Old Vic Duchess of Malfi
Tom Bateman, Mark Bonnar, Harry Lloyd and Finbar Lynch will join Eve Best in John Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi, directed by Jamie Lloyd, at the Old Vic in London from 17 March to 9 June.
Making Noise Quietly at Donmar
Robert Holman's Making Noise Quietly at the Donmar Warehouse from 19 April to 26 May will be directed by Peter Gill with a cast including Jordan Dawes, Matthew Tennyson, Susan Brown, John Hillingworth, Ben Blatt and Sara Kestelman.
Shakespeare's Globe Anne Boleyn tour
Shakespeare's Globe will tour Howard Brenton's Anne Boleyn with a cast including James Garnon as King James I, Julius D'Silva as Thomas Cromwell and Colin Hurley as Cardinal Wolsey plus Jo Herbert in the title role and David Sturzaker as King Henry VIII.
Sullivan joins Rock You
Noel Sullivan will replace Alex Gaumond in the role of Galileo in We Will Rock You at the Dominion Theatre in London from 20 February. Gaumond finishes in the show on 18 February to focus on his recording career. Sullivan has been cast in the show until late October.
UK premiere of Sofi Oksanen’s Purge at Arcola
The cast has been announced for the UK premiere of Sofi Oksanen’s Purge at Arcola Theatre, directed by Elgiva Field.
Aliide Truu will be played by Illona Linthwaite, Zara will be played by Elicia Daly, Kris Gummerus will play Hans Pekk, Johnny Vivash will play Martin Truu, Benjamin Way will be Pasha and Liam Thomas will play Lavrenti.
The production will run at the Arcola from 22 February to 24 March.
From Astrologer to Wizard
Former astrologer Russell Grant will take over from Michael Crawford as the Wizard in The Wizard of Oz (Palladium) from 14th February.
Prenger and Spearritt in One Man Two Guvnors transfer
Jodie Prenger and Hannah Spearritt will Owain Arthur's Francis Henshall in the cast of Richard Bean's hit comedy One Man Two Guvners when it transfers to Theatre Royal Haymarket on 2 March. Also appearing will be Martin Barrass, David Benson, Nigel Betts, Derek Elroy, Gerard Horan, Daniel Ings, Ben Mansfield and Gemma Whelan.
Myles and Braff in All New People
Eve Myles will join Zach Braff and Susannah Fielding in the comedy All New People, written by American actor Braff, plays at the Duke of York’s theatre from 24th February (previews from 22nd).
Filumena at the Almeida
Michael Attenborough will direct Eduardo de Filippo’s Filumena in a new English version by Tanya Ronder running at the Almeida from 15 March – 12 May. The cast will be Geoffrey Freshwater (Alfredo), Victoria Lloyd (Lucia/Teresina), Luke Norris (Riccardo), Emily Plumtree (Diana), Sheila Reid (Rosalia), Richard Riddell (Michele), Brodie Ross (Umberto), Samantha Spiro (Filumena), Edmund Wiseman (Nocella/Waiter) and Clive Wood (Domenico).
Complicite Master and Margarita at the Barbican
The cast for Complicite's new English language adaptation of The Master and Margarita (at the Barbican from 15th March to 7th April) will be David Annen, Thomas Arnold, Josie Daxter, Johannes Flaschberger, Tamzin Griffin, Amanda Hadingue, Richard Katz, Sinead Matthews, Clive Mendus, Yasuyo Mochizuki, Ajay Naidu, Henry Pettigrew, Paul Rhys, Cesar Sarachu and Angus Wright. Simon McBurney directs.
Hampstead's play on Granville-Barker
The cast for the Hampstead Theatre production of Richard Nelson's new play about Harley Granville-Barker, Farewell To The Theatre, will be led by Ben Chaplin, Tara Fitzgerald and Jemma Redgrave with William French, Andrew Havill, Louis Hilyer and Jason Watkins. Directed by Roger Michell, it runs from 7th March (previews from 1st) to 7th April.
Royal Court In Basildon casting
The cast for In Basildon by David Eldridge, directed by Dominic Cooke, at the Royal Court from 16 February – 24 March will beLinda Bassett, Max Bennett, Debbie Chazen, Phil Cornwell, Christian Dixon, Wendy Nottingham, Lee Ross, Ruth Sheen, Peter Wight and Jade Williams.
Trafalgar Studios Leisure Society casting
Ed Stoppard, Melanie Gray and supermodel Agyness Deyn will star in The Leisure Society by François Archambault at Trafalgar Studios from 1st to 24th March (previews from 28th February). Harry Burton directs.
Eve Best in Old Vic Malfi
Eve Best will lead the cast in the Old Vic's production of The Duchess of Malfi from 17th March. Jamie Lloyd directs and further casting will be announced soon.
Young Vic Wild Swans cast
At the Young Vic, the cast of Wild Swans (13 April - 13 May 2012) will be Katie Leung, Oliver Biles, Eric Chan, Annie Chang, Ka-Ling Cheung, Victor Chi, Celeste Den, Joanne Fong, Jon Kit Lee, Orion Lee, Jennifer Lim, Les Mau, Ron Nakahara, Zenghui Qiu and Julyana Soelistyo.
Patrick Stewart as Shakespeare at Yong Vic
At Young Vic, Patrick Stewart will play Shakespeare and Richard McCabe Ben Jonson in Edward Bond's Bingo (16 February - 31 March 2012), and they will be joined by Catherine Cusack, Tom Godwin, Ellie Haddington, Joanne Howarth, Kieron Jecchinis, John McEnery, Matthew Marsh, Alex Price and Michelle Tate. Angus Jackson directs.
Wilmot and Buckfield in Bowl of Cherries premiere
Gary Wilmot and Clare Buckfield will star in the world premiere of A Bowl of Cherries, a musical revue by Carolyn Pertwee (book) and David Martin (music and lyrics), that looks at life through a cycle of plays and songs, as observed by two wartime ghosts. The production runs at the Charing Cross Theatre from 8th to 31st March, previews from 6th.
Shrek re-casting
Nigel Lindsay and Nigel Harman will be replaced by Dean Chisnall and Neil McDermott in Shrek the Musical (Theatre Royal Drury Lane) at the end of February.
Susan Boyle cameo in own life story
Susan Boyle will make a cameo appearance in I Dreamed a Dream, the musical based on her own life, which premieres at the Theatre Royal, Newcastle, from 23rd to 31st March, 2012, before setting off on tour. She will not, however, play herself: Scottish actress Elaine C Smith will lead the cast.
Joely Richardson in Lady from the Sea
Joely Richardson will play Ellida in Stephen Unwin's production of Ibsen’s The Lady from the Sea at the Rose Theatre, Kingston, from 23rd February to 17th March, 2012.
Kyle Soller in Long Day's Journey
Kyle Soller joins Laurie Metcalf and David Suchet in A Long Day's Journey into Night at the Apollo Theatre from 2nd April 2012, directed by Anthony Page.
Antony Sher at the National
Antony Sher will return to the National Theatre in two leading roles in 2012 and 2013: in Travelling Light, a new play by Nicholas Wright, opening in the Lyttelton in January 2012, directed by Nicholas Hytner; and a year later, in the title role of The Captain of Köpenick by Carl Zuckmayer, opening in the Olivier in January 2013.
Julie Walters at the National
Julie Walters is to star in the National Theatre production of The Last Of The Haussmans, a new comedy by writer and actor Stephen Beresford, in summer 2012. Howard Davies directs.
Globe casting
Janie Dee will play the Countess of Roussillon in Shakespeare’s Globe production of All’s Well That Ends Well. Joshua McGuire will take the lead in Hamlet.
Rachel Weisz to star in Plenty
According to the Daily Mail, Rachel Weisz is to star in a new production of David Hare's Plenty directed by David Leveaux which could open in the West End or on Broadway. No other details have been announced yet.