Tom McCall is to make his stage debut in Birmingham Rep’s new production of John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men which will also go on tour.
McCall will play George alongside Wiliam Young who will reprise his role as Lennie after playing it in 2017 with August 012 Theatre Company.
McCall said, “having done most of my growing up in Birmingham, the Rep has been a theatre that I’ve always aspired to work in. The fact that my debut is playing George in Of Mice and Men truly is a dream come true. I can’t wait to begin the journey of discovering this fascinating play and character with director Iqbal Khan and the team.”
Young commented, “I was born with a rare brain condition called agenesis of the corpus callosum and find it easy to get into Lennie's mindset. I'm doing this for all the other people with learning difficulties and disabilities who love to act but haven't had the opportunity to land any professional roles yet.”
The cast is completed by James Clyde as the Boss, Simon Darwen as Slim, Maddy Hill as Curley’s wife, Edward Judge as Carlson, Reece Pantry as Crooks, Stuart Quigley as Whit, Lee Ravitz as Candy and Riad Ritchie as Curley.
Of Mice and Men will be directed by Rep associate director Iqbal Khan who said, “I’m so excited to be working with a great and diverse company on this timeless parable from Steinbeck. I look forward to creating a beautiful and generous production that embraces all who experience exclusion in challenging times.”
The full creative team includes set and lighting designer Ciarán Bagnall, puppet director, designer and maker Michael Crouch, movement and fight director Yarit Dor, casting director Annelie Powell, composer and sound designer Elizabeth Purnell, production manager Jenn Taillefer, associate director Caroline Wilkes and costume designer Kay Wilton.
A Birmingham Rep, Leeds Playhouse and Fiery Angel co-production, Of Mice and Men runs at the Rep from Saturday 18 March until Saturday 8 April. It will then tour to Cambridge Arts Theatre (19 to 22 April), Malvern Theatres (25 to 29 April), Bath Theatre Royal (2 to 6 May) and Leeds Playhouse (11 to 27 May).