Theatre de Complicité

Theatre de Complicité
Francisco Peralta Torrejón · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Name	Theatre de Complicité
Formed	1983
Location	London, England
Genre	Physical theatre, devised theatre
Artistic director	Simon McBurney (founder)
Notable works	The Master and Margarita; The Three Lives of Lucie Cabrol; A Disappearing Number

Theatre de Complicité

Theatre de Complicité is a British touring theatre company founded in 1983, noted for a hybrid of physical theatre, devised performance and collaborative creation that influenced contemporary staging in London, Manchester, New York and international festivals. Combining literary adaptation, original text and multimedia scenography, the company has engaged with artists and institutions across Europe and North America, shaping practices in ensemble work and actor training.

History

Complicité arose in the early 1980s out of the milieu of British theatre alongside companies such as Royal Shakespeare Company, Royal National Theatre, Bristol Old Vic and Theatre Workshop. Its founder Simon McBurney trained at University of Exeter and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before establishing the ensemble, taking inspiration from practitioners like Peter Brook, Jerzy Grotowski, Antonin Artaud and Jacques Lecoq. Early residencies linked Complicité with venues including Traverse Theatre, Bush Theatre, Donmar Warehouse and collaborations with festivals such as the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Avignon Festival. Through the 1990s and 2000s the company toured to cultural institutions including Brooklyn Academy of Music, Sydney Opera House, Schouwburg Rotterdam and collaborated with orchestras and universities like Royal College of Music and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Artistic Vision and Style

The company's aesthetic synthesises methods from Lecoq School-derived physical training, ensemble devising practices promoted by Theatre de Complicité peers and multimedia approaches seen at National Theatre productions. Their style emphasizes movement-based storytelling, precise choreography, and scenic invention, drawing lineage from Pina Bausch, Rex Levitates and DV8 Physical Theatre while engaging dramaturges and composers from institutions such as Royal Opera House and Guggenheim Museum. Design collaborations have included scenographers with credits at Royal Court Theatre, Sadler's Wells Theatre and museums like the Tate Modern. This hybrid approach has positioned the company at intersections with authors, emcees and technologists connected to BBC, Channel 4 and digital labs at MIT Media Lab.

Major Productions

Complicité's repertoire blends adaptations and original pieces. Notable productions include an adaptation of Mikhail Bulgakov's novel staged as The Master and Margarita, performed at venues such as National Theatre, Piccadilly Theatre and toured to Lincoln Center. A Disappearing Number, a co-creation, interwove mathematics and narrative and premiered after research links with scholars at University of Cambridge and Imperial College London, later appearing at Spoleto Festival USA and winning international acclaim. Other landmark works include The Three Lives of Lucie Cabrol, which toured to American Repertory Theater and Festival d'Avignon, and Street of Crocodiles staged with visual references akin to Terry Gilliam and Jan Švankmajer. Collaborations extended to writers and composers associated with Royal Court Theatre, Young Vic and Almeida Theatre.

Key Members and Collaborators

The company's core ensemble has featured artists who later worked across theatre, film and opera. Founder Simon McBurney has directed film and operatic projects linked with Royal Opera House and worked with filmmakers from Working Title Films and composers from BBC Symphony Orchestra. Other principal performers and creators have included actors and directors who trained at Central School of Speech and Drama, Guildhall School of Music and Drama and joined projects with companies like Complicite alumni who went on to work with National Theatre of Scotland, Compagnie Philippe Genty and Maly Drama Theatre. Collaborators have spanned playwrights and novelists tied to Faber and Faber, illustrators associated with Tate Britain and technologists from Royal Society research networks.

Training and Education

Theatre de Complicité has placed emphasis on ensemble training, devising workshops and residencies offered at institutions including Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, Trinity Laban Conservatoire and the Glasgow School of Art. Its methodologies draw on physical training inspired by Jacques Lecoq, improvisation practices from Keith Johnstone and directing theories championed at Goldsmiths, University of London. Educational initiatives have included masterclasses for students from King's College London, collaborations with drama departments at University of Manchester and practitioner exchanges at international centres such as International Theatre Institute and Theatre Communication Group festivals.

Awards and Recognition

Complicité's productions and artists have received awards and nominations from bodies including the Laurence Olivier Awards, Tony Awards, Critics' Circle Theatre Awards and international festival prizes at Festival d'Avignon and Edinburgh Festival Fringe. A Disappearing Number earned accolades that intersected with scientific outreach awards from institutions like Royal Society and arts funding recognitions from Arts Council England. Individual company members have been honoured with distinctions such as fellowships from Royal Society of Literature, commissions from BBC drama, and cultural awards presented by municipalities in Paris, Berlin and New York City.

Category:Theatre companies in London