The Royal Theatrical Support Trust (RTST), in partnership with Mercury Theatre Colchester, Rose Theatre Kingston, Storyhouse Chester, and Northern Stage Newcastle, has announced Lily Dyble as the winner of the 2025 RTST Sir Peter Hall Director Award.
Now in its ninth year, the prestigious award honours the legacy of RTST co-founder Sir Peter Hall and offers a career-transforming opportunity for an emerging director to helm a mid-scale production and take it on tour.
As the 2025 winner, Lily Dyble will direct a brand-new production opening in September 2026 on the main stage at Mercury Theatre. The production will then tour to Rose Theatre, Storyhouse, and Northern Stage.
The title of the production will be announced in the coming months.
The RTST will provide a £60,000 grant to support the production, which forms part of Mercury Theatre’s autumn season.
Lily Dyble is currently directing A Very Expensive Poison by Lucy Prebble at Mountview and is associate director on The Producers in the West End. She has previously worked with Joe Mantello on Here We Are at the National Theatre and with Nicholas Hytner on Richard II at the Bridge Theatre.
She has collaborated with leading companies including the Royal Opera House, Manchester International Festival, Stratford East, Opera North, and Welsh National Opera.
The runner-up, Sophie Drake, will be mentored by Mercury Theatre.
Lily Dyble said:
“I’m honoured to receive this year’s RTST Sir Peter Hall Director Award, and thrilled to be creating a production next year for the Mercury, Storyhouse, the Rose, and Northern Stage. This award is a visionary and transformative idea, offering directors like me the chance to express ourselves at substantial scale for the first time. The award is also a statement of belief: a gesture of commitment and encouragement for which I am more grateful than I can say. With that in mind, I would like to express my sincere thanks to the panel for their support, as well as taking this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported and believed in me during my career so far. I would also like to thank the RTST team for their help and kindness during the application process, and to urge any directors considering next year’s award to apply. As well as being rigorous, the process so far has also been enormously enjoyable, and I’m hugely excited for the next chapter.”
Sir Geoffrey Cass, RTST Chairman, commented:
“The 2025 RTST Sir Peter Hall Director Award had 8 finalists of the very highest calibre, selected from a strong field of over 100 candidates… We warmly congratulate Lily Dyble and the runner-up, Sophie Drake, and applaud the six other directors on the all-female Shortlist.”
Mark Hawes, Director of the RTST, added:
“We’re proud and delighted that our 2025 Award is the catalyst for Lily Dyble’s regional mid-scale directing debut… The Award has again contributed to the promotion of women in British mid-scale theatre: all eight directors Shortlisted for the 2025 Award are women.”
Natasha Rickman, Artistic Director of Mercury Theatre, said:
“We were so impressed with Lily’s flair and vision, and know she will create something really exciting for audiences across the country… The RTST is a wonderful opportunity for theatres to meet so many exciting artists.”
More information can be found here.
