Autumn season now on sale!

Wed 16 Sep 2026

A thrilling new season of theatre awaits you at Lakeside Theatre!

Presenting brand new adaptations of George Orwell’s seminal novel, Animal Farm and acclaimed novelist Andrew A. Kauffman’s, Born Weird, plus, the first ever UK production of Love is the Greatest Labyrinth by Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, widely considered to be one of the most important female writers in Spanish literature. Add to that an interactive, site specific production at the beloved Colchester castle, all wound up with an electrifying Christmas Cabaret!

Our autumn season also features two sensational National Theatre Live productions, The Misanthrope by Martin Crimp and starring award winning actor Sandra Oh, as well as Clifford Odett’s knock-out American classic, Golden Boy starring Josh O’Connor.

Featuring performance skills rarely seen on stage, including live and up-close stage combat and breath-taking ensemble movement and acrobatics, this season is action packed and guaranteed to leave you wanting more…

Click HERE for more info and to book tickets!

NT Live: The Misanthrope

Fri 11 Sep 2026

Sandra Oh takes the title role in a razor-sharp reimagining of Molière’s classic.

Alice, a brilliant novelist, despises the hollow contemporary mantras of kindness and respect. But the bolder she becomes in speaking out, the more colleagues avoid her, and the more her personal relationships begin to fracture.

As she challenges fashionable ideas and lends her voice to causes others are afraid to touch, she faces intense criticism and backlash. Alice will soon learn the price she must pay as an artist and as a woman for daring to speak her mind.

Award-winner Sandra Oh (Killing Eve) is the Misanthrope in Martin Crimp’s (Cyrano de Bergerac) cutting new version of Molière’s dark comedy, directed by National Theatre Director Indhu Rubasingham (The Father and the Assassin).

 

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East 15 Acting School at Lakeside Theatre

Tue 21 Jul 2026

Lakeside Theatre is now home to world renowned stage and screen conservatoire, East 15 Acting School.

Inspired by Joan Littlewood’s Theatre Workshop, East 15 was founded in 1961 by Margaret Bury, who was part of the Theatre Workshop for 14 years. Drawing on the teaching methods and philosophies of the Theatre Workshop, these guiding principles continue to inform East 15’s teaching and productions today.

In 2000, East 15 established its partnership with the University of Essex. Now offering courses in acting, producing directing, stage management, motion capture and specialist skills including fight performance, aerial circus, community engagement and global theatre practice, East 15 is ranked No. 1 in the UK for Drama in the Guardian University Guide 2026, above the Guildhall School of Music and LAMDA.

Recent notable alumni from the school include Corinna Brown (Heart Stopper), Joel Smith-Bynoe ( Stath Lets Flats; Ghosts), Daisy Franks (Olivier Award Winner for Life of Pi), Charlie Josephine (writer of I, Joan at Shakespeare’s Globe), Lily Newmark (Sex Education; Solo: A Star Wars Story), John Leader (Old Vic’s A Monster Calls; Warhorse; The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe), Elizabeth Henstridge (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D) and Daniel Ezra (All American).