Museums And Archives

THE HOMECOMING: 50 years of the Royal Exchange Theatre - A Celebration of Costume, Craft & Storytelling

2026 marks the Royal Exchange Theatre’s 50th anniversary, and this ambitious exhibition will celebrate, preserve and share our unique costume collection. The project will unveil our artistic heritage, conserve our historical costume archive, and showcase the craft of our makers, actors and designers through storytelling. The exhibition will be a living reflection of our world today, protecting technical craftsmanship and artistic heritage for future generations while raising awareness of our environmental commitment through sustainable costume practices. We will co-create an intergenerational, site-specific performance in response to the exhibition with members of our Young and Elders Companies. Inspired by stories from our 50-year history of costumes and storytelling, we will deepen community engagement with Manchester’s cultural history and inspire new conversations around identity, memory and creativity. Ultimately, our commitment is to strengthen connections across generations and ensure the costume collection continues to shape the future of theatre-making in Manchester and beyond.