In recent years, the Gate has been raising funds for the building of a New Wing. A vital component was the provision of a state-of-the-art rehearsal room which was also designed to be the location for the Gate Lab. Here, theatre practitioners, particularly writers, directors and actors, can explore, devise and imagine without the fear of failure or the pressure of performance. The Gate Lab will be used primarily for workshops, voice and movement training, to offer active support for playwrights, and to find and nurture new and existing creative talent.

 

In 2009, in association with the Ulster Bank Dublin Theatre Festival, the Gate held a two day Directors’ Symposium in the Lab. The event allowed mid-career directors the valuable opportunity to engage in structured sessions with leading actors, designers, directors, playwrights and producers. Most recently Fishamble Theatre Company utilised the space for the Theatrical Event, Turning Point, a series of rehearsed readings of plays by artists with disabilities that was presented at the project Arts Centre in March and will also be presented in Washington D.C. in June. The Gate Theatre is currently using this space for the development and production of a number of newly commissioned works by both established and emerging first-time writers for the Irish and international stage. 

For further information on the Gate Lab, please email Laura MacNaughton at laura.macnaughton@gate-theatre.ie