Summer Theatre Blog:

Tom Edden in A Little Hotel On The SideTom Edden returns to stage in his first role since playing Alfie in One Man 2 Guvnors (NT,West End, Broadway: Tony, Critics Circle Noms, Drama Desk Winner). He opens at Theatre Royal Bath in Feydeay farce A Little Hotel on the Side with Lindsay Posner directing. Richard Dempsey joins the Michael Grandage Company for A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the next in a hugley popular season of plays currently resident at the Noel Coward Theatre. Plans have been announced for a revival and New York transfer of the Tricyle’s Red Velvet with Natasha Gordon reprising her role as Connie whilst Gavin Spokes joins Headlong Theatre’s exciting adaptaion of 1984 which Robert Icke directs. Stephen Wilson, meanwhile, continues at The National shifting focus to Joe Hill Gibbin’s revival of Marlowe’s Edward II.

Openings include Shawshank Redemption in Edinburgh with Vincenzo Nicoli, Too Clever By Half at The Royal Exchange with Nitin Kundra, as well as Molly Logan in Blue Stockings and Jess Murphy in The Lightning Child both at The Globe. Amy Cudden continues her successful run in The National’s One Man 2 Guvnors (Haymarket) as do Geraldine Alexander in Strange Interlude (Lyttleton) and Scott Karim in Othello (Olivier).

Theatre Round-up:

Open Court at the Royal CourtThe Royal Court is taken over by writers in Vicki Featherstone’s opening season, as a weekly rep of new plays move into the theatre downstairs. Natasha Gordon, Ferdy Roberts and Angela Terence will all join the Open Court ensemble for its summer season of plays. Nitin Kundra starts rehearsals for The Royal Exchange/Told By an Idiot co production of Too Clever By Half directed by Paul Hunter for the main house this summer whilst Gavin Spokes plays Oliver Hardy in The Watermill’s Laurel & Hardy directed by Paul Foster.  Vincenzo Nicoli heads to the Edinburgh Festival where he plays Bogs Diamond in Lucy Pittman’s Wallace’ s revival of Shawshank Redemption alongside Omid Djalili.

Openings include Sara Powell in Disgraced at The Bush, Geraldine Alexander in Strange Interlude at The National, Molly Logan in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at The Globe and Jess Murphy in Macbeth also at The Globe. Amy Cudden continues her West End run in One Man 2 Guvnors as does Derek Hutchinson in Cocktail Sticks which completes its run.

Theatre Updates

In Rehearsals:

Reflective-Pictures

Geraldine Alexander returns to The National Theatre in a revival of Eugene O’Neils Strange Interlude with Simon Godwin directing.  Sara Powell will be appearing in Disgraced at The Bush Theatre, a new play by Ayaad Aktar which premiered at The Lincoln Centre, New York and now comes to London with Nadia Fall directing. Daniel Rabin takes on the title role in Oedipus which Steven Berkoff directs for The Spoleto Festival whilst Colm Gormley joins the company of Dancing At Lughnasa with Richard Beecham directing for Northampton and Oxford.  Jess Murphy and Molly Logan, meanwhile,  start rehearsals for The Globe season where they will be performing in Macbeth & Lightning Child and A Midsummer Night’s Dream & Blue Stockings respectively.

Openings:

The Winslow Boy at The Old Vic with Richard Teverson has opened to wonderful reviews. Cocktail Sticks featuring Derek Hutchinson has also received high praise for its West End transfer.  The Low Road has premiered at The Royal Court with Natasha Gordon part of a brilliant ensemble in Dominic Cooke’s ambitious production. Next up, Children of the Sun (Stephen Wilson) and Othello (Scott Karim) both April openings at The National.