London’s Most Unassuming Impresario Bows Out

Neil Bartlett is leaving his post as artistic director of London’s Lyric Hammersmith theater after 11 years, having “put his own name to no fewer than 10 translations of plays by Racine, Marivaux, Genet and Labiche, while a new version of Don Juan will be his third Molière… He has also devised, designed and even appeared in his own shows. The one string missing from his bow is that he doesn’t seem to sell the ice creams.” Still, Bartlett has never been much of a self-promoter, and his tenure at the Lyric, while undeniably successful, was surprisingly low-profile.