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(L to R) Rachel Bagshaw, Hazel Holder, Natasha Gordon

Photo: (Rachel Bagshaw) Helen Murray

Changing Faces

National Theatre welcomes new associates

Arts Professional
2 min read

The National Theatre (NT) has invited playwright and actor NATASHA GORDON and voice coach and performer HAZEL HOLDER to join the theatre as Associates.

Associates are appointed to bring thought leadership and advisory input across all areas of the NT’s artistic vision, in order to deliver new and fresh perspectives on the decisions of the directors and senior management.

Gordon, who is currently under commission at the NT, made her playwrighting debut there with Nine Night in 2018 which transferred to Trafalgar Studios. She won the Most Promising Playwright Award at both the Evening Standard Theatre Awards and the Critics Circle Awards that year.

Holder has worked across film, television and theatre with companies such as Clean Break, Marginal Voices and Cast Women’s Charity. Her recent work for the NT includes Blues for an Alabama Sky, Trouble in Mind and Rockets and Blue Lights.

“The breadth of skills and expertise that Natasha and Hazel will bring as associates will be invaluable in continuing our aim of producing world-class theatre for our stages,” Rufus Norris, NT’s Artistic Director said.

Directors ATRI BANERJEE and RACHEL BAGSHAW have been chosen for the NT’s Peter Hall bursaries.

The busary is awarded every two years, with recipients selected by Norris, Head of Play Development NINA STEIGER and NT Associates.

Banerjee and Bagshaw will be given the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the inner workings of the NT and be supported to artistically research and create a piece of work for NT’s stages.

As a playwright, Banerjee re-imagines classic texts and canonical titles for stage, with recent work including The Glass Menagerie (Royal Exchange) and Britannicus (Lyric Hammersmith). Bagshaw works extensively on plays for young audiences, radical adaptations and ensemble-led projects with young people.

“Atri and Rachel are two exceptional directors creating incredibly exciting work and I’m delighted to be able to support them at this stage in their careers through the Peter Hall Bursaries from the National Theatre Foundation,” Norris said.