Support Us
Generous donations from supporters, friends and patrons enable the Playground Theatre to develop new and exciting work.
Originally an old bus depot, The Playground became a home for experimentation and creative development within the arts. In 2017 the doors opened to the public and The Playground became a fully-fledged theatre.
From 2017 to 2021 The Playground Theatre produced, with the help and support of private donations, nine medium to small scale productions including Picasso by Terry d'Alfonso, Paradise Circus by James Purdy, Shirlymander by Gregory Evans, Ida Rubinstein: The Final Act by Christian Holder, amongst others.
In 2020, we successfully secured ACE's Covid-19 Recovery fund, ensuring our survival during the challenging lockdown and pandemic uncertainty. This recovery fund empowered us to maintain core staff, enhance studio and technical equipment, and support performers and companies by providing our theatre with no hiring costs or financial risk upon legal reopening.
In 2021/22, The Playground Theatre continued its commitment to new productions, community engagement, and outreach initiatives. We created a new free service for local residents, WE START, in partnership with The Royal Court and The National Theatre, this award-winning programme for residents of North Kensington, is supported by the Grenfell Projects Fund (2022-2024) and The Linbury Trust (2025-2027). The programme aims to increase participation and expertise in the arts. It provides free expert-led workshops and opportunities in areas such as performing arts, poetry, writing, etc. The most recent programme focused on LGBTQ+ opportunities and inclusivity in the arts, delivered in partnership with our new partner the Saatchi Gallery.
Our consistency in creating innovative work and impactful community projects, even through the pandemic, led us to secure enough support from corporation partners like Les Ambassadeurs Group, governmental grants from RBKC and others like Grenfell Project Fund, and private foundations such as The Linbury Trust (Ida Rubinstein 2021); and The Mercers, John Lyon's Charity and Paul Hamlyn Foundation (Grenfell Value Engineering: Scenes From The Inquiry, 2021/23).
We were awarded National Lottery Community fund in 2023 for our project WE ARE NOT A BOAT: Windrush Generation, a series of community events in partnership with iNotting Hill Blackbird.
We have being awarded a grant from ACE projects in 2024 for the development of our new co-production of SOUND CLASH: The Musical, original concept by Levi Roots.
The Playground is grateful to The Linbury Trust for supporting us for 3-years (2025/27) to continue to deliver and upgrade our outstanding award-winning free services WELL READ and WE START, as well as the creation of a new program, PlayGround Incubation.
The Playground Theatre currently still derives a significant portion of its income from the hire of its space to external companies and other cultural events. Our aim is to be able to become a fully programmed theatre and to provide opportunities and a space for development work and for artist to take risks and experiment with new ideas.
