At last Reading has its own professional repertory theatre company.
The Stage

Reading’s resident professional theatre combines high-class productions with ground-breaking education and community engagement to help transform Reading and the surrounding area’s cultural landscape.

Reading Rep Theatre is a local theatre with a national reputation. Founded by Reading born Artistic Director Paul Stacey in 2012 with just £500, Reading Rep Theatre is rapidly emerging as one of the leading producing venues in the UK. As a disabled practitioner, Paul created the company in order to break down barriers that prevent people from accessing world class theatre. 

From their state-of-the-art new venue the company commissions and produces bold and experimental work with many of the UK’s leading creatives: Reinventing the classics, championing new writing and reinterpreting adaptations. Their productions have garnered significant critical acclaim and have subsequently toured regionally, nationally and internationally. In 2024, the company’s production of Jekyll and Hyde by Gary McNair will transfer to the Theatre Royal Lyceum continuing their mission of putting Reading on the national cultural map. Accessibility is central to Reading Rep’s output and 10% of all their tickets are given away for free to those who can’t afford them, 

The local community is at the heart of the company. ENGAGE is Reading Rep Theatre’s flagship outreach programme which exists to ensure that everyone in Reading, no matter their background, can access their work. ENGAGE allows 10,000 children, young people and vulnerable adults with professional pathways to access Reading Rep Theatre’s work throughout their lives. These award-winning programmes are delivered in partnership with Reading Libraries, Reading Borough Council, Reading College, the University of Reading and the NHS.