Speaking about her appointment
Indhu Rubasingham said,
“It’s a huge honour to be appointed Director of the National Theatre, this is the best job in the world. The National Theatre has played an important part in my life - from tentative steps as a teenage theatre-goer, to later as a theatre-maker, and to have the opportunity to play a role in its history is an incredible privilege and responsibility. Theatre has a transformative power – the ability to bring people together through shared experiences and storytelling, and nowhere more so than the National. I’ve been fortunate to have directed on the National Theatre’s stages and to have witnessed firsthand the commitment, collaboration, brilliance and pride of those who bring the magic to the building, both on stage and off. There’s nowhere like it, and it will be a joy to be a part of this iconic building’s next chapter, leading the company alongside Kate. I am thrilled to be following in the footsteps of Rufus, and I look forward to working closely with him from next year as
I plan my first season”
Sir Damon Buffini, Chair of the National Theatre Board said,
‘The Board are thrilled to appoint Indhu as the National Theatre’s next Director and Joint Chief Executive. Having run Kiln Theatre for over a decade Indhu has a proven record of strong leadership and artistic success, alongside a commitment to bringing theatre to diverse audiences and broadening access to creative education. Throughout the recruitment process Indhu demonstrated to the panel her clear vision for the National Theatre’s next chapter, displaying her passion and commitment to bring the world to the National Theatre and to take the National Theatre to the world.
Executive Director Kate Varah said,
‘I am thrilled that Indhu will be the National Theatre’s next Director, someone I deeply admire as an artiste and as a leader. Importantly, I believe we share the same values and aspirations for this incomparable theatre. I look forward to starting a new chapter leading together, working with the best artistes and colleagues to make theatre that entertains and inspires audiences across the world.’
Director and Chief Executive Rufus Norris said,
‘Indhu is an exceptional artiste who I respect and admire hugely, and I am so pleased that she will become the next Director when I step down in 2025. She has run Kiln Theatre expertly for over a decade and I know this experience will be invaluable as she moves to the NT – a place she knows well, having directed successfully in each of the three theatres. Together with Kate and the brilliant, dedicated team here, I know that the National will continue to thrive and remain at the heart of British cultural life. I look forward to working closely with Indhu over my last year as Director.’
British Sri Lankan Indhu Rubasingham has scaled new heights in British theatre with her appointment as the next Director and Joint Chief Executive of the National Theatre. The National Theatre announced today the appointment of
Indhu who will work alongside Executive Director Kate Varah who also becomes Joint Chief Executive in a co-leadership model. Indhu will succeed current Director and Chief Executive Rufus Norris, who will leave the National Theatre in Spring 2025 when his second term ends.
Born in Sheffield to Sri-Lankan Tamil parents, she graduated from Hull University with a BA Hons in Drama. She is a theatre director based in London, and is currently the Artistic Director of Kiln Theatre which she joined in 2012 and repositioned the company’s mission to bring unheard voices into the mainstream. The mainstay of her programming consists of both world and British premieres. Indhu becomes the first woman of colour to hold such a high position in the UK theatre industry. Unassuming, approachable and humble Indhu is a role model for those aspiring to enter the world of theatre as she epitomises an exemplary work ethic.
During her tenure, she oversaw a £9 million major capital refurbishment, future proofing the theatre for the next generation of theatre-makers, reopening in 2018 as Kiln Theatre. Rubasingham also spearheaded a major expansion of creative engagement work, putting the company’s commitment to the local community and emerging artistes at the very core of the theatre’s output. In recognition of this work, and their post-covid reopening season, Kiln Theatre won The Stage 2021 Award for London Theatre of the Year.
Her inaugural production as Artistic Director of Kiln Theatre was the multi-award-winning Red Velvet by Lolita Chakrabarti, which later transferred to St Ann’s Warehouse in New York, and to the Garrick Theatre as part of Kenneth Branagh’s season. Her production of Handbagged by Moira Buffini won an Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre, before transferring to the West End and Washington DC and embarking on a subsequent UK tour in 2015. Her production of The Invisible Hand was nominated for an Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre in both 2017 and 2021. lndhu directed best-selling author Zadie Smith’s debut play The Wife of Willesden at Kiln Theatre in 2021 to critical acclaim—it became the highest ever grossing show in the theatre’s history, and returned to the Kiln in 2022 before transferring to Boston’s ART and New York’s BAM in 2023. Other highlights include producing Florian Zeller triptych of plays The Father, The Mother and The Son, with both The Father and The Son receiving West End transfers; Blues In The Night and more recently Retrograde and the musical Two Strangers. She has recently announced her final season for the company, including two world premieres, and a collaboration with the RSC.
In 2017, Rubasingham was awarded an MBE for services to theatre in the New Year’s Honours List and an honorary doctorate from the University of Hull. She has previously held Associate Director positions at the Gate Theatre, Birmingham Rep and the Young Vic. In 2001, she was awarded the Carlton Multi- Cultural Achievement Award for Performing Arts; and AWA for the Arts in 2012.
Indhu has worked regularly at the National Theatre in all three South Bank auditoriums, directing productions including The Waiting Room, The Ramayana, The Motherf*cker With the Hat, The Great Wave, Ugly Lies the Bone, Kerry Jackson and most recently the critically acclaimed sell out production of Anupama Chandrasekhar’s The Father and the Assassin which returned to the Olivier theatre earlier
this year.
