Located on the banks of the River Avon in Southern Lane, Stratford-upon-Avon, The Other Place houses a 200-seat theatre space, our extensive costume store, From Page to Stage theatre tours, and Susie's cafe bar.   

We host regular festivals of new work in The Other Place. Local amateur groups can use the theatre for rehearsals and performances, and the venue provides additional performance space for our work with young people and the local community. The Other Place is also available for commercial hires, raising valuable income to support our artistic programme.

The Other Place is open with:

• A 200-seat studio theatre
• Three rehearsal rooms
• Page to Stage tours with first-hand accounts from directors and actors and the chance to see costumes and props up close
• A new home for our Costume Hire
• Susie's Cafe Bar with free WiFi
• Free live Jazz night with Stratford Jazz, third Thursday of every month, from 7.30pm
• Play On, free live music, on the first Thursday of every month, starting at 7.30pm
• Bright Smoke - free spoken word event on the second Thursday of every month, from 7.30pm
• Free family drop-in activities, second Saturday of every month, 1-3pm

Hiring The Other Place

Our studio theatre and rooms at The Other Place are available to hire for theatre, meetings and events. 

Discover our spaces

The University of Birmingham 

The University of Birmingham is a founding partner in The Other Place theatre in Stratford. Our new five year collaboration with the University is based on a mutual aspiration to develop The Other Place theatre as a unique hub for rehearsal, training, learning and creativity, with artists and academics working alongside each other. More about our partnership with the University of Birmingham.

The History of The Other Place

The Other Place was our original studio theatre, the starting point for some of our landmark productions over the last 40 years.

It began life as a tin shed rehearsal room and in 1974, following a series of experimental theatre projects such as Actors Commando and Theatregoround, it was converted into a studio space for adventurous and experimental work by contemporary writers. The Other Place was the brainchild of Buzz Goodbody, the pioneering visionary at the helm of its artistic direction in its early days, who made it the most productive tin shed in theatre history.

The Other Place was fuelled by Buzz’s artistic vision – a reaction to the political, social and aesthetic changes triggered by the Second World War. Inspired by the revolutionary spirit of the alternative theatre movements occurring throughout Britain, Buzz created an unconventional auditorium, which aimed to create a sense of community and intimacy between actors and audience.

The Other Place was closed in 1989 for two years of rebuilding, and reopened its doors in 1991 with a permanent brick building. This building later closed in 2005 to be adapted as a foyer to The Courtyard Theatre which allowed us to continue performances during the transformation of the Royal Shakespeare and Swan theatres from 2006 - 2010. We kept the shell of The Courtyard Theatre's auditorium and used it to create a new The Other Place.