The Alchemist
By Ben Jonson
Olivier Theatre
Previews from 8th September, opening 14th September, continuing in repertoire
Directed by Nicholas Hytner, The Alchemist is the final production
in the 2006 Travelex £10 Season. The cast includes Tristan Beint,
Elisabeth Dermot Walsh, Bryan Dick, Alex Jennings, Lesley Manville,
Tim McMullan, Ian Richardson, Simon Russell Beale, Amit Shah and Sam
Spruell.
When Subtle, Face and Doll Common join forces to pose as alchemists,
dupes of every kind queue up to fulfil their crazy lusts and dreams.
And as the client list escalates, so the frenetic con artists demonstrate
ever more outlandish acts of improvisation to avoid discovery and
rake in the cash.
Ben Jonson's masterpiece offers an irresistible critique of human
greed and gullibility. NT Associates Alex Jennings (as Subtle) and
Simon Russell Beale (as Face) appear together for the first time,
with Lesley Manville as Doll and Ian Richardson as Sir Epicure Mammon.
The Seafarer
By Conor McPherson
Cottesloe Theatre
Previews from 20th September, opening 28th September, continuing in
repertoire and then on tour
Conor McPherson makes his National Theatre debut directing his new
play. The cast includes Ron Cook, Conleth Hill, Karl Johnson and Jim
Norton.
Caroline, or Change
Book and lyrics by Tony Kushner, music by Jeanine Tesori
Lyttelton Theatre
Previews from 10th October, opening 19th October, continuing in repertoire
Directed by George C Wolfe. The choreographer is Hope Clarke, with
set design by Riccardo Hernández, costume design by Paul Tazewell
and lighting by Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer; original and US
musical supervisor: Kimberley Grigsby; UK musical supervisor: Martin
Lowe; sound designer: Mike Walker; associate musical director: Mark
Etherington.
The cast includes Valda Aviks, Pippa Bennett-Warner, Angela M Caesar,
Anna Francolini, Richard Henders, Ian Lavender, Joy Malcolm, Hilton
McRae, Malinda Parris, Nataylia Roni and Clive Rowe.
Tony Kushner, author of multi-award-winning Angels in America,
sets the intimate story of Caroline, or Change in a turbulent
world, addressing big questions about race and human rights, with
a musical score by Jeanine Tesori. Tony award-winning director George
C Wolfe, director of the Broadway production, makes his National Theatre
debut.
Louisiana, 1963, in the immediate aftermath of the Kennedy assassination.
Caroline, a black maid to a southern Jewish family, is struggling
to keep afloat both emotionally and economically, while the young
son of her employer tries to make sense of the world following the
death of his mother.
The Cauacasian Chalk Circle
By Bertolt Brecht, in a version by Frank McGuinness
NT Education mobile production
Touring from January - March 2007 opening 17th January, Brighton)
This NT Education mobile production will tour the UK next year (there
will be a limited run in the Cottesloe Theatre in March). Sean Holmes
directs this new production of Brecht's morality masterpiece for the
NT, in collaboration with the theatre collective, Filter - renowned
for their unique fusion of music, movement and video imagery. The
cast includes Oliver Dimsdale and Ferdy Roberts.
A servant girl sacrifices her own safety and the love of her sweetheart
to protect a child abandoned in the heat of civil war. Order restored,
she is made to confront the boy's biological mother in a legal contest
over who deserves to keep him. The comical judge calls on an ancient
tradition - the chalk circle - to resolve the dispute. Who wins?
The Caucasian Chalk Circle with visit:
- Canterbury, Gulbenkian Theatre (9-13 January);
- Brighton Corn Exchange (16-20 January);
- Norwich Playhouse (23-27 January);
- Dundee Rep Theatre (30 January-3 February);
- Liverpool Everyman (6-10 February);
- Aberystwyth Arts Centre (13-14 February);
- Brecon, Theatr Brycheiniog (16-17 February);
- Coventry, Warwick Arts Centre (20-24 February);
- Bristol Old Vic (27 February-3 March).
The Seafarer
By Conor McPherson
Following its run in the Cottesloe Theatre, The Seafarer will tour
to the following venues:
- 6 – 10 February
Brighton Theatre Royal
- 13 –17 February
Bath Theatre Royal
- 20 – 24 February
Cambridge Arts Centre
- 27 February – 3 March
Coventry Warwick Arts Centre
- 6 – 10 March
Salford Quays: The Lowry
- 13 – 17 March
Newcastle Theatre Royal
The History Boys
By Alan Bennett
With Anton Rodgers as Hector
- 31 August-16 September
Birmingham Repertory Theatre
- 19-23 September
Nottingham Theatre Royal
- 26-30 September
Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry
- 3-7 October
Bradford Alhambra Theatre
- 10-14 October
New Theatre, Hull
- 17-21 October
King's Theatre, Edinburgh
- 24-28 October
His Majesty's Theatre, Aberdeen
- 31 October-4 November
Grand Opera House, Belfast
- 7-11 November
North Wales Theatre, Llandudno
- 14-18 November
New Theatre, Cardiff
- 21-25 November
The Lowry, Salford Quays
