Margaret Shewring is Emeritus Reader in Theatre and Performance Studies at the University of Warwick and former Director of the Diploma and MA in Theatre Consultancy. Much of her research and publication is concerned with spaces for performance from the Renaissance to the present.

Robin Townley is Chief Executive of the Association of British Theatre Technicians, with over thirty years' experience in the arts and entertainment industry. He is a director of Skillscene and a member of the Standing Committee for Technical Standards for Places of Entertainment.

Tim Foster is the founding partner in Foster Wilson Architects, now Foster Wilson Size. He is currently chairman of the ABTT Theatre Planning Committee and the International Organisation of Scenographers, Theatre Architects and Technicians (OISTAT) Architecture Commission. He is Fellow of the ABTT and, from 2009-2015, was a trustee of The Theatres Trust.

David Hamer, a theatre architect working on the design of both new build and refurbished performing arts venues, works for Theatre Projects consultants. He created the drawings for the ABTT book Modern Theatres 1950-2020, published by Routledge in 2021.

Section 1: Design principles Section 2: Developing the brief Section 3: Social principles for the twenty-first century Section 4: Front of house and other public spaces Section 5: Auditorium design principles Section 6: Auditorium: Sensory and practical imperatives Section 7: Backstage creative environment Section 8: The stage and stage machinery Section 9: Lighting, sound and video Section 10: Restoration and conversion of existing buildings Section 11: Moving forwards: a call to action Reference projects