New artistic director at Lyric Hammersmith

Rachel O’Riordan joins the theatre from Sherman Theatre, where she has been artistic director and CEO since 2014. Under her leadership, the Sherman won The Stage's Regional Theatre of the Year award this year.

The Stage has also named O’Riordan as one of the most influential people in UK Theatre in their most recent Stage 100. She is also a Council Member of Arts Council of Wales and a participant in the British Council's Take the Stage initiative. Before her tenure at the Sherman, she served as the Artistic Director of Perth Theatre in Scotland between 2011 and 2014 and between 2002 and 2011 she ran Ransom Productions, which she also co-founded.

In a press release O’Riordan says: ‘The Lyric Hammersmith is one of the most exciting theatres in London. It occupies a special place in the theatre ecology; egalitarian, open and bold. I am looking forward to continuing the theatre's journey and leading a new phase of artistic evolution, working alongside Sian Alexander and the Lyric team. I am honoured to have been chosen to succeed Sean Holmes, and look forward to getting to know new audiences in West London and beyond.’

Lisa Burger, the Lyric Hammermith's chair, adds: ‘I'm thrilled that Rachel will be joining the Lyric as our new artistic director. I'm a great admirer of her work at the Sherman in Cardiff and look forward to her bringing her passion for theatre and commitment to excellence, generosity and ambition to Hammersmith.’

Outgoing artistic director Sean Holmes will step down in October 2018, with his final programme of shows starting in January 2019. O'Riordan is expected to take up the position in February 2019, with her first programmed season to take place in the autumn.

Of the appointment, the Lyric's executive director Sian Alexander, says: ‘I am very much looking forward to working with Rachel. She brings with her a wealth of brilliant experience as a leader and a director. She is an inspiring creative producer. She shares our values and passion for developing talent, creating opportunities for young people and working to ensure the theatre is at the heart of its local community. I'm hugely excited for the future of the Lyric under our joint leadership.’ lyric.co.uk

Bristol Old Vic completes redevelopment

© Steve Tanner

A 2005 production of The Bacchae at the Bristol Old Vic

The Bristol Old Vic reopened its doors on 23 September following a two-year period of redevelopment. The £26m project has seen the addition of a new studio theatre, along with a fully-accessible front of house space with a bar and kitchen and an interactive heritage exhibition.

Originally opened in 1766, the Bristol Old Vic is the oldest continuously-working theatre in the English-speaking world. During the renovation, interesting artefacts from the theatre's long history were uncovered such as an 18th-century thunder run – a wooden contraption in which rolling weighted balls simulated the sound of thunder.

Emma Stenning, the theatre's chief executive says: ‘We'd urge anyone who's interested in seeing what has been going on behind the hoardings for the past two years to come and find out more about this inspiring new space when we throw open our doors.’

National Theatre Wales accused of undermining Welsh playwrights

© Jennie Caldwell

National Theatre Wales' production of Tide Whisperer

A letter signed by 40 playwrights has been sent to the chair of National Theatre Wales (NTW). Originally published on the Wales Arts Review, the open letter expresses an ‘extreme sadness’ at the NTW's ‘lack of scrutiny, transparency and openness’.

The list of grievances include a low theatrical production rate, diminishing of Welsh culture and language, and use of NTW funds to support projects which are not theatre – comedy acts and singers being given as two examples.

Following on from this, the letter calls for ‘the board to overhaul NTW's aims and objective,’ to focus on three key areas of contention:

• All shows produced by National Theatre Wales to have a Welsh or Wales-based artist as primary artist
• Non-Welsh and Wales-based artists and companies need to be 1) world-class, and 2) engaged only to support a Welsh or Wales-based artist
• A NTW show has to have theatre in it. In a response to the letter, the chair of NTW Clive Jones says that the trustees were ‘deeply saddened’ to read the accusations as ‘much of the letter's content was factually incorrect’. Jones has also offered to meet the signatories. At time of press, the offer had been accepted and a date for the meeting is due to be set soon.

The full letter can be read at tinyurl.com/tdau2-news-ntw

Tricycle Theatre reopened with new name

© Philip Vile

The historic Tricyle Theatre in Kilburn, London was reopened at the start of September following a renovation that cost around £7m and forced the closure of the venue for two years.

The theatre retains Indhu Rubasingham as artistic director but has been renamed the Kiln Theatre, a move that has sparked protests in the area. A campaign called ‘It's our Tricycle, not your Kiln’ was launched – though it remains unclear who the ‘our’ and ‘your’ refer to in the slogan. The protesters object to the renaming on the grounds that the Tricycle theatre is a well-known name with a history that is important to the people of Kilburn.

The first production at the reopened theatre was the world premiere of Holy Sh!t by Alexis Zegerman. A new adaptation of Zadie Smith's White Teeth, itself set in Kilburn, is coming to the theatre in November with Rubasingham directing. Go to kilntheatre.com

The Kiln's renovated interior

Bush Theatre loses two directors

© Hugo Glendinning

Madani Younis

Madani Younis has announced that he is stepping down as artistic director and chief executive of the Bush Theatre to take up the position of creative director at the Southbank Centre in the new year. The Bush's associate director Omar Elerian is also set to leave following his production of Going Through in spring next year.

Regarding his departure, Younis says: ‘My time at the Bush Theatre is undoubtedly one of my proudest achievements to date. The Bush invested in a vision that celebrated not just the best of theatre but the best of our country's inherent culture. The result was a more reflective community of artists and a breadth of new audiences that represent the diversity of the city around us. None of what we've achieved would have happened without the deep, thoughtful commitment of so many. I want to thank the board, the staff team, our generous supporters and stakeholders who all invested in that vision and allowed us to create a depth of experience both on and off stage. I'll forever be in their debt. I'm also thrilled to have had the opportunity to have worked with executive director Lauren Clancy, someone whose values and vision has shaped and informed the vision of the Bush.’

Younis has been in the position since 2012 and his tenure saw the Bush experience radical growth. His time at the Bush was marked by a commitment to growing an audience – something he accomplished by tripling the theatre's capacity and producing culturally diverse theatre. In 2016, he oversaw the second phase of the theatre's £4.3m redevelopment which, along with increasing the theatre's capacity to 190 seats, added a second performance space, a rehearsal studio, a café bar, a terrace garden and a playtext library.

His last season saw the theatre exceed its box office and audience records thanks to productions such as Monica Dolan's The B*easts, which was nominated for an Olivier; a revival of Winsome Pinnock's Leave Taking; and Arinzé Kene's smash hit Misty, which transferred to the West End in September. Beyond London, the Bush has also seen wider acclaim with productions transferring to the USA and a 2017 production of NASSIM currently touring internationally. In September, Younis directed his final play at the Bush, An Adventure by Vinay Patel, which is described as the theatre's most ambitious show to date.

Lauren Clancy, the aforementioned executive director says: ‘I'm thrilled that Madani has such an exciting next step in his career as creative director of the Southbank Centre. He leaves an impressive and inspirational legacy that has shaped the Bush Theatre and those individuals that have been lucky enough to work alongside him. I look forward to building on the Bush's success as we write our next chapter.’

Applications for Younis's replacement closed on 30 September so an announcement regarding his successor is expected to be made soon. Elerian's position is being hired for in the new year, with applications being made through the theatre's website. bushtheatre.co.uk

Demand for drama fuels acting school growth

Jane Maudsley, founder of Little Voices

The drama and singing lesson school Little Voices has announced that an increasing demand for drama tuition is enabling their business to expand. It cites a ‘hunger from parents’ who hope to use drama lessons as a way to instil confidence into their children as the primary driving factor behind the continuing growth of its franchise network across England and Wales.

At the moment, there are 72 Little Voice centres which are operated by 25 individual franchisees. The company is expecting to have 60 franchises established by the end of 2020, with an eye to promoting the brand overseas. In September, it introduced two new franchises in Hampstead and Wiltshire.

The business was founded in 2007 by Jane Maudsley, a Lancashire-born professional opera singer, with a single site in Blackburn. It provides singing and drama lessons for those aged four to eighteen, with tuition being done on a group basis. Many of the franchise operators come from teaching backgrounds and students can gain LAMDA qualifications in introductory communication and musical theatre through the schools.

Maudsley, who is managing director of Little Voices, says: ‘As parents continue to increase the emphasis on developing confident personalities we are succeeding as a business by working with drama teachers to promote the confidence, inspiration and friendships that performing arts brings to young people.

‘Parents recognise that confidence is a key life skill that will help their children get ahead not only during their school years but also later in life. Our franchisees are usually people from the drama teaching profession who can see the business opportunity in providing something which is very much in demand.

‘We are on target to achieve our 2020 goal and we are already in discussions about bringing our ethos to key cities in the United States.’ littlevoices.org.uk

National Creative Learning Awards Launched

© Heather Magner/@nexpo1

Creative Learning Guild (CLG) has announced that nominations are open for its new National Creative Learning Awards. The awards are set to celebrate innovators, educators and practitioners who are bringing something special to creative learning.

The inaugural judging panel includes an Olivier award-winning theatre producer, a representative from the international Lego foundation, disability arts professional Ruth Gould, and the poet Ian McMillan, who says ‘I'm proud to be a judge for the Creative Learning Awards because in these turbulent times we need creative learning more than ever, and we need criteria by which to judge the value of the creative learning. As a judge, I'll be creative, and I know I'll learn a lot!’

There are 21 awards being given across a number of categories including formal education, the arts and the creative industries. Guild members are invited to nominate projects and practitioners that have inspired them over the last 12 months. It is possible to nominate yourself as well as others, with the process only requiring four simple questions to be answered.

The CLG's managing director, Gilly Bryerley, says: ‘These new awards are designed to shine a spotlight on the efforts and achievements of the unsung heroes fighting for creative learning. Given that the arts in schools are declining while, at the same time, the creative industries are the fastest-growing sector in the country, we need some dynamic and visible support for the people who keep creative learning on the agenda.’

The CLG is a Yorkshire-based charity that supports the creative learning movement from the grassroots throughout the UK, with the new awards building on its existing guild membership scheme.

Ruth Gamble, the organisation's head of programmes says: ‘The guild is a fellowship, a membership of passionate and likeminded people. By becoming a member and nominating their creative heroes, people and organisations are committing to support creative learning, and each other, in this fight for recognition and validation’.

Nominations opened on 27 September and will close at midnight on 14 December and can be made through the website. creativelearningguild.co.uk/national-awards