Royal Shakespeare Company

New shows for 2026 💫 🌳 As You Like It, with Jonathan Groff 🩸 Julius Caesar, with Harriet Walter 🏠 Middlemarch Parts 1 and 2 ⚔️ The Three Musketeers From sweet-natured romance to anarchic adventures, these classic stories and universal struggles come to our stages this autumn, brought to life by some of the most exciting artists today Public Booking opens 18 March 🎟️ For Priority Booking, become a Member now – link in bio #RoyalShakespeareCompany #Shakespeare #WilliamShakespeare #StratfordUponAvon

'We are such stuff as dreams are made on' ✨ Your first look at Kenneth Branagh as Prospero in The Tempest, directed by Richard Eyre, as he returns to the Royal Shakespeare Stage for the first time in over 30 years 📸 Kenneth Branagh as Prospero in The Tempest. Photo by Johan Persson #RoyalShakespeareCompany #Shakespeare #StratfordUponAvon

Joy, magic, power, and community… Hear what our audiences are saying #theboywhoharnessedthewind #newmusical #sohoplace 📹: @adamnightingalefilms 🎙️: @toomannyinstas @thrillstory @basmakhalifa @kikeaj_ @zackubi @missfraser_x @weareparable @ysheeblack

This time next month, Kiln will be transformed into ALMA, a gentlemen's club in 1950s Trinidad. Power, passion and danger comes to Kiln with Driftwood, playing until 4 July. You can currently catch it at the RSC's The Other Place, where it's running until 30 May. 🎟️ Tickets available via the link in our bio. Photos by Marc Brenner. #KilnTheatre #Driftwood

🌍 'O brave new world, That has such people in't.' – Miranda, The Tempest The Tempest, directed by Richard Eyre, storms into the Royal Shakespeare Theatre this evening for its first performance 🌪️ #RoyalShakespeareCompany #WilliamShakespeare #StratfordUponAvon

We are incredibly sad to hear that RSC Honorary Associate Artist Michael Pennington passed away at the age of 82 yesterday. A Shakespearean to his very bones, Michael’s long and distinguished career with the RSC spanned an astonishing fifty years, having first joined the company after graduating from Cambridge University in John Barton’s epic 1964/5 ‘Wars of The Roses’ cycle. Perhaps best known for his unforgettable turn as Hamlet in 1980 and, over 20 years later, his stirring performance in the title role of Timon of Athens in 2003, Michael’s final appearance with the company came in 2012, playing John of Gaunt alongside David Tennant in Gregory Doran’s critically-celebrated staging of Richard II; a full circle moment and a fitting end to a truly historic career. Our thoughts go out to all those who knew and loved him. 📸 Michael Pennington as Hamlet, 1980. Photo by Reg Wilson © RSC 📸 Ian McKellen as Romeo and Michael Pennington as Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet, 1976. Photo by Reg Wilson © RSC 📸 Michael Pennington as Timon in Timon of Athens, 1999. Photo by Donald Cooper © RSC 📸 Sean Chapman as Earl of Northumberland, Michael Pennington as John of Gaunt, and Oliver Ford Davies as Duke of York in Richard II, 2013. Photo by Kwame Lestrade © RSC #RoyalShakespeareCompany

Happy 40th anniversary to the Swan Theatre 🎉 The Two Noble Kinsmen and The Rover launched the Swan theatre’s first season in 1986, along with The Fair Maid of the West and Every Man in His Humour. The season included performances by Simon Russell Beale, Jeremy Irons, Hugh Quarshie, Imelda Staunton, Nathanial Parker, David Troughton, Joseph Mydell and Sinead Cusack. Since then, this intimate performance space has provided the backdrop for many notable productions of work by Shakespeare and his contemporaries, as well as new work by today’s writers. As the Swan celebrates 40 years, we’re looking back at some of its most memorable moments. 📸 Pete Postlethwaite as Roughman, Sean Bean as Spencer and Imelda Staunton as Bess Bridges in The Fair Maid of the West, by Thomas Heywood, 1986. Photo by Joe Cocks Studio Collection © Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. 📸 Hugh Quarshie as Arcite and Gerard Murphy as Palamon in The Two Noble Kinsmen, by William Shakespeare and John Fletcher, 1986. Photo by Joe Cocks Studio Collection © Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. 📸 Ralph Fiennes as Troilus in Troilus and Cressida, by William Shakespeare, 1990. Photo by Joe Cocks Studio Collection © Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. 📸 Harriet Walter as Lady Macbeth and Antony Sher as Macbeth in Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, 1999. Photo by Jonathan Dockar-Drysdale © RSC. 📸 Judi Dench as Countess of Rossillion in All’s Well That Ends Well, by William Shakespeare, 2003. Photo by Manuel Harlan © RSC. 📸 The company of The Rover, by Aphra Behn, 2016. Photo by Ellie Kurttz © RSC. 📸 The company of The Duchess of Malfi, by John Webster, 2018. Photo by Helen Maybanks © RSC. 📸 Togo Igawa as Ohki and Andrea Gatchalian as Kiribati in Kyoto, by Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson, 2024. Photo by Manuel Harlan © RSC. 📸 Rose Leslie as Constance Middleton in The Constant Wife, by Laura Wade, based on the play by W Somerset Maugham, 2025. Design by Anna Fleischle and Cat Fuller, and Lighting by Ryan Day. Photo by Johan Persson. #RoyalShakespeareCompany

Adjoa Andoh shares her favourite line in Shakespeare 💬❤️ ‘But whate’er I be, nor I nor any man that but man is with nothing shall be pleased till he be eased with being nothing.’ – Richard II As one of our Shakespeare Curriculum Ambassadors, @adjoa.andoh is helping us inspire new generations of students. With on‑demand productions and interactive playtexts, the Shakespeare Curriculum brings the stories, characters and language to life so students don’t just study Shakespeare, they experience it. 📚 Discover our new learning platform via the link in our bio #RoyalShakespeareCompany #WilliamShakespeare

‘People are going to fall in love’ ❤️ Driftwood’s @martinsimhangbe , @ellenthomasuk and @catherinejoywhite share some gems about their characters – Diamond, Pearl, Ruby 💎 ‘A vivid journey to jazzy Trinidad’ (The Times), Driftwood by @martina_ml_laird and directed by Justin Audibert is now playing in The Other Place until 30 May, before transferring to London’s @kilntheatre from 3 June #RoyalShakespeareCompany #StratfordUponAvon

Sinister vegetables, absurd spectacle and Brecht’s razor-sharp satire 🥕🥦🌽 We sat down with @themarkgatiss to hear about his journey to playing the Arturo Ui – from seeing the play as a child to getting into character now Our ★★★★★ (Guardian) production of The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui – by Bertolt Brecht, translated by @steshark and directed by @seanlinnen – is now playing in the Swan Theatre #RoyalShakespeareCompany #StratfordUponAvon

'Lord, we know what we are, but know not what we may be.' 🦢 Two versions of this evening gown were made for Rebecca Saire’s Ophelia in our 1989 production of Hamlet. One costume was kept pristine, while the second dress was dirtied for Ophelia's final, tragic scenes. 🔍 You can see this costume in our free and newly curated The Play's The Thing exhibition, open daily from 12noon. 📸 Rebecca Saire as Ophelia in Hamlet, 1989. Directed by Ron Daniels, designed by Antony McDonald. Photo by Joe Cocks Studio Collection © Shakespeare Birthplace Trust 📸 Dress worn by Rebecca Saire as Ophelia in Hamlet, 1989. Photo by Gina Print. 📸 Mark Rylance as Hamlet and Rebecca Saire as Ophelia in Hamlet, 1989. Directed by Ron Daniels, designed by Antony McDonald. Photo by Joe Cocks Studio Collection © Shakespeare Birthplace Trust #RoyalShakespeareCompany #WilliamShakespeare #StratfordUponAvon

Welcome to Trinidad 🌴☀️ Driftwood, a new play by @martina_ml_laird and directed by Justin Audibert, is now playing in The Other Place 🎟️ Don't miss it – Driftwood plays in Stratford-upon-Avon until 30 May, before transferring to London's @kilntheatre from 3 June Cast: @shanedavidjoseph , Ziggy Heath, @martinsimhangbe , Roger Ringrose, @ellenthomasuk and @catherinejoywhite Creatives: Director: Justin Audibert Set and Costume Designer: Sadeysa Greenaway-Bailey Lighting Designer: Simon Spencer Composer: @christellalitras Sound Designer: @audiocartelsound Movement Director: @kloedean Fight and Intimacy Director: @bethan_fights Dramaturg: Sebastian Born Casting Director: Matthew Dewsbury CDG Voice and Dialect: @aundreafudge Associate Set Designer: @delevans_ Associate Costume Designer: @zoethomaswebb Assistant Director: @sapphirejoy_ 📸 Martins Imhangbe as Diamond and Ellen Thomas as Pearl in Driftwood 📸 Cat White as Ruby in Driftwood 📸 Ziggy Heath as Tom in Driftwood 📸 Roger Ringrose as Mansion in Driftwood 📸 Shane David-Joseph as Seldom, Ellen Thomas as Pearl and Cat White as Ruby in Driftwood 📸 The company in Driftwood 📸 Martins Imhangbe as Diamond in Driftwood 📸 Ellen Thomas as Pearl in Driftwood Photos by Marc Brenner #RoyalShakespeareCompany #StratfordUponAvon