The National Theatre is set to celebrate 50 years at its South Bank home with a free outdoor installation sharing 50 stories from across its history.
National Theatre to mark 50 years on the South Bank
Stories Start Here: 50 Stories for 50 Years will open on the Queen’s Walk in October 2026, with a wooden structure inspired by the amphitheatre seating of the Olivier Theatre and positioned to face the building itself.
Visitors will be able to sit, listen and explore memories, anecdotes and reflections from actors, writers, directors, designers, past and present staff, and audiences.
A landmark anniversary
A story station inside the theatre will print the stories on eco-friendly paper for visitors to take away, while recordings will also be available worldwide through the Bloomberg Connects app.
The project comes as the South Bank landmark reflects on five decades in its purpose-built home, after the company spent 13 years based at the Old Vic before moving into the new theatre, which was constructed between 1969 and 1976.
The National Theatre is one of London’s most recognisable cultural buildings
When it first opened, the Grade II listed building divided opinion, but it is now widely regarded as one of the capital’s defining examples of brutalist architecture. Its textured concrete, riverside terraces and three auditoriums have helped make it one of London’s most recognisable cultural buildings.
Indhu Rubasingham, director and co-chief executive, said the theatre had been “a place where artists, audiences and communities have come together to share stories”.
Alongside the installation, the National Theatre is also launching an apprenticeship named after its architect, Sir Denys Lasdun. The scheme will offer training in the mechanical and electrical engineering skills needed to maintain the building.
The programme will run through the NT Skills Centre, which the theatre says trains thousands of people across the UK each year in partnership with Bank of America.
Executive director and co-chief executive Kate Varah said the theatre, like many major cultural buildings across the UK, faces significant capital and modernisation needs.
The anniversary project has been created by the design collective la cuarta piel and co-curated by the Financial Times theatre critic Sarah Hemming.
It is supported by Arup and Sir Robert McAlpine, both of which worked on the National Theatre’s original construction.
