Royal Court unveils first part of 2027 season, with Jessie Buckley making her debut
The Royal Court Theatre in London has announced the first part of its 2027 season. It includes a Broadway transfer, six world premieres and one production scheduled for 2028, the theatre said on 28 October 2026 (WhatsOnStage).
The headline piece is Purpose by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins. The play has won a Tony Award and a Pulitzer Prize. It gets its European premiere at the Royal Court as a transfer, meaning a production that moves from one venue to another, with Steppenwolf Theatre Company. Phylicia Rashad directs. It runs in the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs from 16 January to 27 February 2027.
Next, the Complicite theatre company presents the world premiere of The Apology, written by and starring V, formerly known as Eve Ensler. Tobias Menzies co-stars. Simon McBurney directs, and Es Devlin designs the set. The show runs in the Downstairs space from 19 March to 24 April 2027.
Juliet Stevenson stars in The Briar Patch, a new play by Ciara Elizabeth Smyth. David Byrne directs it. It plays the Downstairs from 14 May to 26 June 2027.
Jessie Buckley makes her Royal Court debut in Afterbirth, a world premiere by Nina Segal. Maria Aberg directs. The production is co-produced with English Touring Theatre, a company that takes work to venues across the country. It runs in the Downstairs from 15 January to 26 February 2028, the one date in this announcement that falls in the following year.
The smaller Jerwood Theatre Upstairs also has three productions. We're Gonna Kill Billy by Alex Medland runs from 18 February to 27 March 2027, directed by Aneesha Srinivasan. The play won the Concord Theatricals Unpublished Playwright Award. Georgie Dettmer's War Face, directed by Jess Edwards, runs from 22 April to 1 May 2027. It is co-produced with Orange Juice Productions.
Taken together, the spring of 2027 is busy. The Downstairs stage has a run of new and transferred work from January to June, and the Upstairs space fills the gaps between. The theatre has not yet listed the rest of the season, so there may be more to come.
For anyone planning a visit, the dates are the place to start. Tickets and prices will be set by the theatre separately.
