Gate Theatre

Theatre in Dublin, Republic of Ireland, founded in 1928 by Mícheál Mac Liammóir and his partner Hilton Edwards (1903-1982) as a complement to the Abbey Theatre's Irish literary revival repertoire. The Earl of Longford (1902-1961) became co-director in 1931. A direct outcome of Edward Martyn's Hardwicke Street Theatre (1914-20) and the Dublin Drama League (1918-28), the Gate continued to present international drama and experimental theatre.

Originally the Gate company performed in the new Peacock Theatre, but in 1930 it inaugurated its own hall in the old Rotunda hospital on Parnell Square with a production of Faust. In the early years of the theatre, Mac Liammóir and Edwards looked after most of the lighting, design, acting, and production of shows. The company finally received a government subsidy in 1970, after 40 years of financial difficulties. Since 1983 its director, Michael Colgan, has continued the theatre's successful mix of modern, classical, and new Irish drama.