Anna Gallon: Appointed director of York Shakespeare Project’s Love’s Labours Lost
ANNA Gallon will direct York Shakespeare Project in Love’s Labour’s Lost next spring as its 25-year project to stage all of William Shakespeare’s plays rolls on.
Her immersive production, set amid modern nightlife, will run at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, from April 22 to 25 2026 with 7.30pm evening performances complemented by a 2.30pm Saturday matinee.
“We are absolutely delighted to welcome Anna as our director,” says YSP chair Tony Froud. “She emerged from an outstanding group of applicants and we know that she will find an exciting way to let the play speak to us in 2026.”
Anna is co-founder and artistic director of York theatre company Four Wheel Drive, perhaps best known for its 2023 production of The Trial Of Margaret Clitheroe in the Guildhall. She also appeared as Lucetta in YSP’s The Two Gentlemen Of Verona, directed by Tempest Wisdom in 2024.
“I’m thrilled to be directing Love’s Labour’s Lost for YSP,” she says. “It’s a dazzling, witty play about language, love, and self-discovery – and I can’t wait to bring it to life in a way that feels vibrant and connected to the world we live in today.”
Set firmly in the here and now, Anna’s Love’s Labour’s Lost will re-imagine Shakespeare’s sparkling comedy of wordplay and romantic mischief in a world of modern nightlife. Her playful, immersive production promises to mix verse, rhythm, dance and striking visuals to create a fresh and contemporary celebration of love, temptation and folly.
Auditions will be held in Room 2 at Southlands Methodist Church on Tuesday, November 25, from 6.30pm, Wednesday, November 26, 6.30pm, and Saturday, November 29, from 10am. Anyone interested in auditioning can sign up via the online form: https://forms.gle/XiDKFL4CLiehUgacA
For more information or if you have any questions, please contact Anna directly at annagalloncreative@gmail.com.