The Lowdown

People sit at a table in front of blue and red store front that reads 'The Glitch'
Two people stand behind a bar, with shelves behind them

We want to put culture at the heart of our community and inspire people to effect positive change through creativity.

The Glitch is a vibrant artsy café & bar and unique creative space in the heart of Waterloo, created by VAULT Creative Arts, producers of VAULT Festival.

Good coffee, cheeesy toasties, cold beers, delicious cocktails and the most welcoming staff. It’s the perfect place to meet with friends, work in comfort, or relax admiring local artworks.

As the evening draws in, the space morphs into a lively bar with comedy, theatre, music, spoken word, and special one-off events and parties. A unique space with plenty of atmosphere that’s open and inclusive to all.

We’re queer-friendly and proudly a safe space for the LGBTQIA community, with many of our events led by or created for queer people.

A performer wearing all black, with brown hair stands against a brick wall. Above them is a lit up sign that says 'The Glitch' and some multi coloured bunting.
An audience watches a performer, who stands on stage with a party hat

Our Story

The Glitch exists to be a place where people can belong, and to put culture and creativity at the heart of our community. 

The Glitch opened in July 2022 as the first permanent home for VAULT Creative Arts and VAULT Festival. Alongside tasty food and drinks, we showcase work-in-progress shows across theatre, comedy, and cabaret, and host regular networking and development events, providing leading independent artists with an opportunity to try out work in various stages in front of a live audience. A year on, we’ve hosted more than 500 shows at The Glitch; have 15+ artists in residence, have hosted two editions of our live performance festival, A Pinch of VAULT, and we’re still providing a welcoming space for artists and the local community to meet, work and have fun.

Our Team

  • Oli Savage (he/him) - Artistic Director

    Oli is an award winning artistic director who’s particularly excited by plays with music, storytelling, and making work for unusual spaces (like The Glitch)! When he’s not in Artistic-Directing, he’s an avid fan of table-top games and public transport. He’s currently also on a mission to walk all the waterways of London – we’ll let you know how that goes.

  • Katrina Ilievia (she/her) - Bar Manager

    Kat is our bar manager with a specialised interest in cocktails and their evolution and significance, historically and scientifically. Having worked at (and drank at!) a large chunk of the London cocktail bars, she's always prepared with suggestions on what your next drink should be. When not managing the bar at The Glitch, she's trying to balance her time between traveling, catching up on classical literature, writing the film she's been trying to finish for the last 5 years and rotting in bed with obscene amounts of takeaway.

  • Ellie Shaw (she/they) - Theatre Manager

    Ellie is a writer, theatremaker, and self-professed weirdo in a basement (and proud.) She's our Theatre Manager and loves a natter over a coffee about shows as much as a jazzy spreadsheet and a fundraising proposal. She loves her cat Lunie, as well as all other cats.