Out of the Wings: A Night in Translation

Omnibus Theatre, 20 May 2026, 7:00pm

Pictured: Marinella Mezzanotte reads her translation from Italian at a previous OOTW ‘Open Mic’ at Omnibus.

FREE EVENT: BOOK HERE

Join Out of the Wings (OOTW) this 20 May 2026 for a night in celebration of theatre, translation, and how plays, words and worlds can travel from one language to another. Beginning with a theatre translation ‘open mic’ session, we will then invite a panel of guests to explore the subject of producing theatre in translation in the UK today. Booking is free, and now open here.

Theatre Translation ‘Open Mic’*

We are delighted to bring back our theatre translation ‘open mic’ session for a fifth consecutive year. We invite translators and theatre-makers working on or with plays in translation to and from any language or languages to take to the floor and share an extract of their work with us, and with each other. Our previous ‘open mics’ have included contemporary queer work from Mexico, texts from the Spanish Golden Age, urgent writing from Ukraine, and flashbacks to 1990s Italy.

How Does the ‘Open Mic’ Work?

While we ask participants to book in advance at this link for the evening, there is no need to sign up for the ‘open mic’ beforehand. From 7:00pm when doors open, colleagues from OOTW will be circulating with our ‘open mic’ list; simply speak to one of them and they will sign you up. Our emcee will then call upon participants to take the floor in order of sign-up. The ‘open mic’ will then begin at 7:30. Please limit your reading to five minutes. 

Can I Come and Just Be in the Audience?

Of course! All are welcome.

*There will not be a literal mic (see the image above for an idea of the set-up).

Panel Discussion: Theatre Translation Today

After a break following the ‘open mic’ session, we are delighted to welcome a panel of guests to discuss producing theatre in translation in the UK today. Chaired by OOTW member, researcher, translator and theatre director Camila Ymay González, the panel will include producer Sabrina Zavaglio of ZAVA productions (Utoya, Arcola Theatre; Miss I-Doll, The Other Palace; Hide and Seek, Park Theatre); David Doyle, Co-Artistic Director and Executive Producer, Jermyn Street Theatre; and actor and theatre-maker Miriam Price (Unloving, Etcetera Theatre).

OOTW Festival 2026

After the panel and following time for questions from the audience, we will close the evening with an announcement of the line-up for the OOTW Festival play readings, which will take place at Omnibus Theatre from July 14 to 18. 

After this announcement, we will close the formalities of the evening and gather for a drink in the Omnibus bar.

Attendance at OOTW: A Night in Translation is free of charge, but please book in advance at this link.

OOTW is active all year round, exploring and platforming theatre in translation through our monthly play-reading group, annual festival and forum, blog, ad-hoc events, and publishing projects such as these titles from Inti Press. For more information, visit our website at ootwfestival.com or sign up to our mailing list here. Our call for presenters for the OOTW Forum remains open until May 20, and booking for the 2026 Out of the Wings Festival this July is also now open.

Guest Speakers

David Doyle is Co-Artistic Director and Executive Director of Jermyn Street Theatre, central London's only dedicated studio theatre. Recent international productions at Jermyn Street have included Vanya is Alive by Natalia Lizorkina and Little Brother by Ibrahima Balde and Amets Arzallus Antia, adapted and translated from Basque by Timberlake Wertenbaker.

Sabrina Zavaglio is an Italian-born, London-based independent theatre producer and the founder of ZAVA Productions. She began her career in Italy working on major international musical productions, including Beauty and the Beast, Mamma Mia!, Flashdance, Sister Act, and Saturday Night Fever, and later worked freelance across the management of international concerts and large-scale events. Since relocating to London, she has developed and produced a range of new writing and international work Off West End. Productions include Hide and Seek (UK premiere at VAULT Festival 2023; Park Theatre, March 2024), Utoya (UK premiere, Arcola Theatre, August 2024), Miss I-Doll (original one-woman musical, The Other Palace, Spring 2025), and 1:17am, or until the words run out (Finborough Theatre, Spring 2026). Sabrina is also the co-founder of CambioScena, a reading collective dedicated to promoting contemporary Italian theatre in its English translation and fostering collaboration between Italian and anglophone artists. www.zavaproductions.com

Miriam Price is a London-based actor, translator, director, and producer. She founded her theatre company Loan Word (@loanwordtheatre) as a way to bring together two lifelong passions into one mission: creating theatre for stories that have never been told in English, or never staged in the UK before. Loan Word has had two translations staged to-date, and has plans for more projects down the line with scripts from Bolivia, Peru, Ukraine, and Austria.