Arcola Theatre was founded by Artistic Director Mehmet Ergen, and Executive Producer Leyla Nazli in September 2000.

[citation needed] In 2007, an Arcola co-production of Mojo Mickey by Owen McCafferty became its first West End transfer to the Trafalgar Studios.

[4] 2007 also marked the first year of the Arcola's Grimeborn, an opera and musical theatre festival that now runs for six weeks in August and September.

[citation needed] The theatre claims to be committed to achieving carbon-neutral status and a research project, Arcola Energy, "bringing together the creative mindset and the engineering methodology", is established on the building's top floor to develop and market hydrogen fuel cells, with the profits subsidising the theatre's community arts projects.

[5] Simple8's 2008 production at the Arcola, The Living Unknown Soldier, was the first show to be powered by the venue's hydrogen fuel cell.