Nottingham Playhouse and York Theatre Royal are to stage Richard III, one of the first major presentations of Shakespeare’s work since the king’s remains were discovered under a car park in Leicester.
The production will explore the parallels between the devious Richard and our modern world of political monsters: men who have led campaigns of fear and oppression with seductive rhetoric and persuasiveness in the pursuit of absolute power.
Playing Richard will be Ian Bartholomew, who was in Nottingham Playhouse’s version of The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui in autumn 2011.
The rest of the cast comprises Natalie Burt (Lady Anne / Mistress Shore), Tim Chipping (Edward / Catesby), Jim Creighton (Rivers / Brackenbury), Charles Daish (Clarence), Paul Greenwood (Hastings), Nyasha Hatendi (Dorset / Richmond), Sean Jackson (murderer 1 / Ratcliffe), Siobhan McCarthy (Queen Elizabeth), Joan Moon (Duchess of York), Sam Oatley (murderer 2 / Lord Grey / Mayor Of London), Paul Slack (Stanley) and Milo Twomey (Buckingham).
The princes will be played by Luke Aungles, Nathan Bull, Patrick Daunt, Jake Dunn and Oran McGuire.
Loveday Ingram directs. Designer is Simon Higlett, lighting designer Mark Jonathan, composer Steven Edis, projection designer William Simpson, sound designer Drew Baumohl and fight director Terry King.
Richard III runs at Nottingham Playhouse from Friday (25 October) until Saturday 16 November before transferring to York Theatre Royal.