Female director makes woke demand to ban all plays by white male writers for a year as ‘big idea’ to shape the future of theatre in Britain

By GRANT TUCKER ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Published: 23:35 BST, 24 April 2025 | Updated: 23:48 BST, 24 April 2025

It’s supposed to be a ‘big idea’ to shape the future of theatre in Britain.

But it may not go down so well with most of those who keep the art form afloat by buying tickets to see plays of their choice.

A director has proposed a year-long ban on staging the works of white male writers.

Such a ban would include everyone from Marlowe and Shakespeare to Ibsen and Pinter.

Katie Gilchrist, an American, is behind the controversial proposal which she will pitch at a theatre symposium next week.

It is one of six final suggestions which will be put to a vote of top theatre executives on April 30 at the Soho Place theatre in the West End.

Ms Gilchrist will be attending in person to put forward the measure, which is likely to be unpopular with many ordinary theatregoers and last night writer Patrick Kidd said: ‘Well, it is an original idea, if a batty, sexist and divisive one. Art should offer opportunities without banning a group of writers.

American director, Katie Gilchrist, (pictured) has proposed a year-long ban on staging the works of white male writers 

Such a ban would include everyone from Christopher Marlowe (left) and William Shakespeare (right) to Ibsen and Pinter

‘Perhaps she would also like to exclude white men from theatre audiences? I can’t see executives going for this.’

Ms Gilchrist, who has directed regional iterations of Mamma Mia!, Steel Magnolias and Dial M For Murder, told the Mail: ‘This idea is an invitation for us to critically examine whose voices dominate our stages and what it could mean to shift that balance… even for the historical equivalent of an exhale.’ The aim of the competition at The Future of Theatre conference, organised by The Stage

newspaper, is to encourage ‘big ideas to shape the future of theatre for the better’ and with speakers ‘striving to improve and innovate the theatre industry’.

Others which have made the final six include actor and director Rob Myles, who will suggest the ‘devolution’ of the National Theatre while another American, Catherine Russell, the general manager of New York’s Theater Center, will propose the verbatim translation of live theatre into more than 60 different languages using AI.

Last year, former prime minister Rishi Sunak criticised West End theatres that hold ‘Black Out’ nights, arguing that the idea of black-only audiences for some nights of a theatrical production is ‘wrong and divisive’.

:
Female director makes woke demand to ban all plays by white male writers for a year as ‘big idea’ to shape the future of theatre in Britain

***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk