National Theatre's Charlotte Bevan to receive special award for services to theatre casting

Charlotte Bevan, head of the National Theatre’s Creative Diversity Project, is to receive a special award for outstanding contribution to casting.

She will be presented with the accolade at the inaugural Casting Director’s Guild Awards, which take place in London on February 12.

Described in a feature in The Stage by Lyn Gardner as “the most important person at the National Theatre you’ve never heard of”, Bevan is being recognised for her efforts to advance ethnic and gender diversity within casting.

Bevan set up and lead the casting department at Shakespeare’s Globe, before joining the National Theatre’s casting department in 2012.

In 2016, Bevan established the Creative Diversity Project at the National, which seeks to address gender equality, ethnicity, disability and LGBTQ+ representation among actors, directors, writers and other creatives at the organisation.

As part of her work at the National, Bevan set up ProFile, a video database for D/deaf and disabled actors in partnership with Spotlight, which aims to increase the representation of D/deaf and disabled performers in the industry.

Over her 10-year career in casting, Bevan has cast more than 100 shows, including Henry IV and V, Richard III and Twelfth Night at Shakespeare’s Globe, in the West End and on Broadway, and Angels in America at the National Theatre and on Broadway.

A spokeswoman for the CDG said: “Charlotte’s tireless determination to advance inclusivity and representation on all our stages, to provoke as well as enable theatremakers to effect change, has had a remarkable influence on our industry. It is for this reason that we are proud to award Charlotte Bevan the CDG award for outstanding contribution to casting.”

Meet Charlotte Bevan, the most important person at the National Theatre you’ve never heard of