Personal profile
Research interests
My research has often focused on post-war and contemporary British theatre. 1956 and All That (Routledge, 1999) is a rereading of the ‘theatrical revolution’ thought to have taken place at the Royal Court around Look Back in Anger. My short monograph Theatre & Globalization argues for the theatre as a source of cosmopolitan resistance to globalization. The book is part of Theatre &, a new series of books opening up the latest thinking in theatre and performance research. I have also edited Modern British Playwriting 2000-2009, The Suspect Culture Book, Contemporary European Theatre Directors, Contemporary European Playwrights and the forthcoming Cambridge Companion to British Theatre since 1945.
My current book project is Naturalist Theatre: A New Cultural History for Routledge, a large-scale interdisciplinary monograph exploring the emergence of Naturalist theatre in the last third of the ninteenth century.
I am also a playwright, and my work has been performed across Britain and in Europe and America, on stage and particularly radio, where my work has won awards and I am widely regarded one of the most innovative writers for the medium. In 2014-17 I was lead writer on Emile Zola: Blood, Sex & Money for BBC Radio 4, an epic 25-hour adaptation of Zola's 20-volume 'Rougon-Macquart' novel sequence. It is the most ambitious adaptation BBC radio have ever produced (and is therefore quite likely the most ambitious radio adaptation in the world). My play You & Me a formally experimental response to the #MeToo movement, was shortlisted for Best Original Drama in the BBC Audio Awards and won Silver at the ARIAs in the Best Original Storytelling category. I am currently working on three new plays addressing the legacies of slavery, the place of nationhood in the imagination, and the interplay of sound and memory.
I designed, with colleagues in English, two new joint degrees in Creative Writing, whose first students graduated in 2007. With other colleagues, I introduced degrees in Philosophy, whose first students graduated in 2010. As Head of the Department of Drama, I introduced the joint degree with Dance, whose first students graduated in 2017.
I've chaired numerous platforms for the National Theatre, Lyric Hammersmith, and Manchester Royal Exchange, have been a contributing editor for New Theatre Quarterly and Associate Editor of Contemporary Theatre Review.
You can find out more at my website: http://www.danrebellato.co.uk and at my Twitter account @danrebellato. Please note: all opinions are mine and do not necessarily reflect those of Royal Holloway or the Department of Drama, Theatre and Dance.
Keywords
- British theatre; globalization; playwriting; philosophy; ethics; modernist theatre; naturalist theatre
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
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SDG 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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The Suspect Culture Book
Rebellato, D. (Editor) & Eatough, G. (Editor), 2013, London: Oberon. 335 p.Research output: Book/Report › Book
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Modern British Playwriting 2000-2009: Voices, Documents, New Interpretations
Rebellato, D. (Editor), Oct 2013, London: Methuen Drama. (Decades)Research output: Book/Report › Book
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Theatre & Globalization
Rebellato, D., 2009, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. 97 p. (Theatre&)Research output: Book/Report › Book
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Contemporary European Theatre Directors
Delgado, M. M. & Rebellato, D., 2010, Abingdon: Routledge.Research output: Book/Report › Book
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Projects
- 2 Finished
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Knowledge Exchange Hubs: Creativeworks London Student name – Emma Miles
Rebellato, D. (PI)
Arts & Humanities Research Council AHRC
26/01/15 → 25/08/15
Project: Research
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Theatre Spectatorship and Value Attribution
Rebellato, D. (PI)
Arts & Humanities Research Council AHRC
1/08/13 → 31/05/14
Project: Research
Activities
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John Wyndham: No Place Like Earth
Rebellato, D. (Contributor)
21 Dec 2010Activity: Other › Public engagement, outreach and knowledge exchange - Participation in radio programme
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Blasted: The Life and Death of Sarah Kane
Rebellato, D. (Contributor)
19 Feb 2009Activity: Other › Public engagement, outreach and knowledge exchange - Participation in radio programme
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British Theatre Before & After Covid
Rebellato, D. (Speaker)
10 Feb 2026Activity: Talk, presentation or media contribution › Invited talk
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Building Your Play
Rebellato, D. (Organiser)
10 Jan 2026Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Workshop, seminar, course or webinar.
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BBC Breakfast
Rebellato, D. (Speaker)
3 Jan 2026Activity: Talk, presentation or media contribution › Participation in TV programme
Prizes
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Best Ensemble: British Audio Awards
Rebellato, D. (Recipient), Nov 2025
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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Best Fictional Storytelling: The Radio Academy ARIAs
Rebellato, D. (Recipient), 3 May 2022
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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Best New/Original Play: British Audio Awards
Rebellato, D. (Recipient), Nov 2025
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)