‘I realised I wanted to be a director while acting in a school play’

Josie Rourke is the outgoing artistic director at London’s Donmar Warehouse and is directing the movie Mary Queen Of Scots.

‘There’s a scene in the Mary Queen Of Scots film where Elizabeth I, played by Margot Robbie, is discussing her future. As we were shooting, a foal came out of nowhere and looked Margot straight in the eye – it was a complete fluke. I whispered, “Cut!” and we all cried! It was one of the great moments of my life.

I’ve spent my career directing theatre and will leave London’s Donmar Warehouse in April after eight years. I realised I wanted to be a director while acting in a sixth-form play. On stage, I thought, “I’m awful, he’s really bad, she’s standing in the wrong place and that light shouldn’t be green.” It was my eureka moment.

Directors occupy a unique role in deciding which stories get told, how and by whom. Of all the productions I oversaw at the Donmar, my highlights were the first performance of Privacy, during which the audience’s phones were hacked, and The Vote, starring Dame Judi Dench, which was broadcast live on the night of the 2015 election. I also loved our all-female Shakespeare trilogy, directed by Phyllida Lloyd.

Deciding to leave the Donmar was hard, but it felt like the right moment. I’m not trained in cinema, but I do have decades of experience in working with actors, costume, production, hair, make-up and scene designers. When it came to making Mary Queen Of Scots, I sought advice from Phyllida, who directed Mamma Mia!. She was realistic about how tough it is to make a movie, not just intellectually, but physically, too – 10-hour days of shooting on the side of mountains in the Highlands with 300 extras and sideways rain changed my relationship with my body. There’s something cool about needing to be fit for work rather than vanity.

Part of a director’s skill is to draw other people’s influences, tastes and vision together, and encourage boldness. Nonetheless, MQOS is a gigantic responsibility. A lot of trust and a large budget has been given to me. I’m excited to work in film, though I’ll always do theatre.’

My 2019 trend prediction

Prepare for the brilliance of the new Bush Theatre Artistic Director, Lynette Linton, who I confidently predict will take the world of theatre by storm next year.