At the Watermill we are and have always been passionate about cultivating the theatre makers of tomorrow.

Many famous faces in the theatre world started their careers with us, including David Suchet, Bill Nighy, Sean Bean, David Jason, Kathryn Hunter and most recently Ncuti Gatwa (currently playing the Fifteenth Doctor), who starred in our 2018 production of The Rivals shortly before his breakout performance in Netflix’s Sex Education. Our commitment to supporting emerging artists is a legacy we are proud to continue: in 2024 we launched Elemental, a programme to support early-career creatives, and 21% of all the actors we hired were new graduates.

James Mack, Ncuti Gatwa, and Daniel Abelson on stage in The Rivals. Ncuti is as the front of the stage and looks like he is telling Daniel a funny joke or a delicious secret

Watermill Ensemble

Established in 2016, the Watermill Ensemble is a collective of multi-talented performers and creatives, including actor-musicians. As well as providing opportunities for emerging artists, the Ensemble aims to combine Shakespeare’s text with live music to create engaging, accessible and dynamic versions of these classic plays.

Watermill Ensemble productions have toured nationally and internationally, and are cast with a 50/50 gender split. Their latest production was a fresh, glamorous take on Much Ado About Nothing, set in Golden Age Hollywood with a score of classic jazz numbers.

‘The Watermill is a theatre which encourages artistic growth and development at its very core. As an emerging theatre maker, the Watermill was instrumental to my progress and learning; it not only provided opportunities to work with the best artists, but the team trusted me to create my own work, and platformed that alongside established writers as an equally important part of their programming. As a place for fostering both ideas and people, the Watermill is second to none.’

Director and Writer, Jessica Swale