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David Benedict

Biography

David Benedict has been a daily columnist and theatre editor on the Independent and arts editor of the Observer. He is chief London critic of Variety, a regular guest on the BBC, and is currently writing the authorised biography of Stephen Sondheim. Read David's columns for The Stage every Wednesday.

Recent Articles

Why does excellence suddenly seem to be back on ACE's agenda?

OpinionMay 14, 2024

The Arts Council’s chief executive has recently been determined to speak about the notion of excellence, a concept that has felt actively downgraded since the launch of Let’s Create

Toilet humour? These playwrights have found compassion in the cubicle

OpinionMay 7, 2024

David Benedict looks at two recent plays – Sam Grabiner’s Boys on the Verge of Tears and Harry McDonald’s Foam, both set in public bathrooms – to examine how this unlikely location yields tender stories

Not all West End hits thrive on Broadway. Why?

OpinionApr 30, 2024

Rebecca Frecknall’s Cabaret on Broadway has been met with surprising reviews. But when it comes to transatlantic transfers, they remain an unknown territory

Misleading marketing must go now... and you can quote me on that

OpinionApr 23, 2024

When theatre advertising is misleading, it lets down audiences as well as the critics misquoted

Arlene Phillips’ joyful Olivier win was a rare example of a justified ovation

OpinionApr 16, 2024

The Olivier Awards 2024 ushered in one particularly special moment – and with it, reignited the conversation around overenthusiastic standing ovations, says David Benedict

How do the Olivier Awards actually work?

OpinionApr 9, 2024

As the prestigious awards approach this weekend, David Benedict explains how the nominees and winners chosen – revealing some troublingly blurred lines in the process

Making a musical? Be sure to ask why

OpinionApr 2, 2024

Inserting dramatically inert songs into theatre is what makes people hate musicals. Every song must have a purpose

Illegible seat numbers and indulgent pauses – my theatrical pet hates

OpinionMar 26, 2024

Meaningless pauses, clichéd soundtracks and actors shouting are just a few of the things I would banish from theatre. What are your pet hates?

Meta moment: Plays about theatre deserve more credit

OpinionMar 19, 2024

Writing plays about theatre and using the play-within-a-play format has a lineage dating back to Shakespeare and beyond. Modern works such as Jack Thorne’s The Motive and the Cue prove that audiences are still hungry for the metatheatrical form

Is relevance really the heart of the arts?

OpinionMar 12, 2024

Thanks to Arts Council England’s recently published analysis on opera and music theatre, ‘relevance’ is back on the agenda. But the report and its conclusions do not show true understanding of art and artists