Pretend Men bring their farcical comedy sequel Police Cops In Space to the venue from 7 September, as part of a double bill with Emergency Chorus’ award-winning Celebration.

Exciting additions to the New Diorama lineup are the two large scale events at the new ND2 development space – a stone’s throw from the theatre at Regent’s Place. The first of these is Deafinitely Theatre’s new adaptation of Mike Bartlett’s Contractions, a site-specific first for the company with a four week run from 1 November. Following this, Gruff Theatre will present an immersive new show It Made Me Consider, from 24 January. The company had widespread success with its adaptation of Caryl Churchill’s The Skriker in March of this year.

The season sees a record number of captioned and relaxed performances

New Diorama's in-house production Secret Life of Humans, ready to debut at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe next month, will come to the venue in April 2018 for a four week run. Inspired by the international best-seller Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, the show will then transfer to the Greenwich Theatre.

The venue will host brand new supported shows from emerging companies based across the UK. Multi-award-winning Kandinsky return with a new show Trap Street in March next year, directed by Complicite associate James Yeatman, focusing on urban planning and the dreams behind inner-city council estates. Breach Theatre, following on from hits Tank and The Beanfield, delve into the world of emergency preparedness scenarios in their new show The Drill, debuting in May.

The season sees a variety of transfers from other venues, including Bucket Club’s Fossils from 19 September after an Off-Broadway success at 59E59 earlier this year. Smoke and Oakum’s Kings, following a sell-out spell at the Vaults Festival, will see a three week run from 3 October. December sees Jonny Donahoe’s Thirty Christmases transfer from Oxford's Old Fire Station, replete with songs by Jonny and the Baptists. Barrel Organ’s Lulu Raczka & Ali Pidsley’s production A Girl in a School Uniform (Walks into a Bar) receives its London premiere in late January, in a co-production with West Yorkshire Playhouse.

As part of their continued commitment to bolstering access opportunities in theatre, the New Diorama will also be hosting a record number of captioned and relaxed performances across the season, continuing on from 2017 successes in raising broad awareness for accessibility issues in London theatre.