Buried away in the hinterland of warehouses that lie between Hackney proper and the Olympic Park, Hackney Wick's The Yard is a real diamond in the rough. A profit-sharing 130-seat venue made from recycled materials, it's a beacon of exciting, progressive new work in theatre-poor east London and a real model for what a fringe theatre can and should be in the twenty-first century.
Artistic director Jay Miller has presided over an impressive array of hits since he founded The Yard in 2011, by cracking open the door to an abandoned warehouse and transforming its innards into a high-ceilinged, concrete-floored performance space. 'This Beautiful New Future' and 'Buggy Baby' both attracted strong reviews, as did RashDash's take on 'Three Sisters'. What they all share is striking, bright lighting and design, an approach that sits in between new writing and live art, and a pulsing soundtrack.
The Yard attracts a much younger (and cooler) crowd than your average theatre, as reinforced by its free workshops for teenagers, and cheap tickets for under 25s, and contribution to Hackney's nightlife. It holds regular club nights and live music events, which pack out the venue's rough-and-ready bar and dancefloor. And before and after shows, theatregoers peruse a bar menu that veers from tinnies of beer to swish cocktails, or hit up a food menu that's presided over by an ever-changing line-up of guest chefs, but tends to feature small plates and vegan-friendly junk food.
