• Welcome to the National Theatre

    At its home on the South Bank of the Thames in London, the National Theatre performs over 20 different shows every year. Open 52 weeks of the year, 6 or 7 days a week, you can see up to 6 different shows in a week.

    NT Theatre Square in the afternoon

  • National Theatre Live

    The National broadcasts selected stage performances live to cinemas in the UK and around the world. Since 2008, audiences have seen performances of Phedre, with Helen Mirren, Danny Boyle's Frankenstein, and a range of shows from classics to new writing.

    National Theatre Live. Best of British Theatre broadcast to a cinema near you

  • Discover more

    Apart from its main productions, the National offers all kinds of other events, activities and background to open up the process of theatre-making: short early-evening Platform performances; work for children and education work; free exhibitions in the foyers; live music before performances; outdoor events; backstage tours; videos; and one of the world's best-stocked theatre bookshops.

    Projection on the Flytower

  • About the theatres

    The National has three permanent auditoriums - the large open-stage Olivier Theatre, the more conventional, proscenium-stage Lyttelton Theatre, and a small studio theatre, the Cottesloe Theatre - which seat nearly 2,500 people. We also transfer shows to the West End and Broadway and tour throughout the UK.

    National Theatre with river at night

  • The National Theatre illuminated at night, with Theatre Square

    About the National Theatre

    The National Theatre stages over 20 theatre productions a year.

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    About the National FAQs

    Find the answers to a range of frequently asked questions about the National Theatre

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    Behind the Scenes

    This section contains articles published in our programmes that looked at a backstage area, a person or an aspect of the National.

  • The National Theatre at night, illuminated, with the Thames river

    The history of the National Theatre

    The National's first performance - with Peter O'Toole as Hamlet - was given in 1963, under Laurence Olivier's Directorship.

  • NT Theatre Square in the afternoon

    Studio

    Since its foundation in 1984, the Studio has played a vital role in developing work for the National’s stages and also provides an environment in which writers, actors and practitioners of all kinds can explore, experiment and devise new work free from the pressure of public performance.

  • The National Theatre at night, illuminated, with the Thames river

    Jobs

    A listing of current vacancies at the National Theatre

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    NT Future

    We're proud of our building and proud of the work we bring to our audiences. But if that work is to keep developing, then our building has to develop too.

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    Annual Reports

    Download current and past National Theatre annual reports.

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    Step Change

    National Theatre & Royal Opera House’s career development programme for the arts.