Pitlochry Festival Theatre

After the decline and subsequent closure of his Park Theatre Club in the West End of Glasgow, John Stewart decided to plan a theatre site in the Knockendarroch area of Pitlochry. However Stewart's plans were met with little success as building licences were refused by the Ministry of Works.^[2]

Following this setback, Stewart had the idea of founding a tent-style theatre. After viewing the wet weather tent of London's Regent's Park and the Birmingham Arena Theatre, Stewart searched for the tents' construction company in Walsall, eventually investing in one for a theatre space for Pitlochry.

After construction work and promotion by the Scottish Tourist Board, the theatre officially opened on 19 May 1951. In his opening address, the chairman of the board and later Secretary of State for Scotland Tom Johnston said, "This theatre is a monument to one man’s courage, one man’s persistence, and one man’s great faith."

After 30 years of use and regular incidents of weather damage to the tents, it was decided in the late 1970s that the tent structure would be renovated and stabilised. Construction work began on a new theatre building at the current site, and eventually on 19 May 1981 the new theatre building was opened on the 30th anniversary of John Stewart's first tent.^[3]

The theatre is now of great cultural importance to the Perthshire area. Every summer, the theatre and its surrounding area attract thousands of tourists with the theatre's summer season.^{[citation needed]}

Traditionally, the theatre offered a rep season through the summer months, enabling visitors to see several plays within a few days; the theatre asserted that "No other UK theatre attempts this extraordinary feat" and that the nearest similar offering is in Canada.^[4][5] For example, the 2018 season offered: Chicago the musical; Jim Cartwright's The Rise and Fall of Little Voice; J. M. Barrie's Quality Street; Tom Stoppard's Travesties; Rodney Ackland's Before the Party; and Rona Munro's The Last Witch.^[4]

In 2025, Cumming announced that he would be ending the repertory season in favour of producing shorter runs at the theatre, followed by tours or transfers to other venues.^[6]

In 2014, it was announced that the Pitlochry Festival Theatre would undergo a £25 million expansion of the current building. Plans were made to have the expansion completed and opened for the theatre's 70th anniversary in 2021.^[7] The work was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. During the theatre's closures in 2020, work was undertaken to enhance the outdoor performance spaces, including refurbishment of the amphitheatre and the construction of a bandstand. The theatre reopened in August 2022 with a refurbished foyer and a new 175-seat studio space designed by Suzie Bridges Architects.^[8][9]

The Leon Sinden Awards are awarded annually to two performers appearing in the theatre's summer rep season. Previous recipients include Steven McNicoll and George Rae.^[10] They were founded by and named after the actor Leon Sinden, who spent eight seasons working at the theatre between 1965 and 1994, with the inaugural ceremony taking place in 1995.^[11] The award was specifically created to honour actors appearing in supporting roles. Those who have won twice previously are ineligible. Winners are selected by an audience vote^[12], with the result announced at the end of the season on the main stage. There were no awards in 2020 and 2021, as the theatre did not present a full rep season those years due to the COVID-19 pandemic,^[13] nor were there awards in 2000, although it was still counted as the 6th award season. Traditionally, the two awards were given to the "Best Supporting Actor" and the "Best Supporting Actress", but since 2024 the awards have been presented as "Best Supporting Performance" with no distinction made between genders.^[14]