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© Pau Ross

Battersea Arts Centre

South London's erratic temple of the avant-garde
  • Theatre | Experimental
  • Battersea
  • Recommended
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Time Out says

What is it?
Housed in a vast, gorgeous Victorian gothic former Town Hall, Battersea Arts Centre is a much-loved South London landmark. It's got strong links with the local community – not least because it's a beaut of a venue to get married in. But it's definitely worth travelling for, thanks to its strong line-up of shows and laidback bohemian atmosphere. You'll find comedy, experimental theatre and performance here, spread across a series of atmospheric spaces with artfully-crumbling plasterwork, as well as plenty of places to relax and mingle.

Why go?
For the shows, of course! Under current artistic director Tarek Iskander, it hosts big, bold shows by emerging names and established experimental players: the family Christmas shows are especially magical, often making use of this sprawling venue's many spaces. But you could equally pop in for a drink or two: it's a venue with a constantly festival air, thanks to its cheap tickets and a convivial bar that offers a wide selection of beers and cocktails.

Don't miss:
The intricate details of this space deserve a closer look: especially the bee mosaics of the foyer floor, a tribute to the lavender fields that used to fill Battersea.

When to visit:
Tom's Bar is open daily from 9.30pm-4.30pm, and til late on show evenings.

Ticket info:
BAC shows are ticketed individually via its website.

Time Out tip:
Skip the usual panto and make BAC's festive show your new Christmas tradition, for all of the joy with none of the kitsch.

Details

Address
Lavender Hill
London
SW11 5TN
Transport:
BR: Clapham Junction; Tube: Clapham Common/Stockwell
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What’s on

Good Sex

This very short run, very intriguing play from the great Dead Centre in collaboration with essayist Emilie Pine literally asks ‘how do you have sex on stage?’ Probably not actual sex, but nonetheless Good Sex sounds fascinating: over its 80 minutes, two actors who’ve never performed the piece before will be coached by an intimacy coordinator into partaking in a convincing, ethically sound sex scene. Dead Centre tend to be quite mischievous, so whether it’s a case of earnestly explaing the craft of the intimacy coordinator something a bit more subversive is TBC. It only has three performances, and the respective guest performers are  Nov 4: Jack Gleeson and Phia Saban Nov 5: Anoushka Lucas and Lucy McCormick  Nov 6: Khalid Abdalla and Mei Mac   
  • Experimental

A Song and Dance

Droll performance duo Action Hero return to Battersea Arts Centre with a week-long run of new show A Song and Dance. As with much of their creative but po-faced ouvre, you probably have to see it to really appreciate what it’s about, but it concerns an actor – played by the company’s James Stenhouse – who is attempting to get over an eight-year-period of intense stage fright by replaying his entire life. He starts to lose the plot: but apparently he’s not coing to make a song and dance about it. The show is co-written by Stenhouse and Gemma Paintin, who directs, and it’s dramaturged by Deborah Pearson, who directed BAC’s recent hit Nina.
  • Experimental

Santa’s Grotto at Battersea Arts Centre

After years of taking a rather mercurial approach to Christmas, BAC seems to have zeroed in on younger audiences in 2026, with its play for little ones Dear Santa, a Christmas soft play for ages up to five, and the return of last year’s inaugural grotto. As far as we’re aware it’s a fairly basic encounter with Father Christmas (it’s certainly on the more affordable side), but you get a gift and – perhaps more crucially – your name written on the nice list.
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