Strong Welsh connections for Royal Shakespeare Company’s new artistic directors

The Royal Shakespeare Company will soon have strong Welsh connections, with two new co-artistic directors, who will take up their posts next June.

Daniel Evans, from the Rhondda Valley, is currently artistic director of Chichester Festival Theatre, while Tamara Harvey is artistic director at Theatr Clwyd. 

Daniel and Tamara are regular collaborators and applied together for the position. 

“The Board is delighted to appoint Daniel and Tamara as Co-Artistic Directors from an exceptionally strong field of candidates,” Chair of the RSC Board Shriti Vadera said.  

“They bring a brilliant track record of artistic achievement with a strong commitment to education, communities and championing diverse talent and voices, alongside a proven strategic ability to lead major companies. 

“Their partnership heralds an exciting vision for the future of the RSC to attract world-class artistic talent, captivate today’s audiences with Shakespeare, classics and new work, and increase radically the reach and impact of our pioneering learning, partnerships and digital work.”  

Pontypridd

Former Ysgol Gyfun Rhydfelen, Pontypridd pupil Daniel said: “I was fortunate to see so many inspiring performances at Stratford during my teenage years; and later celebrated my 21st birthday there during my first professional job post-drama school. So, to be returning to the RSC as its Co-Artistic Director is immensely meaningful to me. 

“To do so alongside Tamara is a joy and a privilege. We share deep-rooted values and an ambitious vision for the Company, and we’re both looking forward to working with Catherine [RSC Executive Director] and the team to begin this new, exciting chapter in the RSC’s story.”

Tamara said: “Being taken to Stratford to see Murder in the Cathedral at the Swan when I was 15 was one of the most vivid moments of my childhood. A sense of awe, but even then, a desire to get in there and start making plays: two feelings I continue to hold today.  

“Stepping into this job is both the most exciting and the most daunting thing I’ve ever done. The great joy of working in partnership with Daniel, an artist I admire beyond measure, is that we share both that excitement and that awe at becoming the next custodians of this amazing company. 

“We bring a shared belief in all that the RSC can be – a home for radical, relevant theatre made by artists from across the UK and the wider world.  A global community inspired by Shakespeare, bringing together myriad voices to tell the stories of our time – and of all time.

Excited

Executive Director Catherine Mallyon said: “I am excited to start a new leadership relationship with Daniel and Tamara who have a profound understanding of the RSC as a theatre and learning charity, combined with the high levels of the skill, imagination, talent and commitment required to make captivating theatre, unlock potential and inspire change.” 

The Royal Shakespeare Company is a theatre and learning charity that creates world-class theatre, made in Stratford-upon-Avon and shared around the world, performing plays by Shakespeare and his contemporaries, as well as commissioning an exceptionally wide range of original work from contemporary writers.