Multilingualism, diversity, and performing arts. A home for Spanish language theatre in post-Brexit gentrified London

Abstract

ABSTRACT In 2016, the Spanish Theatre Company (STC) opened the doors of its Cervantes Theatre (CT), the first British (and European) venue devoted to showcasing productions of Spanish and Latin American plays in a bilingual format. Four years on – and at a critical juncture given Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic – this article reflects on the current state and future prospects of this nascent migrant theatre initiative based in Southwark. This, I hope, will serve as a first step to re-think the Arts Council England's diversity strategies in relation to multilingual initiatives. Drawing on in-depth interviews and critical analysis of archival and online documents, I focus on four interrelated factors crucial for understanding how and why this unique project sprung into life in a London hotspot for real estate speculation just as the UK split from the EU, with the aim of exploring if the STC case could be used as a model for future endeavours.