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Coventry University to host national exhibition celebrating the best of British theatre design
Simon Kenny, set and costume designer, will exhibit work from The Lord of the Rings – A Musical Tale at the Watermill 2023, reimagined for Chicago Shakespeare Theatre and international tour 2024-2025. Photography by Liz Lauren.
University news / Student news / Creative and Cultural Industries
Wednesday 28 October 2026
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Incredible set, lighting and sound designs that have graced theatres across the globe will be on show at a major national exhibition hosted by Coventry University.
Celebrating The Society of British Theatre Designers’ (SBTD) 50th anniversary, the event will bring set models, costumes, technical drawings, lighting and sound installations to the Delia Derbyshire Building – home to the university’s College of the Arts and Society – in February and March 2027.
Celebrating contemporary performance design across the UK, design | stage will showcase the breadth of design across theatre, opera, dance, live events, festivals, film, digital performance, lighting, sound, costume and scenography. Installed across the Delia Derbyshire Building’s facilities and nearby Ellen Terry Building, the exhibition will showcase the best of creative designs by members of SBTD, the Association of Lighting Production and Design (ALPD) and the Association of Sound Designers and Producers (ASDP).
The landmark Coventry exhibition will see interactive digital projects with Coventry University students such as virtual reality experience OnStage and the film The Designers Lens.
Check out some photos from the exhibit below
At the same time, The Belgrade Theatre will host SBTD@50, looking back at how the organisation, those involved and various practices shaped the theatre industry as SBTD marks its 50th anniversary.
A further public programme titled Making Unmaking Remaking will take place with a line-up of workshops including The Design Skills Centre from the National Theatre London, talks on sustainable practice, and empowering artists and business management. It will also feature international symposiums, outreach activities and industry networking events bringing an array of people across the industry to the Delia Derbyshire Building.
Our incredible Delia Derbyshire Building is the perfect setting for The Society of British Theatre Designers’ national exhibition which encapsulates the best of the creative arts and industries – and highlights the combination of skills, crafts, technologies and creative imagination.
Talented individuals have come together to create each piece from eye-catching set designs through to the striking costumes. We foster that sense of creative experimentation, professionalism and collaboration in our students, so for them to see these works in such close proximity will challenge and inspire them as they begin their career journeys.
Shaun Hides, Academic Dean of Coventry University’s College of the Arts and Society
Coventry has always been about reinvention; from its industrial and manufacturing heritage to its contemporary identity as a centre for creativity and digital innovation. When you step into the city you can feel that it is undergoing an arts and cultural shift.
There is a powerful shift happening and it is only fitting for The Society of British Theatre Designers to bring our landmark exhibition to be part of this movement in the heart of the country.
In co-creation with Coventry University we have brought this exhibition to the region to come alive and showcase design not just as static but as something that moves and evolves with collaborative visual storytelling. Coventry University is an inspiring setting; it is not just about the final design but about showcasing the processes, the creative journey, collaborations, conversations, experimentation and the forward-thinking that shapes and then reshape design. We are grateful to Coventry University and feel honoured to be able to include students as part of our journey to make this a success.
Dana Pinto, curator of design | stage
The exhibition will be the second national event to be hosted at the Delia Derbyshire Building after the British Art Show arrived in the city for its 10th iteration.
The SBTD exhibition will be open Monday to Wednesday from 10am to 730pm, Thursday to Saturday from 10am to 8pm and Sunday 10am to 4pm.
Photo Gallery
1. Francis O’Connor, designer, will exhibit work from The Importance of Being Earnest, Garsington Opera, UK, July 2026. Photography by Craig Fuller
2. takis, set and costume designer, will exhibit work from Nabucco, Savonlinna Opera Festival, Olavinlinna Castle, from July 2024. Photography by Jake Wiltshire and Jussi Silvennoinen
3. Simon Kenny, set and costume designer, will exhibit work from The Lord of the Rings – A Musical Tale at the Watermill 2023, reimagined for Chicago Shakespeare Theatre and international tour 2024-2025. Photography by Liz Lauren
4. Dick Bird, set and costume designer, will exhibit work from The Nutcracker, by Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky, for the English National Ballet at London Coliseum, December, 2024. Photography by Johann Persson
5. Tom Piper, set and costume designer, will exhibit work from The Tempest at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford upon Avon, February 2023. Photography by Ikin Yum
6. Mayou Trikerioti, set and costume designer, will exhibit work from House of David Seasons 1& 2 from Amazon Prime, 2025-2026. Image credit - artwork by Mayou Trikerioti
7. Patrick Connellan, set and costume designer, will exhibit work from Hamlet by William Shakespeare from the Stafford Gatehouse Theatre, Stafford Shakespeare Festival, June 2025. Photography by Stephen Sutton
8. Nicky Shaw, international set and costume designer, will exhibit work from The Railway Children, a new opera at the Glyndebourne Opera House, Sussex, October and November 2025. Photography by Richard Hubert Smith
9. Isabella Bywater, Director and Theatre Designer, will exhibit work from Symphony of Sorrowful Songs by Gorecki, English National Opera, London Coliseum, April – May 2023. Photography by Clive Barda
10. Jasmine Swan, set and costume designer, will exhibit work from Mother Goose at the Mercury Theatre, Colchester, November 2025 – January 2026. Photogrpahy by Pamela Raith
Find out more about creative courses at the College of the Arts and Society.
