The Stage 100: 21-40

21. Kevin Spacey (Old Vic Theatre)

Spacey bows out at the Old Vic this year after a hugely successful decade-long stint. His tenure has helped secure the future of this beloved theatre and it has been a joy to see him tread its boards. He hands over a company in fine fettle to his successor Matthew Warchus, following a 2014 season that featured an excellent revival of The Crucible with Richard Armitage and Kristin Scott Thomas in Electra, as well as Spacey’s own swansong as Clarence Darrow.

22. Matthew Byam Shaw, Nia Janis, Nick Salmon (Playful Productions)

As it approaches its fifth year, Playful Productions has become one of the leading commercial producers and general managers. Led by Salmon, Byam Shaw and Janis, it produced the West End stage adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall/Bring Up the Bodies.

The Audience with Kristin Scott Thomas, Damian Lewis in American Buffalo and No Man’s Land starring Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen are coming up.

23. Michael Harrison (producer)

As well as serving as managing director for Qdos Entertainment, where he oversees the company’s pantomime roster, Harrison is a prolific producer in his own right. In 2014 he co-produced The Bodyguard in the West End (with David Ian) and Barnum on tour (with Cameron Mackintosh). Still in his 30s, Harrison is the most successful of the new generation of commercial pro-ducers. This year is busy: The Bodyguard tours, as does Annie, he transfers Gypsy to the West End and there’s a stage adaptation of Mrs Henderson Presents planned.

24. Sam Mendes and Caro Newling (Neal Street Productions)

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory continues to pull in the crowds at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, where it is booking until October. Meanwhile, Shrek is touring the UK. Newling, who launched the company with Mendes and Pippa Harris, was also appointed president of the Society of London Theatre in June. In November, Neal Street Productions was put up for sale and is understood to be on the market for around £40 million.

25. Rufus Norris and Tessa Ross (National Theatre)

Expect Norris and Ross to rocket up The Stage 100 next year as they step fully into their roles at the UK’s top theatre. Nicholas Hytner and Nick Starr will be a tough act to follow, but Norris has been a popular appointment and Ross will bring experience from her days at Film Four, plus expertise that will be helpful with National Theatre Live. Norris’s Behind the Beautiful Forevers in the Olivier last year perhaps gave us a taste of things to come.

26= Laurie Sansom (National Theatre of Scotland)

The success of the ‘no’ campaign has meant we haven’t needed to consult our rule book over NTS’ inclusion in The Stage 100. Which is lucky, because the company has had a superb 2014, with Sansom making his mark as artistic director. The James Plays were the highlight, deservedly recognised at the London Evening Standard Theatre Awards, but they were not alone. The Great Yes, No, Don’t Know Five Minute Theatre Show was NTS’s response to the referendum, while Let the Right One In transferred to London and soon opens in New York.

26= John E McGrath (National Theatre Wales)

Since launching in 2010, National Theatre Wales has established itself as one of the UK’s most exciting producers, focusing on creating work – for the most part – outside traditional theatre spaces. Highlights of its 2014 season included Mametz, a large-scale, site-specific production that tried to give audiences a glimpse into the experience of serving in the trenches of the Somme. Jon Bausor’s design for the production was recognised at the UK Theatre Awards.

28. Michael Grandage and James Bierman (Michael Grandage Company)

Producer of the year at The Stage Awards 2014, the Michael Grandage Company’s inaugural West End season ended with Jude Law as Henry V. Since then, it has produced Dawn French on tour, while Grandage has also made his first steps into feature films with Genius. Grandage and Bierman slip down the list a little this year due to their focus shifting towards film, but it is hoped we’ll see more of them in theatre in 2015.

29. Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg (lyricist/composer)

With the return of Miss Saigon to the West End, this musical writing partnership, who also wrote Les Miserables, are behind two of the West End’s biggest musical hits. After Andrew Lloyd Webber, they are probably the most commercially successful creators of West End musicals. There are rumours that Martin Guerre might also be making a return later this year.

30. James Grieve and George Perrin (Paines Plough)

Under Grieve and Perrin’s leadership, Paines Plough (the “UK’s national theatre of new plays”, as it calls itself) goes from strength to strength. The company turned 40 last year, celebrating with the launch of the Roundabout space and its biggest programme of work ever, with 12 productions touring to more than 50 locations around the UK. The Roundabout – which can be powered from a single power outlet – has been the year’s highlight, allowing Paines Plough to take its work anywhere.

31. David Babani (Menier Chocolate Factory)

Celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2014, the Menier Chocolate Factory in Southwark has firmly established itself as one of London’s major producing houses. It has also built a reputation as something of an expert at revivals of Stephen Sondheim’s musicals. Its latest, Assassins, was the theatre’s best show of the year – and indeed one of the best musicals of 2014. It also secured yet another West End transfer, with Forbidden Broadway moving to the Vaudeville.

32. Phil McIntyre (producer)

We Will Rock You may have waved goodbye to its long-term home at the Dominion after a staggering 12-year run, but The Commitments appears to be proving a hit at the Palace Theatre, where it is booking until September and doing decent business. McIntyre is the savvy producer behind both shows and also a major promoter on the comedy circuit, where his successes have included the recent Monty Python reunion.

33. Alistair Spalding (Sadler’s Wells)

The UK’s premier dance venue goes from strength to strength under Spalding’s artistic directorship. The Tempest Replica, choreographed by Crystal Pite, and Russell Maliphant joining Sylvie Guillem on stage for Push were among the highlights. There are exciting times ahead too, with English National Ballet announced as a new associate company and plans for a fourth space in 2020 as part of a new cultural quarter beside the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford, east London.

34. Edward Hall and Greg Ripley-Duggan (Hampstead Theatre)

Our London theatre of the year in 2014, Hampstead has continued to impress. It has been completely transformed from a venue that was seriously struggling only a few years ago. Kinks musical Sunny Afternoon has transferred into town and appears to be doing well at the Harold Pinter Theatre. Di and Viv and Rose is set to transfer to the Vaudeville this month.

35. Ivo van Hove (director)

Belgian director Van Hove is artistic director of Toneelgroep Amsterdam, but has built a reputation in the UK with his shows at the Barbican – Roman Tragedies and the Antonioni Project. However, it was in 2014 that he really broke through into the British mainstream with his staging of A View from the Bridge at the Young Vic. Undoubtedly one of the highlights of the year, it has secured a transfer into the commercial West End. One of the most exciting directors in world theatre.

36. Katie Mitchell (director)

It’s been a mixed bag this year for Mitchell, one of the UK’s foremost directors, although her work is sometimes more appreciated outside her home country. Her productions in 2014 ranged from a purpose-written opera for children, The Way Back Home, to an intense and clear revival of The Cherry Orchard, to 2071, a sort of science presentation about global warming at the Royal Court. As usual, her work divided critics, but it certainly made an impact.

37. Julian Bird (Society of London Theatre/UK Theatre)

As chief executive of both the Society of London Theatre and UK Theatre, Bird is responsible for overseeing the Oliviers and the UK Theatre Awards. While the latter proved to be bigger than ever, this year held at London’s Guildhall, Bird has also secured the Oliviers a partnership with commercial radio station Magic and ITV daytime show This Morning, which will undoubtedly propel the season’s biggest awards ceremony even further into public consciousness.

38. Simon Russell Beale (actor)

Russell Beale’s great performances on the Olivier
stage have been a defining feature of Nicholas Hytner’s regime at the National. Last year was no different,
with Russell Beale taking on a mountain of a role – King Lear, directed by Hytner. An actor whose career has been almost exclusively defined through his work in the theatre, it will be interesting to see whether his talents will be as well used under the National’s new leadership.

39. Kristin Scott Thomas (actor)

In contrast to Russell Beale, Scott Thomas is a performer who made her reputation through her screen work before winning plaudits on stage. She has been nominated for Olivier Awards four times, winning once for her performance in The Seagull, and one wouldn’t bet against her being in with a shot again this year after her performance in Electra at the Old Vic. Coming up in 2015, she’ll be donning crown and sceptre to become the Queen in The Audience (pictured).

40. Madani Younis (Bush Theatre)

Younis was a surprise appointment when he succeeded Josie Rourke at the Bush Theatre in 2011 and it has taken him a little time to fully implement his own vision at the west London venue, but now he seems to have found an excellent balance between serving a local audience and maintaining the theatre’s national profile. Highlights from 2014 included Perseverance Drive, Albion and Visitors, which transferred from the Arcola.

 

 

The Stage 100: 1-5
The Stage 100: 6-10
The Stage 100: 11-20
The Stage 100: 21-40
The Stage 100: 41-60
The Stage 100: 61-80
The Stage 100: 81-100