Professor Adam J. Ledger FHEA, FRSA

Dr Adam J. Ledger

Department of Drama and Theatre Arts
Professor of Theatre and Performance

Contact details

Telephone
+44(0)121 414 5998
Fax
+44(0)121 414 5781
Email
a.j.ledger@bham.ac.uk
Address
Department of Drama and Theatre Arts
ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT

My research centres on directing, performance practice and the creation of new work.

I have published widely on theatre practice, especially directing, and significantly on the work of Odin Teatret and Eugenio Barba. I have recently completed the monograph The Director and Directing: Craft, Process and Aesthetic in Contemporary Theatre (Palgrave Macmillan).

I am co-artistic director of The Bone Ensemble, where major projects include international tours of performance about environmental issues.

Adam Ledger is part of the Birmingham Institute for Sustainability and Climate Action.

Qualifications

  • 2018: Fellowship of the Royal Society of Arts
  • 2011: Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy
  • 2007: PhD Performance Practice, University of Exeter
  • 2000: MA Theatre and Performance Studies, Rose Bruford College
  • 1992: Diploma in Acting, Webber Douglas Academy, London

Biography

Before joining the department at Birmingham, I was a Lecturer in Drama and Theatre Studies at University College Cork, Ireland, and a Lecturer in Drama at the University of Hull.

Alongside my academic work, I have directed and led projects internationally in a variety of situations and settings, including professional productions and tours, in drama schools and universities, in the ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø and with my own company.

I am a member of the 'scientific committee' of the Journal of Theatre Anthropology, and the 'Ship of Fools' scholarly collective.

I have acted as external examiner for universities internationally, and have collaborated with European and Indian universities.

Teaching

My teaching and curriculum development work has been particularly practical in focus, based around performance preparation and realisation, with further seminar or study options concerning the history and philosophy of acting, the practice and theory of directing, and text-based courses.

Postgraduate supervision

I have supervised in areas related to my research and teaching interests, and welcome enquiries, particularly from those wishing to explore directing and acting processes, theatre laboratory practice, and practice-based research in contemporary theatre-making.


Find out more - our PhD Drama and Theatre Studies  page has information about doctoral research at the ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø.

Research

My research interests centre on performance practice, especially directing, acting (and how these are brought together through rehearsal), devising and performer training. My recent research has focussed on Odin Teatret and now especially concerns contemporary directors and directing, and performance-making practices.

I published a monograph on contemporary directing, The Director and Directing: Craft, Process and Aesthetic in Contemporary Theatre (Palgrave Macmillan, 2019) and have since co-edited work, including a journal special edition on contemporary director training, and Making Interdisciplinary Performance: Processes and Practices in Collaboration (with Prof Gianna Bouchard).

My monograph A Question of Skill: Acting and Directing in Contemporary Theatre will be published by Bloomsbury in 2025.

My ongoing practice as research activities includes work with The Bone Ensemble, where I am co-artistic director. Recently, the company created work for the Commonwealth Games cultural programme, and is now creating a 'gig theatre' performance 'The Islander', in collaboration with island communities internationally. This work has regularly been funded by Arts Council England, the ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø, several Trusts, and commissioning partners. 

Other activities

I have acted as external examiner for other universities and developed distance-learning materials. I have worked with several European and Indian universities.

Publications

Highlight publications

Ledger, A 2025, . 1 edn, Bloomsbury.

Bouchard, G & Ledger, A (eds) 2025, . 1st edn, Bloomsbury Publishing, London.

Ledger, A 2019, . 1 edn, Palgrave Macmillan.

Recent publications

Book

Ledger, A, Kuhlmann, A 2021, . translated by Leonardo Mancini, Il Contemporaneo, CuePress, Imola, Italy. <>

Article

Ledger, A, Sidiropoulou, A & Wilson, T 2023, '', Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 287-292.

Ledger, A 2022, '', Contemporary Theatre Review, vol. 32, no. 1, pp. 105-109.

Ledger, A, Kuhlmann, A, Christoffersen, EE, Turner, J, Campbell, P & Chemi, T 2022, '', Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 156-158 .

Ledger, A 2022, '', Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 135-135.

Ledger, A, Kuhlmann, A, Christoffersen, EE, Turner, J, Campbell, P & Chemi, T 2022, '', Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 37-39.

Ledger, A 2020, '', Contemporary Theatre Review, vol. 30, no. 2, pp. 265-268.

Ledger, A 2018, '', Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 282-286.

Chapter (peer-reviewed)

Ledger, A 2020, . in M Delgado & D Rebellato (eds), Contemporary European Stage Directors (2nd ed.).. 2nd edn, Routledge.

Ledger, A & Kuhlmann, A 2018, . in P Allain & S Shepherd (eds), The Great European Stage Directors: Grotowski, Brook, Barba. Great European Stage Directors, vol. 5, Bloomsbury, London, pp. 145-202, 221-232, 236-237. <>

Ledger, A 2017, . in K Reilly (ed.), Contemporary Approaches to Adaptation in Theatre. Adaptation in Theatre and Performance, Palgrave Macmillan.

Book/Film/Article review

Ledger, A 2020, '', New Theatre Quarterly, vol. 36, no. 2.

Comment/debate

Ledger, A 2023, '', Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 423-4.

Performance

Ledger, A, , 2022, Performance. <>

Special issue

Ledger, A (Guest ed.), Sidiropoulou, A (Guest ed.), Wilson, T (ed.), Pitches, J (ed.) & Worth , L (ed.) 2023, '', Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, vol. 14, no. 3. <>