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Young Vic

Theatre, Private theatres Southwark
4 out of 5 stars
(7user reviews)
Young Vic_CREDIT_Philip Vile.jpg
© Philip Vile

This edgy Waterloo theatre has a formidable artistic reputation

The Young Vic more than lives up to its name, with its slick modern exterior, buzzing bar, and a forward-looking line-up that makes it feel metaphorically as well as literally miles away from London's fustier West End houses. Under current boss Kwame Kwei-Armah, who cut his teeth on the New York theatre scene, it's thriving, with a renewed focus on connecting with the Southwark community that surrounds it, and on championing works by people of colour.

Kwei-Armah is building on the legacy of the theatre's longtime artistic director David Lan, who stepped down in 2018 after 18 years in the job. During that time, he oversaw a major renovation which created the current box office area from an old butcher's shop (you can still see traces of the original tiles), spruced up the theatre's fully flexible 420-seater auditorium, and added two smaller studio spaces, the Maria and the Clare. And he presided over an eclectic programme with a striking international focus. 

The Young Vic's popular Cut bar and restaurant is perma-busy with crowds drawn by its bright, airy set-up and central location. But it's just the most public-facing part of the theatre's many efforts to get people through its doors. The Taking Part team puts on parallel productions devised by local residents, building on a community focus that's been present from the theatre's earliest days. It started life as a youth-focused offshoot of the National Theatre in 1969, then housed in the Old Vic down the road, and its current breeze-block building was hastily thrown up in 1970. It was only designed to last for five years, but after a full-on refurb and with an impressive artistic legacy to hold onto, it looks all set to last for another half century. 

Posted:

Venue name: Young Vic
Contact:
Visit Website Call Venue 020-79222922
Address: 66
The Cut
London
SE1 8LZ
Transport: Tube/Rail: Waterloo
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Average User Rating

4.5 / 5

Rating Breakdown

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LiveReviews|8
1 person listening
tastemaker

Great space with great productions. Modern theatres just have the capacity to take on more exciting sets. I've seen so many stage layouts used here. Maybe not all plays would be to my liking but productions are always fresh and though provoking. I also like how they attract a wide age range.

Ticket prices are also excellent and seats pretty comfy. Last time I did a lucky dip and ended up in the front.

The bar and restaurant is also great to hang out in, if not a bit crammed during the interval when all the women are queuing for one toilet! It's nice and easy having dinner before a show there and has better food than some of the external options nearby.

tastemaker

My favourite theatre in London, I've seen so many amazing plays here, for an absolute bargain too. The food is excellent and decently priced and the balcony/terrace is lovely on a summers day/evening. Highly recommended.

tastemaker

The young vic, my favourite of the two, has such a cool vibe for a theatre I often find myself just wanting to hang out on the terrace for drinks. It's my first stop for finding brilliant productions for reasonable prices where you know you'll get seeing a thought provoking play for your money. I've seen a few productions now, my favourite being A streetcar named desire, and the sets are always inventive and brings the show to life.

If you're ever at a loose end give the box office a call and try your luck at getting tickets for a tenner!!

Tastemaker

The younger sister of the old vic, this theatre is really targeted at the younger crowd in London. The content of some of the shows (Cuttin it, Blue/Orange) can be pretty provocative and thought provoking. There are also international companies like the Belarus Free Theatre who also come in to add their own bit of flavour to the place. One of the trendiest theatre bars in London also accompany this venue so your pre and post theatre all sorted. Finally, the prices for these top shows are so so so affordable compared to the stuff you see on west end! And some of them even transfer to the west end and win Oliviers (a view from the bridge)!!

Tastemaker

I like this theater, it consistently shows quite innovative shows. However the seating can be a bit uncomfortable. The bar is fun though!

Tastemaker

It has been some time but we really enjoyed ourselves at the bar of the young vic on a Friday night. Vibrant, nice atmosphere, yummy food, one of the most unique bars, definitely worth visiting! Going to the theatre to watch a play there is on my to-do list! And I'll surely visit the bar again afterwards.

Tastemaker

Our reserved tickets magically turned into unreserved tickets upon our arrival, which wasn't super impressive. Then we were crammed into the side pens, like sheep about to be shorn, until everyone else had taken their places. When we were let in, however, the ushers pushed us into a spot dead centre and only five rows back - the illustrious £35 zone. We'd only paid £15 each. Result. 


The Young Vic is more of an edgy character than it's older brother, who is also named Vic and lives up the road. I tried to capture this edge with a post-play snap, but failed to match the edge of Philip Vile's photo, seen above. I'll put mine in anyway, for posterity. Hey, I'm not a professional, but I gave it a shot. 


Excellent cast, lively atmosphere, kind and helpful staff. The prices are low compared to other theatres in London, however, there are no student discounts which is a shame bearing in mind the audience is mainly young people.

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