Jocelyn Herbert

Jocelyn Herbert
Born	22 February 1917 London, England
Died	6 May 2003 Long Sutton, Hampshire, England, UK
Occupation	Stage designer
Nationality	British
Education	Slade School of Art
Notable works	Collaborations with Samuel Beckett, co-design of the National Theatre, London
Spouse	Anthony Lousada; 4 children

Jocelyn Herbert RDI (22 February 1917 – 6 May 2003) was a highly influential British stage designer.

Born in London the second of the four children of playwright, novelist, humorist and parliamentarian A. P. Herbert (1890–1971), through her father she had contact with artists, writers and stage people. She began her artistic training in Paris under the painter André Lhote (1885–1962). She then continued her education at the Slade School of Art, London where she trained in theatre design before joining the London Theatre Studio in 1936 where her theatre designs were used in the Studio's theatrical experiments. It was here that she was taught by Margaret Harris and Sophie Harris of the Motley Theatre Design Group.World War II (1939–45) interrupted this final stage of training, leading Herbert to concentrate on her family life.

Herbert's professional career began in 1956 when she joined George Devine's English Stage Company. Devine was a theatrical manager, director, teacher and actor. The Company was based at The Royal Court Theatre, London. Her first production was Eugène Ionesco's (1909–1994) play The Chairs. The Court attracted a hub of writers and Herbert worked on new material by the playwrights John Arden, Arnold Wesker, John Osborne, Samuel Beckett and David Storey. It was also at the Court that she first collaborated with the directors Lindsay Anderson, John Dexter and Tony Richardson.

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