Nicolas Kent to step down after 28 years

A new artistic director has been appointed at Kilburn’s Tricycle Theatre to take over from Nicolas Kent who held the position for 28 years.

Indhu Rubasingham, who will take over from May next year, will direct Stones in His Pockets for the Tricycle Theatre in December, as part of Mr Kent’s final season.

The talented director has been awarded the Carlton Multi-Cultural Achievement Award for Performing Arts and in 2010 she received the Liberty Human Rights Award jointly with Mr Kent.

She said: “I am absolutely delighted to have been appointed as the new artistic director of the Tricycle.

“I first worked there in 1998 when I brought Roy Williams’ Starstruck to Nicolas Kent. Unknown to me it was the beginning of a long and fruitful association.

“In that time I was introduced to Lynn Nottage, who I consequently worked with on Fabulation and Darfur: How Long is Never?, and with Nicolas took The Great Game: Afghanistan all the way to the Pentagon.

“The Tricycle is a unique and special place and it has been passionately led by Nicolas Kent.

“He leaves behind him a weighty legacy. I am very excited and honoured to take the baton and lead the organisation, with my artistic vision, into the future.”

Mr Kent spent 28 years at the helm of the playhouse in Kilburn High Road and has played a key role in building its reputation for staging cutting edge political plays.

Earlier this year he told the Times that cuts had made maintaining the level and quality of work a difficult challenge.

The Tricycle had nearly �350,000 of funding wiped from its books this year.

He said: “I am very happy that Indhu is to take over from me. I have known her for 15 years and I am an enormous admirer of her work.

“She is a very talented director and an inspiration to those with whom she works. She has done some wonderful productions over the last decade both here and at other major London theatres and I am confident that she will lead the Tricycle with imagination and boldness.

“I am certain she will continue, and expand its mission, and consolidate its already strong reputation.

“I wish her huge joy over the coming years in taking the Tricycle staff, actors, writers and audience onto new challenges and even greater success”.

This year, the Tricycle celebrated it 30th anniversary and its production of a series of short plays on Afghan history toured in the US.

The theatre has become best known for its tribunal plays – verbatim reconstructions of public inquiries – and has staged productions on the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry and the Baha Mousa inquiry. This week events which took place during the London riots will be brought to life in a stage production called The Riots. It runs between November 17 and December 10. Tickets cost between �8.50 and �13. For more information call the box office on 020 7328 1000.