What’s On At The Royal Shakespeare Company In 2026?
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Once more unto the Stratford stage, the RSC’s new theatre season is here
The Royal Shakespeare Company has announced its new season of productions for 2026/27, and we can expect everything from revivals and major literary adaptations to celebrity performers across its Royal Shakespeare Theatre and Swan Theatre stages, where once more the play’s the thing in Stratford-upon-Avon.
Set in the playwright’s birthplace on the banks of the River Avon, the RSC is still to this day one of Britain’s most influential theatre institutions, with productions created in Stratford before many move to the West End and international boards. The new season sees Kenneth Branagh return to the company for the first time in more than 30 years, alongside appearances from Helen Hunt and Mark Gatiss. Plus, there’s a stage production of Game of Thrones, which is making its debut in Stratford.
What’s On At The Royal Shakespeare Company In 2026/27?
The new season continues the RSC’s tradition of presenting Shakespeare alongside modern classics and contemporary adaptations across its two principal Stratford venues. Co-artistic directors Daniel Evans and Tamara Harvey’s 2025/26 programme welcomes both returning collaborators and artists making their Stratford debuts, alongside new interpretations of classic texts and large-scale storytelling.
The season’s announcement comes at a time of wider institutional change for the RSC, with Nick Varney appointed as trustee and governor and Martha Lane-Fox joining as governor, reinforcing the company’s links across British cultural and public life.
The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui in rehearsals.
The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui
Mark Gatiss makes his Royal Shakespeare Company debut in Bertolt Brecht’s political satire, written in exile in 1941 as an allegory for the rise of Adolf Hitler and set within the world of ‘30s Chicago gangland.
Details: 11 April–30 May 2026 at the Swan Theatre (Waterside, Stratford-upon-Avon CV37 7LS).
The Tempest
Kenneth Branagh returns to Stratford-upon-Avon for the first time in more than 30 years to play Prospero in Shakespeare’s late romance, which is widely regarded as his final solo-authored play. The production is directed by Sir Richard Eyre.
Details: 13 May–20 June 2026 at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre (Waterside, Stratford-upon-Avon CV37 6BB).
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
One of Shakespeare’s most frequently staged comedies will be back in a new Stratford production, continuing the company’s long association with staging the play during its summer programme.
Details: 19 June–30 August 2026 at The Other Place (22 Southern Ln, Stratford-upon-Avon CV37 6BH).
The Cherry Orchard
Helen Hunt and Kenneth Branagh appear in Laura Wade’s new version of Chekhov’s final play, which first premiered at the Moscow Art Theatre in 1904. It will be directed here by RSC co-artistic director Tamara Harvey.
Details: 10 July–29 August 2026 at the Swan Theatre (Waterside, Stratford-upon-Avon CV37 7LS).
George R.R. Martin
Game of Thrones: The Mad King
A new stage production set in the world of George R R Martin’s Game of Thrones explores the story of Aerys II Targaryen, known as the Mad King, whose reign precedes the events of the television series. The production marks a rare collaboration between the Royal Shakespeare Company and a major screen franchise of recent years.
Details: 20 July–5 September 2026 at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre (Waterside, Stratford-upon-Avon CV37 6BB).
As You Like It
Set partly in the Forest of Arden surrounding Stratford-upon-Avon, this production returns one of Shakespeare’s most closely connected plays to the company’s home landscape for a special showing.
Details: 26 September–7 November 2026 at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre (Waterside, Stratford-upon-Avon CV37 6BB).
Middlemarch
Nina Raine adapts George Eliot’s Middlemarch novel, first published between 1871 and 1872, in two parts in the Swan Theatre. The production is expected to highlight Eliot’s own Warwickshire roots close to Stratford.
Details: Part 1 from 1 October 2026–16 January 2027, Part 2 from 10 October 2026–16 January 2027 at the Swan Theatre (Waterside, Stratford-upon-Avon CV37 7LS).
The Three Musketeers
Alexandre Dumas’ 1844 adventure novel returns in a new adaptation co-produced with Told by an Idiot, bringing large-scale theatrical storytelling back to the Royal Shakespeare Theatre stage.
Details: 28 November 2026–9 January 2027 at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre (Waterside, Stratford-upon-Avon CV37 6BB).
Where & When
The Royal Shakespeare Company has three permanent theatres in Stratford-upon-Avon: the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and the Swan Theatre, which share the main Waterside building; and The Other Place, a short walk away.
However, RSC productions often find a home in London or tour across the UK and around the world. The RSC’s London partner is The Barbican, but Matilda The Musical is shown at the Cambridge Theatre while My Neighbour Totoro plays at the Gillian Lynne Theatre, both in Covent Garden.
Do I Need Tickets?
Advance booking is recommended, particularly for headline productions featuring major guest performers and Shakespeare revivals staged during the peak summer months. Priority booking windows are usually available for members ahead of general release.
How To Get There
Stratford-upon-Avon is about two hours from London by train from Marylebone or Paddington with a change at Warwick Parkway, and two and a half hours by car. The theatres sit within walking distance of the town centre and riverside.
Where To Stay Nearby
Staying close to the theatres makes it easy to make a weekend of it, so if you want to stay in town, you couldn’t get any more convenient than The Arden Hotel, which is just opposite the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, donning views across the River Avon and with dining at The Woodsman restaurant.
For a nearby country option, sister hotel Mallory Court is our top pick, just a 25 minute drive away yet surrounded by rolling countryside. The golden Grade II listed Lutyens-style main house has a charming garden and decadent restaurant, while newer addition Orchard House houses the sparkling Elan Spa, sleekly modern bedrooms and Asian restaurant Sencha.
