Theatre Royal Stratford East

Talk about having a lot to live up to: in the '50s and '60s Theatre Royal Stratford East was arguably the most influential theatre in London, thanks to the presence of the visionary Joan Littlewood and her Theatre Workshop.

These days its output tends to send fewer shockwaves around the world. But all that might change with the arrival of new artistic director Nadia Fall, who's turned heads by scrapping the venue's popular Caribbean cafe, cutting its focus on musical theatre development, and programming an ambitious set of shows that aim to get audiences in from across the city.