Five plays, chosen from nearly 4,000 scripts submitted this year, will get their first stagings at the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs as part of the Royal Court’s 70th anniversary season.
The Royal Court Theatre has announced the full line-up for its third Open Submissions Festival, running from Monday 14 to Friday 18 September 2026 at the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs, as part of the theatre’s landmark 70th anniversary season. Presented in partnership with production company Character 7, the makers of The Night Manager, the festival showcases five plays selected from the nearly 4,000 scripts the Royal Court receives each year through its year-round Open Submissions portal, open to any playwright writing in English worldwide.
The line-up comprises Aunties in the USSR by Rebecca Banatvala, directed by Mayaan Haputantri (Monday 14 September); The Nine of Swords by Eoghan Quinn, directed by Aaliyah McKay (Tuesday 15 September); The Honour Table by Selorm Adonu, directed by Aneesha Srinivasan (Wednesday 16 September); My Son, the Guillotine by Sam Ward, directed by Danielle Kassaraté (Thursday 17 September); and Theertham by Nayantara Nayar, directed by Nico Rao Pimparé (Friday 18 September). Each performance begins at 7.45pm.
The festival has already proved a genuine launchpad for new writing. Two plays from its first edition in 2025 have since gone on to full productions as part of the Royal Court’s 70th anniversary season: Jack Nicholls’ The Shitheads, which earned an Olivier nomination, and Rhys Warrington’s Monument, opening in December. Another, Noga Flaishon’s Memoriam, transfers to Southwark Playhouse Borough later this year.
Gillian Greer, the Royal Court’s Associate Playwright and Senior Dramaturg, said the festival “continues to go from strength to strength,” adding: “This is the first time we’ve hosted two festivals in one year, and the discovery of new voices shows no signs of slowing down. Dark, difficult, political, theatrical and funny — this festival’s programme continues to prove just how much astonishing new writing for the stage is out there, just waiting to be given a platform.” Character 7’s Executive Chairman Stephen Garrett called the selected plays “a potent and timely reminder about why we all need to fight to ensure that new voices can find a platform,” adding that partnering with the Royal Court on “this oh-so noble and glorious cause” was “as much a pleasure as it is an honour.”
Tickets cost £8.50 and go on sale to the public at midday today via the Royal Court website and box office.
Aunties in the USSR by Rebecca Banatvala — Monday 14 September
It’s 1985, and Ratti and her best friend Bachi, proud members of the Zoroastrian Ladies Committee for Socialist Justice, travel from Leytonstone to the USSR to scatter Ratti’s late husband’s ashes in Red Square. When their pilgrimage goes spectacularly off course, the two aunties find themselves tangled up with caviar smugglers, dancing bears and the KGB, in a joyful new comedy.
The Nine of Swords by Eoghan Quinn — Tuesday 15 September
A solar eclipse descends over Dublin, but it’s just another day at the tattoo studio for artists Nika and Sean, and receptionist Clo. As the light fades, the three co-workers confront the lives they’ve built and the futures ahead of them, in a darkly comic, unsettling new play.
The Honour Table by Selorm Adonu — Wednesday 16 September
Three years after their father’s death, the Frimpong siblings gather for their annual memorial dinner. This year, Godwin arrives with an offer that will divide the family but secure the future of The Root, the organisation their father founded, an MBE, and a decision the family must make together about whether the price is worth paying.
My Son, the Guillotine by Sam Ward — Thursday 17 September
Ben hasn’t been home in three years. When he arrives unannounced at his politician mother’s door late one night, she wants to know why — and by morning, it’s clear he isn’t there for a friendly visit. A gripping new play about history, disillusionment and what it takes to really change the world.
Theertham by Nayantara Nayar — Friday 18 September
As drought tightens its grip on a community, a diviner discovers an extraordinary source of water beneath a widow’s garden. But as people exploit it for profit, ghosts of the past begin to rise to the surface, in a story moving between two generations of women.
Plan your visit
- Theatre: Jerwood Theatre Upstairs, Royal Court Theatre, Sloane Square, London SW1W 8AS
- Dates: 14 – 18 September 2026, one play per night, 7.45pm
- Tickets: £8.50 (20% off for Writers’ Card members; £1.50 per ticket discount for multiple performances)
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