The Other Place is often described as the ‘creative engine’ of the Royal Shakespeare Company. The original The Other Place was a corrugated iron building built in the 1960s in the middle of a car park, and was initially a storage and rehearsal space.

It started to be used as a studio theatre for performances in 1973, and was renamed The Other Place under the vision of theatre director Buzz Goodbody in 1974. This permanent new auditorium was dedicated to new work by contemporary writers and attracting new audiences. It could produce more experimental work than was possible in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre.

Trevor Nunn’s 1976 production of Macbeth, with Judi Dench as Lady Macbeth and Ian McKellen as Macbeth, is regarded as one of the greatest performances of the play. It was performed in the round in The Other Place before small audiences, with a bare stage, simple costuming and imaginative lighting. 

Judi Dench has performed on RSC stages in Stratford-Upon-Avon since the 1960s, playing many of Shakespeare’s leading ladies, including Viola, Beatrice, Titania and Portia, and Mistress Quickly twenty years ago in 2006. She is regarded as one of the world's greatest actresses, well-known for her stage performances as well as her Oscar-winning film work and many TV credits.