About Hartshorn - Hook

Louis Hartshorn and Brian Hook have worked together since 2007, creating award-winning businesses that have produced over 130 productions across 5 continents and operated venues in London and New York.

Productions

Their productions have won 5 prestigious global awards: an Olivier Award, a Themed Entertainment Association Award (pictured), two Global Licensing Awards, and LA Drama Critics Circle Award.  They have also been nominated for a Grammy Award and received four further Olivier nominations.

Venues

Louis and Brian have run the Arts Theatre in the West End since 2012 - ending with the record breaking run of The Choir of Man and also commercially launching the global smash hit Six the Musical in 2017. The theatre is now closed and they plan to relaunch following a major refurbishment.

They are building a temporary theatre at London’s iconic Marble Arch, which will host the Arts Theatre’s programme while the refurbishment of the Arts Theatre is underway.

They have also operated The Stranger, a temporary nightclub use of the ARTS 57 NYC theatre space on w57th Street in Manhattan, which won Best New Nightlife Experience from Time Out in 2023.

Our Venues

Immersive Experiences

Brian has led the creation of some of the most successful immersive experiences in the world, including the Themed Entertainment Awards winner Peaky Blinders: The Rise, and the immersive Great Gatsby which ran for 7 years in London and transferred to Cardiff, Dublin, Seoul, Brussels and New York. Louis directed an immersive version of West Side Story at the Savoy Ballroom performed to an audience to an audience including HRH King Charles III, starring Simon Callow, raising over £1.5m for the King's Trust in one evening. They co-produced Richard II as the only theatrical production ever to take place in the Palace of Westminster, and co-produced 9 to 5 in the West End with Dolly Parton and ATG.

Supporting the arts

As the children of two teachers and two youth workers, they are passionate about making an impact for the community. They operate Kingswood House as an arts centre and educational and community facility in South London. Kingswood provides a free, hot meal for anyone who wants to attend on a weekly basis, and provides facilities for schools and creative classes all year round. Kingswood House also hosts weddings and events, as well as providing creative and rehearsal space for the arts industry.