Share this article

The Stage industry newspaper has announced its annual Top 100 list of the most powerful people in UK theatre.

The top spot has gone to the leaders of Britain’s National Theatre, with Rufus Norris, the National’s outgoing artistic director, Kate Varah, it’s Executive Director who will become Co-CEO when new leader Indhu Rubasingham takes over this year, Clint Dyer, Deputy Artistic Director of the National Theatre, and Kash Bennett, Managing Director and the Producer of National Theatre Productions, all honoured.

The National’s win follows a incredible year for the theatre, with multiple productions gaining critical acclaim, attracting large audiences, and a number of shows transferring into the West End.

That includes a revival of Lucy Prebble’s The Effect starring Paapa Essiedu and Taylor Russell, which is heading to The Shed in New York in March 2024; a musical adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The Witches, which scored great reviews from the critics, and has West End transfer buzz; a big critical win for current Dorfman Theatre play Infinite Life; and a number of much-talked about productions including Simon Stone’s Phaedra starring Janet McTeer, and current show The House of Bernarda Alba starring Harriet Walter.

National Theatre shows currently playing in the West End include James Graham’s new play Dear England staring Joseph Fiennes, running at the Prince Edward Theatre until 13 January 204; Jack Thorne’s The Motive and the Cue at the Noel Coward starring Mark Gatiss, Johnny Flynn and Tuppence Middleton, playing to 23 March 2024; and coming up, new British musical Standing at the Sky’s Edge, which premiered at Sheffield Theatres and had a successful run at the National, and is heading to the Gillian Lynne Theatre from 8 February to 3 August 2024.

Other 2023 successes included the return of Sam Mendes’ production of The Lehamn Brothers to the West End, a transfer for their production of Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, a successful tour of Neil Gaiman’s The Ocean at the End of the Lane, and co-productions of A Strange Loop at the Barbican Theatre and Dr Semmelweis starring Sir Mark Rylance.

The National Theatre last ranked Number One in The Stage 100 a decade ago in 2013. Despite a number of ongoing challenges, the National Theatre looks in good shape for the future, with December’s announcement that Indhu Rubasingham is to become the National’s new artistic director and Co-CEO widely heralded as positive by the theatre industry.

Other Top 10 spots in The Stage 100 go to theatre owner and producer Nica Burns, CEO of West End theatre owners Nimax Theatres and new West End venue @sohoplace (The Little Big Things, For Black Boys Who Considered Suicide When The Hue Gets Too Heavy) at Number Two; the key management team at giant West End, UK and US theatre owners ATG and their production outfit ATG productions – Ted Stimpson, who was parachuted into ATG this year as the new CEO, Michael Lynas, Group Content & Creative Director, and Adam Speers (Sunset Boulevard, Cabaret, A Streetcar Named Desire), head of their Production outfit, at Number Three; impresario Cameron Mackintosh (Les Miserables, Hamilton, Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends), head of West End theatre owners Delfont Mackintosh, international theatre production group Cameron Mackintosh Ltd and the music publishing and rights business Music Theatre International, at Number Four; and composer, producer and theatre owner Andrew Lloyd Webber (The Phantom of the Opera, Sunset Boulevard, Starlight Express, Cats) and his Really Useful Group theatre production business and LW Theatres West End theatre group, at Number Five.

The Six to Ten spots are taken up with West End and UK producer Michael Harrison, who runs the successful Michael Harrison Ltd production company (Peter Pan at the London Palladium, Hello, Dolly!, The Wizard of Oz), new outfit Lloyd Webber Harrison Musicals with Andrew Lloyd Webber (Starlight Express, Sunset Boulevard), and Crossroads Live pantomimes producer, at Number Six; Sonia Friedman, head of Sonia Friedman Productions, co-owned by ATG, and one of the West End’s – and now Broadway’s – leading producers, with London shows including Stranger Things: The First Shadow, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, The Book of Mormon, upcoming The Hills of California, FANGIRLS and many more, and on Broadway the mega-hit Sondheim revival of Merrily We Roll Along, at Number Seven; theatre owners and producers Howard Panter and Rosemary Squire of Trafalgar Entertainment and Trafalgar Theatres, at Number Eight; playwright James Graham (Dear England, Boys from the Blackstuff, Punch, Tammy Faye, Ink, Quiz, Sherwood), at Number Nine; and theatre director Jamie Lloyd (A Doll’s House, The Effect, Sunset Boulevard) and his The Jamie Lloyd Company, co-owned by ATG, at Number Ten.

The list is compiled by inviting 50 leading figures from the performing arts industry in the UK to anonymously submit the five people they would place from number one to five in the list, plus one other name they believed should feature and why; then senior editorial contributors to The Stage submit their suggestions for the final list; and in a final stage, a judging panel comprising of The Stage’s editor Alistair Smith, deputy editor Matthew Hemley, associate editor Lyn Gardner, features editor Georgia Snow, reviews editor Sam Marlowe and columnist David Benedict consider all the names submitted, add in their own, and decide on the final list.

Check out the wider list, including London and regional theatres, actors, rising stars and more, in the link below.

Links:
The Stage 100 for 2024
Sign-up for news and booking alerts about these shows and more:
Main photo: The Stage 100

Related News

See all

Latest News

See all