The Bush Theatre is a world-famous home for new plays and an internationally renowned champion of playwrights.
We discover, nurture and produce the best new playwrights from the widest range of backgrounds from our home in a distinctive corner of west London. We are excited by exceptional new voices, stories and perspectives – particularly those with contemporary bite which reflect the vibrancy of British culture now.
Our mission is to champion, uplift and support unheard voices and to develop the artists and audiences of the future. We stage surprising and ambitious shows, with our work often going on to tour or transfer to the West End.
“One of London’s best and most influential off-West End theatres.” – Time Out
Our story
The Bush Theatre began in a small room above a pub on the corner of Shepherd’s Bush Green in 1972, and since then we’ve produced more than 500 groundbreaking premieres. We have nurtured the careers of writers like Simon Stephens, Temi Wilkey, James Graham, Lucy Kirkwood, Arinzé Kene and Jack Thorne, and launched actors like Alan Rickman, Victoria Wood, Andrew Scott and Phoebe Waller-Bridge into the mainstream.
In 2011, we moved round the corner to the old library on Uxbridge Road, which underwent a redevelopment project reopening in 2017. In 2022 we celebrated our 50th birthday with a season packed with new Bush commissions, including the Olivier Award-winning The P Word. In 2023 were named Theatre of the Year at The Stage Awards.
“These are great times for the Bush Theatre… the new building already looks like a winner.” – Charles Spencer
Today
We are at the forefront of new British playwriting, championing artist development and working closely with our community. We’ve developed a reputation as “a new writing powerhouse whose size belies its influence” (Financial Times).
Firmly rooted in our local community, our busy building hosts two performance spaces: the Holloway Theatre, our flexible main house, and the intimate Studio. The building also contains our Attic rehearsal space and Writer’s Room, along with the vibrant Library Bar and Café, garden terrace and the Script Library, which is the largest public theatre reference library in the United Kingdom.
The Bush Theatre is a registered charity, and relies on the support of generous donors. You can support the next 50 years of the Bush Theatre – find out more here.