If you want to learn more from our archives, then tune in this Thursday to ask our team of archivists about the collection and their work!

There are also pieces of Martha’s costume from her first role at the Festival, as Miranda in 1962, and pieces of the original tent that housed our first four seasons, from 1953 to 1956. Her magic staff also includes pieces of the original stage floor.

Designer Bretta Gerecke, with a team of in-house artisans, spent months building this very special creation, incorporating scraps of historic costume pieces from all of the previous Prosperos who have ever played on our Festival stage.

Jonathan will join the Festival in March to plan the 2027 season. We can’t wait to see what he has in store!

In his time at Chichester, a remarkable 48 productions toured or had West End runs, including a critically acclaimed production of Macbeth, directed by Rupert Goold and starring Patrick Stewart, which moved to the West End before transferring to BAM in New York and then Broadway.

With a history including both not-for-profit and commercial theatre, Jonathan is currently the director of Jonathan Church Theatre Productions, which has produced more than 30 plays and musicals in the West End, on tour in the U.K. and internationally.

Jonathan has held key leadership roles at major U.K. institutions, including Artistic Director of the Birmingham Repertory Theatre and the Chichester Festival Theatre, a sister theatre to the Stratford Festival, with a thrust stage modelled on the one in our Festival Theatre.

Jonathan has been coming to the Festival for more than 20 years, and considers our current Artistic Director, Antoni Cimolino, a friend and admired colleague, as well as one of the top directors of Shakespeare in the world – so we know he has great taste in theatre!

He’s also proud to be a dual citizen of the U.K. and Canada. His Canadian mother ensured this country was a big part of his life. He boasts that he’s the only Brit who has a perfect J-stroke thanks to his summer camp canoeing expeditions in Algonquin Park.

Joining us from the U.K., Jonathan is a much-celebrated artist whose productions have captivated audiences around the world. His work as a producer and director has seen 45 Olivier Award nominations and 12 wins, 12 Evening Standard Award nominations and five wins, and six Tony Award nominations.