Selina Cadell and Nicholas Le Prevost are to reunite for Congreve’s Love for Love at the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford.
Selina Cadell directed Le Prevost as Sir Anthony Absolute in Sheridan’s The Rivals at London’s Arcola Theatre in 2014. She will make her RSC directorial debut in Congreve’s Restoration comedy in which Le Prevost plays Sir Sampson Legend.
Le Prevost returns to the RSC after playing Benedick in the 2002 production of Much Ado About Nothing. Earlier in 2015, he played Roebuck “Granny” Ramsden in George Bernard Shaw’s Man and Superman at the National Theatre.
It will be the first time that the RSC has produced this play which involves Valentine, Sir Sampson's dissolute eldest son, finding himself at a standstill; the only way out of his financial difficulties is to give in to his father's pressure to sign over his right of inheritance to his younger brother.
Seeing a chance to escape his debts Valentine accepts the deal but, fearing he will be spurned by his beloved Angelica, takes drastic action to ensure he retains what is rightfully his.
Tom Turner plays Valentine in Love for Love. He is best known for playing Nate in Hollyoaks.
The cast also includes Daisy Ashford (nurse), Jonathan Broadbent (Tattle), Robert Cavan (Scandal), Jonathan Christie (servant), Daniel Easton (Ben Legend), Michael Fenton Stevens (Buckram), Hermione Gulliford (Mrs Foresight), Justine Mitchell (Angelica), Hywel Morgan (Trapland), Carl Prekopp (Jeremy), Jenny Rainsford (Miss Prue), Elliott Ross (servant), Michael Thomas (Old Foresight), Anna Tierney (Jenny), Ragevan Vasan (Robin) and Zoe Waites (Mrs Frail).
The set design is by Tom Piper with costume design by Rosalind Ebbutt and lighting by Vince Herbert. Music is composed by Eliza Thompson with sound by Claire Windsor. Movement is by Stuart Sweeting.
Love for Love runs in the Swan Theatre from Wednesday 28 October until 22 January (press night Wednesday 4 November) and plays in repertory with Helen Edmundson's new play Queen Anne, which starts on 20 November.