Cartmell took over at the theatre two years ago, during what was one of the biggest crises in its 50-year history.<\/p>\n
A production of A Midsummer Night\u2019s Dream was cancelled in a dispute over one of the production\u2019s songs, which referenced transgender rights and contained the phrase \u201cfree Palestine\u201d.<\/p>\n
There were accusations of censorship, although an independent review did not find that but did highlight \u201csignificant leadership failures\u201d<\/a>. The play\u2019s director, Stef O\u2019Driscoll, talked of a growing \u201cfear-driven decision-making in the arts\u201d.<\/p>\n Cartmell told the Guardian it had been \u201ca very challenging time\u201d for the theatre, and the board at the time took \u201cfull responsibility\u201d. All the review recommendations were now in place, with \u201cartists firmly back at the centre of the theatre\u201d, she said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was an incredibly complex and difficult period of our time, but we are absolutely, as a theatre, moving forward into the next chapter.\u201d<\/p>\n Cartmell said she was interested in northern stories with an international reach, adding that risks would be taken \u2013 \u201call part of the pioneering spirit of Manchester\u201d.<\/p>\n She said the theatre would reopen its 100-seat studio space next year, which has remained closed since the Covid pandemic.<\/p>\n She said the closure had been a \u201creal loss to Manchester\u201d and reopening it would allow the theatre \u201cto nurture local talent and to tell really urgent stories\u201d.<\/p>\n The first studio show since March 2020 will be Talking to Boys, by Abbi Greenland, which explores \u201cwhat happens to one woman\u2019s mind through 14 conversations with the men in her life\u201d.<\/p>\n The reopening will coincide with a six week-long closure of the main 750-seat in-the-round space for refurbishment, including the seats, which have been in place for 30 years.<\/p>\n Season highlights in 2027 will include the world premiere of a new play by Olivier and Tony award-winning Simon Stephens<\/a>, The First Blue Thing.<\/p>\n Directed by Cartmell, it is a reimagining of the Greek myth of Phaedra \u2013 a princess who falls in love with her stepson, leading to terrible consequences \u2013 and will be set in Stephens\u2019s home town of Stockport.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n Sign up to The Guide<\/p>\n Get our weekly pop culture email, free in your inbox every Friday<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n There will also be a new production of Guys and Dolls, and Much Ado About Nothing with the soul singer and West End star Beverley Knight.<\/p>\n In 2028, 70 years after one of the defining moments in the history of Manchester \u2013 the Munich air disaster \u2013 the theatre will stage the world premiere of an adaptation of David Peace\u2019s novel Munichs<\/a>.<\/p>\n Munichs brings to life the story and aftermath of the air crash that killed 23 out of 44 passengers, including eight Manchester United players, three of its staff and eight journalists.<\/p>\n It has been adapted for the stage by Ben Power and will, Cartmell said, explore the \u201creligion of football\u201d and how a club, a community and a country were all changed by events on 6 February 1958.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1792490651_816_500.jpg\")
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