Mark Ravenhill to be RSC Writer in Residence
Acclaimed playwright Mark Ravenhill, best known for his controversial plays such as Shopping and F***ing and Mother Clap's Molly House, is to join the RSC in January 2012 on a 12-month contract as the Company's Writer in Residence.
Mark explained: 'I will be living in Stratford for much of the year and really hope to become part of the company. I'm also looking forward to working with the RSC ensemble.
'Working on Shakespeare encourages actors to tell epic stories and to embrace a muscularity in their approach to language. This is a fantastic resource for a living writer to work with.'
During his residency at the RSC, made possible by a grant from the Columbia Foundation, Mark will work alongside the acting ensemble to develop two new plays.
He has already started building relationships within the company. As part of the RSC 50th birthday season, Mark worked with an ensemble of actors to curate a weekend of his favourite plays from the RSC back catalogue in rehearsed readings of Poppy by Peter Nichols and Fashion by Doug Lucie.
He also hosted a public event discussing and exploring the RSC's history of presenting new work.
Photo by Simon Annand