Our organization

Theatrum Mundi is a centre for research and experimentation in the public culture of cities; based in London and Paris our work spans the UK, Europe and the Mediterranean. Our core mission is to expand the crafts of city-making through the arts – storytelling, performance, sound/music – and to diversify who has a voice in these processes. Our work brings together people with a range of backgrounds and perspectives on cities and culture: artists, activists, architects, urbanists, students, scholars, and community leaders as well as the broader public.

Teaching and Learning

We are currently partnering with Central Saint Martins to deliver Unit 1: Voices from the City as part of MA Cities, a new postgraduate course launched in 2021.

Support us

Our core mission is to expand the crafts of city-making through the arts – storytelling, performance and sound – and diversify who has a voice in these processes. We aim to empower individuals and communities to participate in urban development processes through creative methods, supporting them to make innovative and experimental work. Below are different opportunities to support us in our mission.

  • Become a Donor
  • Become a Patron
  • Become a Member
  • Corporate Support

Our charitable status

Theatrum Mundi is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation in England and Wales, governed by a board of trustees.

Registration Number: 1174149

Theatrum Mundi also operates an association loi 1901 in Paris, as a base for projects in the EU.

Registration Number: W751251542

Offices

London

c/o GROUPWORK Architects

15a Clerkenwell Close

London EC1R 0AA

Directions

Paris

Les Arches Citoyennes

3 avenue Victoria

Paris 75001

Directions

History

Theatrum Mundi was founded in 2012 by Professor Richard Sennett and Dr. Adam Kaasa. Its genesis is a series of conversations at both NYU and LSE, driven by a curiosity about the links between the crafts of performance and of city-making. Dialogue between artists and urbanists – expanding the scope of both – remains our core, and generates projects combining research and creative experimentation.

The organisation is supported by a network of collaborators, trustees, and advisors. Its intellectual approach is based in the work of Richard Sennett, who acts as chairman of the board of trustees. We receive core funding through a generous grant from James Anderson, and work with other funders on a project-by-project basis. Please contact us here if you are interested in supporting our work.

Consultancy

We are a multidisciplinary team of academic urbanists, curators and designers with a broad set of skills. Our creative approach encompasses literature reviews, interviews and ethnographic research; mapping and surveying neighbourhoods; leading workshops, focus groups and field trips.

We can develop research-led recommendations for cultural strategy and policy, that are informed by a broader understanding of the economic, cultural, social, and spatial contexts, as well as cultural programmes and interventions. As consultants, we aim to work with clients to help, design, and deliver sustainable cultural projects, demonstrate their impact, and identify new opportunities.