David Tennant says he is excited about being back at the Royal Shakespeare Company as he prepares to play the lead in Richard II.
It will be his fourth season with the company and the first time he has performed in Stratford since he played Hamlet and Berowne in Love’s Labour’s Lost in 2008.
He said about returning to the RSC and Stratford, “It’s always an honour. If you want to do Shakespeare’s plays—and I do—really it’s the place to do it.
“Richard II is not a hero. He’s quite a complicated character. So I’m daunted by the prospect of doing it justice, but very excited to get a chance.”
Richard II will be directed by the RSC’s artistic director Gregory Doran.
“Greg is steeped in Shakespeare,” says Tennant. “It’s his life and his obsession.
“You feel secure that he will know the subject inside out and also secure that he’ll be inspiring, instinctive and surprising.”
Tennant knows Richard II well.
“I saw Derek Jacobi play Richard II when I was at drama school. He was touring and came to Glasgow. It was one of those formative experiences for me.
“I’ve seen the play many times since and I’ve always been fascinated by it. It felt like there was always something in that part which was extraordinary and enticing.”
The cast also includes Elliot Barnes-Worrell (groom), Antony Byrne (Mowbray), Sean Chapman (Northumberland), Oliver Ford Davies (Duke of York), Marty Cruickshank (Duchess of York), Gracy Goldman (lady-in-waiting), Marcus Griffiths (Greene), Emma Hamilton (The Queen), Jim Hooper (Bishop of Carlisle), Youssef Kerkour (Willoughby), Jane Lapotaire (Duchess of Gloucester), Nigel Lindsay (Bolingbroke), Jake Mann (Bagot), Sam Marks (Bushy), Miranda Nolan (lady-in-waiting), Keith Osborn (Scroop), Michael Pennington (John of Gaunt), Joshua Richards (Ross/Lord Marshall), Oliver Rix (Aumerle), Simon Thorp (Salisbury) and Edmund Wiseman (Harry Percy).
The production is designed by Stephen Brimson Lewis with lighting by Tim Mitchell and sound by Martin Slavin. Movement director is Mike Ashcroft and fight director is Terry King. Music is composed by Paul Englishby.
Richard II will be the first in the RSC's collaboration with Picturehouse Entertainment, Live from Stratford-upon-Avon—a new programme to screen RSC productions live from Shakespeare's home town.
The production will be filmed during the performance in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre on 13 November and simultaneously screened in more than 100 cinemas around the country. It will also be available in North America, Australia, Japan and Northern Europe.
The full production of Richard II will also be streamed into up to 1,000 schools.
Richard II plays in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford from Thursday (10 October) until Saturday 16 November before transferring to the Barbican Theatre, London from 9 December for a seven-week run.