A revival of Iqbal Khan’s Royal Shakespeare Company production of Molière’s comedy Tartuffe and an “ambitious” version of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet are highlights of spring 2020 at the city’s REP theatre.
The programme precedes new artistic director Sean Foley’s first full season of work in autumn 2020.
Speaking of the new programme of shows, Foley said, “our programme of work from February continues the REP’s reputation for creating and presenting amazing theatre that ignites our collective imagination.
“Across our three stages, we present a real diversity of voices and stories. In an era when the very idea of ‘the other’—an outsider—comes with extraordinary social tension, many of these plays, even the comedies, take a look at the conflict that can come from standing up, being different or defiantly not fitting in.
“In a city of great diversity and at a time of tremendous national debate around identity, these plays create great and essential evenings at the theatre through their unique takes on the human experience.
“Times, styles and audiences change but the desire to present the new, the entertaining and extraordinary remains. I look forward to welcoming audiences to this programme that promises to excite, challenge and thrill.”
An adaptation by Meadhbh McHugh in collaboration with director Annabelle Comyn of Louise O’Neill’s novel Asking for It will run at the REP from 31 January until 15 February.
It will be followed by Chris Bush’s new play Faustus: That Damned Woman (26 February until 7 March) which asks what we must sacrifice to achieve greatness.
Birmingham director Iqbal Khan’s 2018 RSC production of Tartuffe by Anil Gupta and Richard Pinto will be revived for a Brummie audience from 20 March until 4 April.
The REP’s deputy artistic director Amit Sharma will create a new version of Shakespeare’s Romeo And Juliet (16 until 25 April).
Sharma said, “the REP is a theatre for the people of Birmingham and our stage belongs to everyone. What better play to demonstrate this than the greatest love story ever told. We want to celebrate the make-up of this city by representing our friends and neighbours, and to have fun and create a large-scale show with a message that love conquers all.”
A “bold, brutal and beautiful” new version of Dickens’s novel, Oliver Twist, adapted by Bryony Lavery, runs from 29 April until 9 May. Presented by Leeds Playhouse in association with Ramps on the Moon, every performance of Oliver Twist will feature integrated sign language, audio description and captioning.
Marking the start of a collaboration with the Bush Theatre to produce new plays for both London and Birmingham audiences is the debut play from Temi Wilkey. The High Table (25 March until 9 April) is a family drama set between generations of a Nigerian family on the eve of a wedding and played out between the heavens and the earth.
Ian Hislop and Nick Newman’s comedy A Bunch of Amateurs visits the REP from 26 until 30 May. It tells the story of Hollywood action hero Jefferson Steele who arrives in England to play King Lear in Stratford only to find that this is not the birthplace of the Bard but a sleepy Suffolk village and the cast are a bunch of amateurs.
The full programme is available at the Birmingham REP web site.