Venue: The Yard Theatre
Town: London, GB

The Yard Theatre, opened in 2011, is a theatre in a converted warehouse in Hackney Wick in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It programmes theatre and performance, nightlife, and works with young people and its local community. The Yard was founded by Artistic Director Jay Miller in 2011, with support from Tarek Iskander, Sasha Milavic Davies and Alex Rennie. They worked with architectural firm Practice Architecture to convert a disused warehouse into a theatre and bar. Originally intended to have a 3-month life-span, The Yard became an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation in 2017. In 2016 it took over management of Hackney Wick community centre Hub67, and in 2019 took on The Hall in East Village, London Borough of Newham. In 2024, it was awarded a £700,000 from Arts Council England's Capital Investment Programme, part of a total estimated £6.5 million to build a new permanent venue. Following its production of The Glass Menagerie in 2025, the theatre closed its doors to begin an ambitious redevelopment: to be rebuilt as a more permanent, purpose-built venue, doubling in size to expand what the theatre is able to offer to artists and audiences, designed by Takero Shimazaki Architects. The Yard was awarded the final Peter Brook Empty Space Award in 2013 and 2017, as well as the Dan Crawford Innovation Award in 2012. In 2025, The Yard was rewarded the Peter Brook Empty Space Award. In 2026, The Yard won their first Olivier Award for Best New Production in Affiliate Theatre for The Glass Menagerie. Shows that originated at The Yard include Michaela Coel’s Chewing Gum Dreams, which later transferred to the National Theatre and became the hit BBC show Chewing Gum. Its successful nightlife programme has been featured in national press, and in the New York Times. Theatre productions include a gender-swapped production of Arthur Miller's The Crucible, the premiere of Pulitzer Award-winning writer Clare Barron’s Dirty Crusty, and an entirely digital day of