BAG OF BEARD are storytellers, first and foremost. Tall tales or short, articulate or delirious, rambling or fleeting - we tell stories.
 

We create darkly funny, poetic, abstract, surreal and minimalist theatre.

 

2017: Our debut production, 'Bath', is a dark homage to the works of Harold Pinter at The Bread & Roses Theatre, telling the story of two desperate down and out gangsters in 1960s London who mislay a briefcase full of their boss's cash.

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2018: 'Renaissance Men' begins our commitment to devised work, created through a combination of devising and scripting that process into text. With elements of spoken word poetry and an original soundtrack, we create a biting new satire about the world of art school at The Old Red Lion Theatre, where we become Resident Company.

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2019: David Spencer's harrowing, true story 'Buried' premieres at the Tristan Bates Theatre, now the Seven Dials Playhouse. 'Renaissance Men' travels to 53Two Manchester & Square Chapel Playhouse, Halifax.

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2020: As one of the Old Red Lion's Resident Companies, we co-produce 'A Triptych of Plays' including Nuclear War by Simon Stephens, Buried by David Spencer and Graceland by Max Saunders-Singer. It receives critical acclaim, multiple 5 star reviews and award nominations and is hailed as "a modern masterpiece that could define the future of fringe theatre". In the Winter of 2020, we create 'December', a retelling of A Christmas Carol from Bob Cratchit's point of view, created for the stage and re-imagined pre lockdown as a theatrical film, distributed by ORL online. It is a finalist for the LPT Awards in 2021.

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2021: Rewritten for a live audience, 'Cratchit' premieres at the Park Theatre with Olivier Award Winner John Dagleish as Bob, and Freya Sharp as the Spirits of Christmas. It receives two Off West End Award Nominations.

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2023: After over 5 years of devising and scripting, our dystopian thriller on the nature of faith and authority, 'The Messiah Complex' opens at the final VAULT Festival, nominated for the Origins Award for Outstanding New Work.

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2025: Dark comedy 'The Highgate Vampire' premieres as part of the inaugural season of VAULT Creative Arts new venue The Glitch. It transfers to The Amulet Theatre, Somerset, and headlines the Christmas season at the Omnibus Theatre, Clapham.

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2026: 'The Highgate Vampire' is awarded The Stephen Joseph Transfer and is performed at The Cockpit Theatre, London's original in-the-round venue. 

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The Vampire continues to rise...

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Through original words & original music, Bag of Beard's aim is to create a national ensemble, using the best new writing and music from across the nation, in a highly collaborative, grassroots theatre process.

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