The Royal Shakespeare Company returns to Salford’s Lowry arts centre in October with Henry IV Parts I and II, starring Jasper Britton and Antony Sher.
With his crown under threat from enemies both foreign and domestic, Part I sees Henry prepare for war. Continuing with Part II, King Henry’s health is fading and his son, Hal (played by Alex Hassell) must choose between duty and loyalty to an old friend in Shakespeare’s heart-breaking conclusion to his celebrated History Plays.
Talking about the productions, the RSC’s artistic director Gregory Doran, who hails from Preston, explains that the plays were chosen to open the Elisabeth Scott Shakespeare Memorial Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1932 and as part of the celebrations for the Festival of Britain in 1951, with Richard Burton as Hal and for Shakespeare’s tercentenary in 1964 directed by Peter Hall.
“They are great plays to celebrate a big occasion and I am delighted to be mounting them again to mark Shakespeare’s 450th birthday, and taking them on the road.
“With their mixture of comedy, history and pathos, Henry IV Parts I and II have always had a broad appeal and are, arguably, two of Shakespeare’s greatest plays.”
Knighted for his services for acting and writing, Antony Sher first worked for the RSC in 1982.
Doran became the RSC’s artistic director in 2012. Recent credits include Richard II (with David Tennant in the title role) and an international tour of Julius Caesar, which also came to The Lowry.
Performances of both plays are on various days from Tuesday to Saturday.