Royal Court announces 2027 season with Jessie Buckley, Purpose, Complicité and more

The Royal Court Theatre has announced the first part of its 2027 season, featuring a Broadway transfer and six world premieres, with one production scheduled for 2028.

The season opens with the European premiere of Purpose, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ Tony Award-winning and Pulitzer Prize-winning play, transferring from Broadway with Steppenwolf Theatre Company. Directed by Phylicia Rashad, the production follows three generations of a Black American political dynasty whose family secrets emerge when a snowstorm traps them under one roof. The production runs in the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs from 16 January to 27 February 2027, with casting also confirmed.

Complicité returns to the Royal Court with the world premiere of The Apology, written by and starring V, formerly known as Eve Ensler. The production sees V confront the memory of her late father and the abuse he inflicted on her as a child. Emmy Award-winner Tobias Menzies also stars, with Complicité artistic director Simon McBurney directing and Es Devlin designing the set. The production runs from 19 March to 24 April 2027 in the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs.

Olivier Award-winner Juliet Stevenson will star in the world premiere of The Briar Patch, a domestic thriller by Ciara Elizabeth Smyth. The play follows Dara, who begins questioning the people around her after a family friend is arrested and a scandal affects her community. Directed by Royal Court artistic director David Byrne, the production runs from 14 May to 26 June 2027 in the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs. The play was previously featured in the theatre’s Open Submissions Festival.

Looking ahead to 2028, Oscar winner Jessie Buckley will make her Royal Court debut in the world premiere of Afterbirth, by Royal Court associate playwright Nina Segal. The play explores life after childbirth through Annie, whose repeated insistence that she is fine contrasts with the reality of her experience. Directed by Maria Aberg, with set and costume design by Rosanna Vize, the production is co-produced with English Touring Theatre and runs from 15 January to 26 February 2028 in the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs.

The Jerwood Theatre Upstairs season begins with We’re Gonna Kill Billy, the professional debut of Alex Medland, whose play won the Concord Theatricals Unpublished Playwright Award. The comedy and eco-thriller follows four teenage girls who plan to stop a billionaire from building a marina that would destroy local wildlife by kidnapping his grandson. Royal Court associate director Aneesha Srinivasan directs, with set and costume design by Shankho Chaudhuri. The production runs from 18 February to 27 March 2027 and will be supported through a case study partnership with ReStage and NT Green Store to explore ways of reducing its environmental impact.

Georgie Dettmer’s War Face reunites the playwright with director Jess Edwards following their hit Royal Court production of Are You Watching?. Created with serving and retired soldiers in collaboration with the Chelsea Pensioners, the play (running upstairs from 22 April to 1 May) draws on the experiences of British Army veterans across generations. The production will feature a company of veterans and actors and is co-produced with Orange Juice Productions. Dettmer has also been named the 2027 Jerwood New Playwright, with the programme supported by Jerwood Foundation.

Benjamin Kuffuor’s Working Men receives its world premiere following its recognition with the George Devine Award. The play follows a quantity surveyor, a building contractor and a project manager whose routine visit to a council estate becomes a defining day in their lives. Previously featured in the Royal Court’s Open Submissions Festival, the production runs from 4 June to 10 July 2027 upstairs.

The season will also include the fourth edition of the Royal Court’s week-long Open Submissions Festival, presented in partnership with Character 7. The festival showcases work by playwrights discovered through the theatre’s open script submissions process, which receives more than 3,000 new plays each year. The Briar Patch, We’re Gonna Kill Billy and Working Men were all featured in previous editions before being selected for full productions.

Read our new interview with artistic director David Byrne here.