Cheek by Jowl is an international theatre company founded in the United Kingdom by director Declan Donnellan and designer

Nick Ormerod Nicholas Ronald Ormerod OBE (born 9 December 1951) is a British theatre designer and co-founder of the international theatre company Cheek by Jowl. In 1981 he founded Cheek by Jowl with Declan Donnellan, and they are the company's co-artistic di ...

in 1981. Donnellan and Ormerod are Cheek by Jowl's artistic directors and together direct and design all of Cheek by Jowl's productions. The company's recent productions include an Italian-language version of Thomas Middleton's '' The Revenger's Tragedy'', Russian-language productions of William Shakespeare's ''

Measure for Measure ''Measure for Measure'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1603 or 1604 and first performed in 1604, according to available records. It was published in the ''First Folio'' of 1623. The play's plot features its ...

'' and

Francis Beaumont Francis Beaumont ( ; 1584 – 6 March 1616) was a dramatist in the English Renaissance theatre, most famous for his collaborations with John Fletcher. Beaumont's life Beaumont was the son of Sir Francis Beaumont of Grace Dieu, near Thrin ...

's '' The Knight of the Burning Pestle'', an English-language production of '' The Winter's Tale'' and a French-language production of Shakespeare's '' Pericles, Prince of Tyre''. Cheek by Jowl is an

Arts Council England Arts Council England is an arm's length non-departmental public body of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is also a registered charity. It was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three s ...

National Portfolio Organisation and an Associate Company of the

Barbican Centre The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhi ...

, London. The company has performed in the UK since 1981 and internationally since 1984, when its productions of '' Vanity Fair'' and ''Pericles'' were invited to the Almagro, Valladolid, and Jerusalem festivals. Between 1985 and 1993, Cheek by Jowl performed 13 productions at the Donmar Warehouse. This marked the company's West End debut, which led Cheek by Jowl to receiv
4 Laurence Olivier awards
out of 10 nominations. As of 2017, Cheek by Jowl has performed in over 400 cities in over 40 countries, including Peter Brook's Bouffes du Nord in Paris, the

Chekhov International Festival Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career a ...

in Moscow and New York's

Brooklyn Academy of Music The Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) is a performing arts venue in Brooklyn, New York City, known as a center for progressive and avant-garde performance. It presented its first performance in 1861 and began operations in its present location in ...

. The core of Cheek by Jowl's work has always been Shakespeare; by the time of their production of '' The Winter's Tale'' in 2015, Cheek by Jowl had produced thirteen of Shakespeare's plays. The company has also consistently produced other classical works of European drama, both in translation and in their original language. Cheek by Jowl have given the British premiere of 10 works of European classics, including '' Le Cid'', by Jean Racine and '' Andromaque'', by

Pierre Corneille Pierre Corneille (; 6 June 1606 – 1 October 1684) was a French tragedian. He is generally considered one of the three great seventeenth-century French dramatists, along with Molière and Racine. As a young man, he earned the valuable patronag ...

. In 1989, Cheek by Jowl also produced Donnellan's own play ''Lady Betty'', which was based on the true story of a hangwoman in the West of Ireland around the time of the French Revolution. Cheek by Jowl is notable for producing work in English, French and Russian.

Cheek by Jowl in Russia

In 1999, the Russian Chekhov International Theatre Festival commissioned Donnellan and Ormerod to form their own company of Russian actors in Moscow. This sister company performs in Russia and internationally. Cheek by Jowl's latest Russian production ''

'' is the company's first co-production with

Moscow's Pushkin Theatre The Moscow Pushkin Drama Theatre is a theatre company in Moscow, Russian Federation created in 1950 on the base of Alexander Tairov's Chamber Theatre, which was founded in 1914 and shut down in 1949 for ideological reasons. The theatre is based in ...

Cheek by Jowl in France

In 2007, Paris based theatre director Peter Brook invited Donnellan and Ormerod to form a company of French actors; together with Paris’ Bouffes du Nord theatre, Cheek by Jowl co-produced '' Andromaque'', which toured throughout Europe in 2008 and 2009. In 2012, using this same company of French actors Cheek by Jowl went on to produce

Alfred Jarry Alfred Jarry (; 8 September 1873 – 1 November 1907) was a French symbolist writer who is best known for his play ''Ubu Roi'' (1896). He also coined the term and philosophical concept of 'pataphysics. Jarry was born in Laval, Mayenne, France, ...

’s '' Ubu Roi''. In 2018, with this French ensemble, Cheek by Jowl produced its first Shakespeare play in the French language: '' Pericles, Prince of Tyre''. In 2014, Cheek by Jowl celebrated the 20th anniversary of their ''

As You Like It ''As You Like It'' is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 and first published in the First Folio in 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 has b ...

'' revival with a screening of the production in the Noel Coward Theatre in London, formerly the Albery Theatre, one of the venues where the revival toured to in 1994 and 1995. The production was filmed, and screened with permission from the Victoria and Albert Museum’s Theatre and Performance Archive. The screening was attended by director Declan Donnellan and designer

, as well as actor Adrian Lester, who played Rosalind in the production. The play originally opened in 1991 with an all-male cast, touring to, amongst others, New York, Tokyo, Belfast, Adelaide and Rio de Janeiro. Cheek by Jowl's production of John Ford's '' Tis Pity She's a Whore'' opened in Sceaux, Paris, in 2011 and was revived three times between 2011 and 2014. The production, described as 'electrifying' by '' The Independent'', toured around the world, including the

in London, the Holland Festival in Amsterdam and the International Shakespeare Festival in Romania. The company's three most recent productions, '' Ubu Roi'' (2013–16), ''

'' (2013–17), and '' The Winter's Tale'' (2016–2017), have all been livestreamed for free to audiences across the world.

Productions

*2019 – '' The Revenger's Tragedy'', by Thomas Middleton *2019 – '' The Knight of the Burning Pestle'', by

*2018 – '' Périclès, Prince de Tyr'', by William Shakespeare *2016 – '' The Winter's Tale'', by William Shakespeare *2014 – ''

'Tis Pity She's a Whore ''Tis Pity She's a Whore'' (original spelling: ''Tis Pitty Shee's a Who'' 'ore'') is a tragedy written by John Ford. It was first performed or between 1629 and 1633, by Queen Henrietta's Men at the Cockpit Theatre. The play was first publis ...

'', by John Ford *2013 – ''

'', by William Shakespeare *2013 – '' Ubu Roi'', by

*2012 – ''

'', by John Ford *2011 – '' The Tempest'', by William Shakespeare *2009 – ''

Macbeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...

'', by William Shakespeare – performed again in 2010 and 2011 *2008 – '' Troilus and Cressida'', by William Shakespeare *2007 – '' Cymbeline'', by William Shakespeare *2006 – '' The Changeling'', by Thomas Middleton and William Rowley *2005 – '' Three Sisters'', by

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career ...

– performed again in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 *2004 – ''

Othello ''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cypru ...

'', by William Shakespeare *2002 – '' Homebody / Kabul'', by Tony Kushner – British premiere *2000 – ''

Boris Godunov Borís Fyodorovich Godunóv (; russian: Борис Фёдорович Годунов; 1552 ) ruled the Tsardom of Russia as ''de facto'' regent from c. 1585 to 1598 and then as the first non-Rurikid tsar from 1598 to 1605. After the end of his ...

'' by Alexander Pushkin *1998 – '' Much Ado About Nothing'', by William Shakespeare *1997 – ''

Out Cry Out may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Out'' (1957 film), a documentary short about the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 * ''Out'' (1982 film), an American film directed by Eli Hollander * ''Out'' (2002 film), a Japanese film ba ...

'', by Tennessee Williams – British premiere *1995 – '' The Duchess of Malfi'', by John Webster *1994 – ''

'', by William Shakespeare *1993 – ''

Don't Fool With Love ''No Trifling with Love'' (french: On ne badine pas avec l'amour) is a 1977 French drama film directed by Caroline Huppert. It is based on the theatrical work of Alfred de Musset of the same name. Plot The piece takes place in the castle of th ...

'', by

Alfred de Musset Alfred Louis Charles de Musset-Pathay (; 11 December 1810 – 2 May 1857) was a French dramatist, poet, and novelist.His names are often reversed "Louis Charles Alfred de Musset": see "(Louis Charles) Alfred de Musset" (bio), Biography.com, 2007 ...

*1993 – '' The Blind Men'', by Michel de Ghelderode – British premiere *1991 – ''

'', by William Shakespeare – revival in 1994 *1990 – '' Hamlet'', by William Shakespeare *1990 – '' Sara'', by Gotthold Lessing – British premiere *1989 – ''Lady Betty'', by Declan Donnellan – British premiere *1989 – ''

The Doctor of Honour ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in En ...

'', by

Pedro Calderon Pedro is a masculine given name. Pedro is the Spanish, Portuguese, and Galician name for '' Peter''. Its French equivalent is Pierre while its English and Germanic form is Peter. The counterpart patronymic surname of the name Pedro, meani ...

– British premiere *1988 – '' The Tempest'', by William Shakespeare – performed again in 2011 *1988 – ''

Philoctetes Philoctetes ( grc, Φιλοκτήτης ''Philoktētēs''; English pronunciation: , stress (linguistics), stressed on the third syllable, ''-tet-''), or Philocthetes, according to Greek mythology, was the son of Poeas, king of Meliboea (Magnes ...

'', by Sophocles *1988 – '' A Family Affair'', by Alexander Ostrovsky – British premiere *1987 – ''

'', by William Shakespeare *1986 – '' Twelfth Night'', by William Shakespeare *1986 – '' Le Cid'', by

– British premiere *1985 – '' The Man of Mode'', by George Etherege *1985 – ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...

'', by William Shakespeare *1985 – '' Andromache'', by Jean Racine – British premiere *1984 – '' Pericles'', by William Shakespeare *1983 – '' Vanity Fair'', by William Makepeace Thackeray – British premiere; performed again in 1984 and 1985 *1982 – ''

'', by William Shakespeare *1981 – ''

The Country Wife ''The Country Wife'' is a Restoration comedy written by William Wycherley and first performed in 1675. A product of the tolerant early Restoration period, the play reflects an aristocratic and anti-Puritan ideology, and was controversial for ...

'', by William Wycherly

References

External links

Cheek by Jowl websiteCheek by Jowl online archive
*The records of th
Cheek by Jowl Theatre Company
are held by the Victoria and Albert Museum Theatre and Performance Department. {{authority control 1981 establishments in England Entertainment companies established in 1981 Theatre companies in the United Kingdom Theatre companies in England Companies based in the City of London Barbican Estate