Ryan Leder

Ryan Leder is a playwright from Northamptonshire. He has been represented by Berlin Associates since 2022.

Ryan’s work has earned praise for its creativity and boldness – often blending theatrical playfulness, humour, and ambition to explore intimate human stories. He trained at RADA (where he was mentored by Olivier-nominated playwright Paul Sirett) and has gone on to specialise in co-creation and genre fiction.

Recently, Ryan made his international debut at the Coliseu Porto Ageas in Portugal with FIREWALL, a new commission by Derby Theatre in collaboration with Derby Cathedral School and the Philippine Educational Theater Association. Additionally, FIREWALL is currently being translated for German audiences by Drei Masken Verlag in Munich.

Selected Works:

- Ryan was the winner of the inaugural Dame Janet Suzman Playwriting Prize in 2017 for NUMBERED DAYS.
- NUMBERED DAYS toured with support from Arts Council England, The Core at Corby Cube and The Travers Foundation in 2018.
- This was followed by LOOP in 2019, which toured with additional support from Talking Birds, ARC Stockton, and New Perspectives Theatre Company.
- Ryan’s first mid-scale production, 60 MILES BY ROAD OR RAIL, premiered at Royal & Derngate in September 2021.
In 2022, Ryan was commissioned to adapt Barry Unsworth's Booker Prize-nominated novel MORALITY PLAY for Royal & Derngate.
- Ryan's work also extends beyond the stage. In 2021, he wrote THIS PAIN IS MINE, a 360 Virtual Reality play for The Core at Corby Cube, and authored YOU MUST STAY AT HOME, a digital and print publication about homelessness during the Covid-19 pandemic, commissioned by Made With Many.

His audio work includes PATRICK, commissioned by Pentabus and produced with Naked Productions, and also A SHORT STORY ABOUT TIME TRAVEL, which was commissioned by BBC Arts and Arts Council England. The latter was performed by comedian Jonny Donahoe and broadcast on BBC Radio 6 in 2021.

Ryan is currently seeking to develop HEADLOCK, a new play exploring the fusion of theatre and professional wrestling, as well as BURGER CHEF, which was recently shortlisted for the Edinburgh Untapped Award after a workshopping residency at Edge Hill University with dramaturgical support from the Royal Court.