National Theatre Wales (NTW) is a theatre company known for its large-scale site-specific productions and its grassroots work with diverse Welsh communities. It is the

English-language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...

national theatre of

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, and refers to

Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru is the Welsh language national theatre of Wales, founded in 2003. It has a counterpart in National Theatre Wales, the English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, wi ...

, the

Welsh-language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province, Argentina). Historically, it has als ...

national theatre of Wales founded in 2003, as its sister company. NTW's current artistic director is Lorne Campbell, and its executive producer is Lisa Maguire. Its previous artistic directors are John E. McGrath and Kully Thiarai.

Notable productions

Among the company’s productions are: * ''The Persians'' (2010) by Kaite O’Reilly, Mike Pearson and Mike Brookes. A reimagining of one of Europe’s earliest recorded plays on a military training range in the

Brecon Beacons The Brecon Beacons ( cy, Bannau Brycheiniog, ) are a mountain range in South Wales. In a narrow sense, the name refers to the range of Old Red Sandstone peaks which lie to the south of Brecon. Sometimes referred to as "the central Beacons" t ...

, which won the 2010

Ted Hughes Award The Ted Hughes Award is an annual prize given to a living UK poet for new work in poetry. It is awarded each spring in recognition of a work from the previous year. Background The award was established in 2009 with the permission of Carol Hughes i ...

. * ''The Passion'' (2011). A 72-hour secular passion play created by

Michael Sheen Michael Christopher Sheen OBE (born 5 February 1969) is a Welsh actor, television producer and political activist. After training at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), he worked mainly in theatre throughout the 1990s with stage role ...

, which won the UK Theatre Award for Best Director. * ''The Radicalisation of Bradley Manning'' (2012) by

Tim Price Tim Price (born 3 April 1979) is a New Zealand equestrian, competing in eventing. He is married to Jonelle Price (née Richards), also a New Zealand eventing rider. They are both competing at top international level. Price was born in 1979 in ...

. A fictionalised account of whistleblower

Chelsea Manning Chelsea Elizabeth Manning (born Bradley Edward Manning; December 17, 1987) is an American activist and whistleblower. She is a former United States Army soldier who was convicted by court-martial in July 2013 of violations of the Espionage A ...

’s teenage years in Pembrokeshire, which won the 2013 James Tait Black Prize for Drama. * ''CORIOLAN/US'' (2012) by Mike Pearson and Mike Brookes. A multimedia reimagining of

Coriolanus ''Coriolanus'' ( or ) is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1605 and 1608. The play is based on the life of the legendary Roman leader Caius Marcius Coriolanus. Shakespeare worked on it during the same ye ...

in a World War II aircraft hangar in

St Athan St Athan ( cy, Sain Tathan) is a village and community in the Vale of Glamorgan in South Wales. The village and its parish church are dedicated to Saint Tathan. The church dates to the 13th–14th century, though an earlier church was dated to t ...

, produced with the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and produces around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, St ...

as part of the

World Shakespeare Festival The World Shakespeare Festival was a programme of events about William Shakespeare and his work. They took place mostly in London and Stratford-upon-Avon as part of the 2012 Cultural Olympiad which accompanied the Olympic Games. It was produced ...

. * ''In Water I’m Weightless'' (2012) by Kaite O’Reilly. A provocative exploration of disability and the human body combining movement and live projections, co-produced with Unlimited for the

London 2012 Festival The 2012 Cultural Olympiad was a programme of cultural events across the United Kingdom that accompanied the 2012 Summer Olympics and 2012 Summer Paralympics. The Olympic Charter, the set of rules and guidelines for the organization of the Olym ...

. * ''De Gabay'' (2013). An immersive production created by a group of young Welsh-Somali performers in Butetown, Cardiff, which was shortlisted for a Gulbenkian award. * ''Mametz'' (2014) by

Owen Sheers Owen Sheers (born 20 September 1974) is a Welsh poet, author, playwright and television presenter. He was the first writer in residence to be appointed by any national rugby union team. Early life Owen Sheers was born in Suva, Fiji in 1974, and b ...

. Play commissioned as part of

14-18 NOW ''14-18'' (also known as ''Over There, 1914-18'') is a 1963 French documentary film about World War I, directed by Jean Aurel. It was nominated for an Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic a ...

, which transformed an ancient woodland near Usk, Monmouthshire into the trenches and battlefields of the Somme. * ''The Gathering/Yr Helfa'' (2014) by

National Poet of Wales The post of National Poet of Wales ( cy, Bardd Cenedlaethol Cymru) was established in May 2005 by Academi – the Welsh National Literature Promotion Agency and Society for Writers. The current holder of the position is Hanan Issa, who was appoin ...

Gillian Clarke Gillian Clarke (born 8 June 1937) is a Welsh poet and playwright, who also edits, broadcasts, lectures and translates from Welsh into English. She co-founded Tŷ Newydd, a writers' centre in North Wales. Life Gillian Clarke was born on 8 J ...

, and Louise Ann Wilson. An exploration of the annual cycle of sheep-farming on a working hill farm on

Snowdon Snowdon () or (), is the highest mountain in Wales, at an elevation of above sea level, and the highest point in the British Isles outside the Scottish Highlands. It is located in Snowdonia National Park (') in Gwynedd (historic ...

. * ''Bordergame'' (2014). An interactive production exploring migration and contemporary border regimes, which won the first Space Prize for Digital Innovation. * ''Roald Dahl’s City of the Unexpected'' (2016). A Cardiff-wide celebration of

Roald Dahl Roald Dahl (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British novelist, short-story writer, poet, screenwriter, and wartime fighter ace of Norwegian descent. His books have sold more than 250 million copies worldwide. Dahl has be ...

with 7,000 people performing, making and volunteering, billed as “Wales’ largest-ever cultural event.” * ''We’re Still Here'' (2017) by

Rachel Trezise Rachel Trezise (born 1978) is a Welsh author, born in Cwmparc, Wales. Her debut collection of short stories, ''Fresh Apples'', won the inaugural Dylan Thomas Prize in 2006. Early life Rachel Trezise was born in Cwmparc, Rhondda in 1978. Her fam ...

and the people of

Port Talbot Port Talbot (, ) is a town and community in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales, situated on the east side of Swansea Bay, approximately from Swansea. The Port Talbot Steelworks covers a large area of land which dominates the south ...

. A co-production with Common Wealth Theatre sited in a disused steelworks which won a 2018

Nesta Nesta (formerly NESTA, National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts) is an innovation foundation based in the UK. The organisation acts through a combination of programmes, investment, policy and research, and the formation of part ...

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...

New Radicals Award. * NHS70 (2018). A season of one-person plays celebrating the

NHS The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

taking place in intimate settings all over Wales, including new work by

Maria Fusco Maria Fusco is a Belfast-born writer, lecturer, art critic, and events organiser. She was Director of Art Writing at Goldsmiths, University of London between 2007 and 2013 where she founded and led MFA Art Writing. She was a Senior Chancellor's ...

, Alan Harris and

Elis James Owain Elis James (born 3 November 1980) is a Welsh comedian, broadcaster and actor originally from Haverfordwest. He grew up in Carmarthen and later lived in Cardiff. He is now based in South London. He is bilingual in Welsh language, Welsh and ...

. * ''Tide Whisperer'' (2018) by Louise Wallwein. An acclaimed immersive production on the shores of

Tenby Tenby ( cy, Dinbych-y-pysgod, lit=fortlet of the fish) is both a walled seaside town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, on the western side of Carmarthen Bay, and a local government community. Notable features include of sandy beaches and the Pembroke ...

tackling the global phenomenon of displacement and mass movement. * ''On Bear Ridge'' (2019) by Ed Thomas. A co-production with

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a non-commercial West End theatre in Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, Englan ...

whic
was named
one of the U.K.’s five best new plays of 2019 by

The Stage ''The Stage'' is a British weekly newspaper and website covering the entertainment industry and particularly theatre. It was founded in 1880. It contains news, reviews, opinion, features, and recruitment advertising, mainly directed at those wh ...

. * ''Refrain'' (2019) by Sean Edwards. A radio play produced with Wrexham’s

Tŷ Pawb Tŷ Pawb (; ) is a multi-purpose centre in Wrexham, Wales. It serves as a venue for arts, cultural and community events, as well as being a market, art gallery and museum. A redevelopment of the former Wrexham People's Market ()) prior to its ...

as part of the Wales in Venice presentation at the

58th Venice Biennale The 58th Venice Biennale was an international contemporary art exhibition held between May and November 2019. The Venice Biennale takes place biennially in Venice, Italy. Artistic director Ralph Rugoff curated its central exhibition, ''May You ...

. * ''Mission Control'' (2019). A fantasy musical co-produced with

Hijinx Theatre Hijinx is a professional theatre company with its base at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff, Wales. They are also a touring company, performing at the Glastonbury Festival and Edinburgh Festivals, and tour also small scale theatres throughou ...

and created with Seiriol Davies, staged at the

Millennium Stadium The Millennium Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm y Mileniwm), known since 2016 as the Principality Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Principality) for sponsorship reasons, is the national stadium of Wales. Located in Cardiff, it is the home of the Wales national rug ...

References

External links

*
National Theatre Wales Community
{{authority control

Theatre companies in Wales