He was writer in residence at the Royal Court Theatre from 1995 to 1997.

At the Young Vic, he lead the campaign to rebuild the theatre which reopened to much acclaim in October 2006. He also initiated the Genesis Directors' Project, the Jerwood Directors Award and the Young Vic Award.

In addition to his many plays' libretti and films, he is the author of the non-fiction work Guns and Rain: Guerrillas & Spirit Mediums in Zimbabwe ([1]) about Zimbabwe's struggle for independence from colonial rule. Some of his stage works reflect his academic interest in aspects of African religion, including spiritual possession and cargo cults. He has also written and directed a number of documentaries for the BBC, mostly set in Africa.

Stage works

• Ion, libretto for the opera by Param Vir, (2000)
• Tobias and the Angel, libretto for the opera by Jonathan Dove, (1999)
• The Ends Of The Earth (1996)
• Desire (1990)
• A Mouthful of Birds, with Caryl Churchill (1986)
• Flight (1986)
• Sergeant Ola And His Followers (1979)
• Red Earth (1978)
• The Winter Dancers (1977)
• Not In Norwich (1977)
• Paradise (1975)
• Homage To Bean Soup (1975)
• Painting A Wall (1974)
• Bird Child (1974)

Translations

• The Cherry Orchard, translation of the play by Anton Chekhov (2001)
• La Lupa (The She-Wolf), translation of the play by Giovanni Verga (2000)
• Uncle Vanya, translation of the play by Anton Chekhov (1998)
• Ion, translation of the play by Euripides (1994)
• Hippolytos, translation of the play by Euripides (1991)
• Ghetto, translation of the musical by Joshua Sobol with English lyrics by Jeremy Sams (1989)

Film works

• The Sunday Judge - Mozambique (1985)
• Dark City - South Africa (1990)
• Welcome Home Comrades - Namibia (1990)
• Artist Unknown (1995)
• Royal Court Diaries (1996)

Notable productions as director

• Doctor Faustus, (2002)
• Tis Pity She's a Whore, (1999)

He has received the John Whiting Award and the George Orwell Award, and in 2004 the Young Vic received an Olivier Award for "a provocative season under the artistic leadership of David Lan". In the recent survey in The Stage of the 100 most influential people in the UK theatre, he was ranked #15.