National Theatre Connections


Connections is the Royal National Theatre in London's annual youth theatre festival.
It was founded in 1995 and sponsored by Royal Dutch Shell until 2007 when the Bank of America took over the sponsorship. The plays are also published by the National Theatre each year.

Scheme

The National Theatre annually commissions ten plays from established playwrights which are performed by youth theatre groups across the UK. Groups are invited to perform at Connections Festivals held at a professional theatre in their area. A random performance group from each play is then performed at the end of the Festival at the National Theatre.

Professional productions

Several of the specially commissioned Connection plays have been professionally produced at the National Theatre. In 1999 Sparkleshark was performed. In 2006 three were produced; Burn by Deborah Gearing, Chatroom by Enda Walsh and Citizenship by Mark Ravenhill were performed in 2006; the latter two were revived in 2007 when they also toured. In 2008 Baby Girl by Roy Williams, DNA by Dennis Kelly and The Miracle by Lin Coghlan also received professional productions in the Cottesloe.

Commissioned plays

2024

  • Back in the Day by Yasmeen Khan
  • Orchestra by Charlie Josephine
  • Kiss/Marry/Push Off Cliff by Josh Azouz
  • Shout by Alexis Zegerman
  • Age is Revolting by Abi Zakarian
  • The Periodicals by Siân Owen
  • Replica by Titas Halder
  • Dy Enw Marw by Elgan Rhys
  • The Sad Club by Luke Barnes and Adam Pleeth
  • Wind/Rush Generation by Mojisola Adebayo

2023

2022

  • Cable Street by Lisa Goldman
  • Chat Back by David Judge
  • Find a Partner! by Miriam Battye
  • Hunt by Fionnuala Kennedy
  • Like There's No Tomorrow, created by the Belgrade Young Company with Justine Themen, Claire Procter and Liz Mytton
  • The Ramayana Reset by Ayeesha Menon, with choreography by Hofesh Shechter, in association with Hofesh Shechter Company
  • Remote by Stef Smith
  • Superglue by Tim Crouch
  • Variations by Katie Hims
  • You don't need to make a Big Song and Dance out of it by Abbey Wright, Shireen Mula and Matt Regan, in association with Tackroom Theatre

2019

  • Ageless by Benjamin Kuffuor
  • Chaos by Laura Lomas
  • Class by Doc Brown & Lajuane Lincoln
  • Flesh by Rob Drummond
  • Salt by Dawn King
  • The Small Hours by Katherine Soper
  • Stuff by Tom Wells
  • terra/earth by Nell Leyshon, with Choreography by Anthony Missen
  • The Sad Club by Luke Barnes, with Music by Adam Pleeth
  • Variations by Katie Himms
Source -

2018

Source -

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2009

2008

DNA

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

  • After Juliet by Sharman Macdonald
  • Electric Halos by Helen Adams
  • Emperors and Clowns by Chris Barton
  • Happy Endings devised by Danny Parker and Nigel Williams
  • Human Puppets devised by Theatre Royal Bath Young People's Theatre company
  • Kids are from Mars devised by the London Bubble company
  • Lagna by Jez Simons
  • Les Juifs de Salonique...
  • A Peasant of El Salvador by Peter Gould, Stephen Stearns, adapted by Mick Fitzmaurice
  • Sunnyside by Neill Morton
  • Ticking by Mari Binnie
  • Time on Fire by Timothy Mason
  • Too Too Tight devised by the Chichester Festival Youth Theatre Street Art Company

1999

1997