King Lear and The Seagull
20 March 2007
Rehearsals are now well under way for Trevor Nunn’s new productions of Shakespeare’s King Lear and Chekhov’s The Seagull.
The two plays will be performed by one ensemble of actors and will run in repertoire in The Courtyard Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon from 24 March – 23 June 2007. King Lear completes the RSC’s Complete Works Festival. The two productions will then embark on a UK and international tour.
Ian McKellen makes a welcome return to the RSC after 17 years. King Lear has been long planned as the culmination of Trevor Nunn and Ian McKellen’s RSC work together on Romeo and Juliet, The Winter’s Tale, The Alchemist, Twelfth Night, The Three Sisters, Macbeth and Othello. Ian’s recent work includes producing and acting for the National Theatre, playing Widow Twanky at the Old Vic, visiting Coronation Street as Mel Hutchwright, and the films Richard III, Gods and Monsters, The Da Vinci Code and two trilogies – X-Men and The Lord of the Rings.
Trevor Nunn was Artistic Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company from 1968 – 1978. His last production for the RSC was the double bill of The Blue Angel and Measure For Measure which reopened The Other Place in 1991. Other recent credits include Hamlet and Richard II at the Old Vic, The Royal Hunt of the Sun at the National Theatre and Tom Stoppard’s Rock ‘n’ Roll for the Royal Court Theatre. His most recent production, Porgy and Bess, opened at the Savoy Theatre in November 2006.
William Gaunt makes his RSC debut as Gloucester in King Lear and Sorin in The Seagull, a part he will share with Ian McKellen. (They will play the role at different performances, generally on alternate days.) William Gaunt has worked extensively on stage, TV and film. His recent theatre credits include Gates of Gold at Finborough Theatre and Trafalgar Studios, Having a Ball at the Comedy Theatre and Humble Boy, Albert Speer and The Cherry Orchard for the National Theatre. His TV career began in the 1960s, when he played one of the lead roles in The Champions. Subsequent TV credits include: GBH, No Place Like Home and on the big screen – Bridget Jones – On the Edge of Reason. William was Artistic Director of Liverpool Playhouse for two years. His directing work includes: One for the Road at the Lyric Theatre and Macbeth at Regent’s Park.
Wolverhampton born Frances Barber plays Goneril in King Lear and Arkadina in The Seagull. Frances last worked for the RSC in the 1985/6 season when her credits included Ophelia in Hamlet (with Kenneth Branagh as Laertes and Roger Rees in the title role) and an award-winning role in Camille. Her recent theatre work includes Cleopatra in Antony and Cleopatra at The Globe, Aladdin at the Old Vic Theatre (with Ian McKellen), and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest at the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh and The Gielgud in the West End. She was recently seen on TV in Hustle, The IT Crowd and the highly-acclaimed BBC drama, Funland.
Rising stars Romola Garai and Richard Goulding make their RSC debuts in the King Lear/Seagull ensemble - Romola as Cordelia in King Lear and Nina in The Seagull, and Richard as Konstantin in The Seagull.
Romola Garai has several films which are soon to be released - Atonement, Paradise, Michael Apted’s Amazing Grace, Woody Allen’s Scoop and Kenneth Branagh’s As You Like It (in which she plays Celia). Her previous films include: Inside I’m Dancing, Vanity Fair, Nicholas Nickleby and I Capture the Castle and her TV work includes: The Last of the Blonde Bombshells (she was cast for the role of the younger incarnation of Judi Dench’s character whilst at the National Youth Theatre), Daniel Deronda, Perfect and Attachments. On stage, she played Lucia in Ed Hall’s production of Calico in the West End.
Richard Goulding has been plucked from his acting course at the Guildhall School of Drama to join the King Lear/Seagull company. He was spotted by the RSC’s Casting Department in the summer of 2006 during the Complete Works Festival’s Young People’s Shakespeare Season. The RSC gave leading drama schools the opportunity to showcase emerging artists and present specially commissioned, pared down versions of Shakespeare plays in the Swan Theatre and tour them to schools in the Midlands region. Richard played Prospero in The Tempest, and so impressed the RSC’s Head of Casting, Samantha Jones, that she arranged an audition for him with Trevor Nunn. He secured the role of Konstantin in The Seagull and will be part of the King Lear ensemble.
Sylvester McCoy returns to the RSC to play The Fool in King Lear. He last worked for the company in 2001, when he played Mr Beaver in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe at Sadlers Wells. He is probably still best known as the seventh doctor in Dr Who. His other TV credits include: Gil Mayo, Still Game, Hollyoaks and Tom Jones. His previous theatre work also includes: Abanazar in Aladdin at Reading Hexagon, the UK tour of Me and My Girl, the National Theatre tour of Noises Off (which came to the Stratford-upon-Avon in 2003) and Calaixo Bielito’s Life is a Dream at the Edinburgh Lyceum.
Monica Dolan makes a welcome return to the RSC as Regan in King Lear and Masha in The Seagull. For the RSC Jane played Hermia in Adrian Noble’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream in 1996 and Katherine in The Taming of the Shrew in 2000. She recently played the title role in the Shared Experience production of Jane Eyre on tour and in the West End. Her TV work includes Alice in Tipping the Velvet and the Queen Mum in Wallis and Edward. On the big screen she played Maud in Mike Leigh’s Topsy Turvy.
The King Lear/Seagull company also includes: Ben Addis (King of France in Lear and Servant in The Seagull), Adam Booth (Knight in Lear and Estate Worker in The Seagull), Russell Byrne (Doctor in Lear and Servant in The Seagull), Julian Harries (Albany in Lear and Estate Worker in The Seagull), John Heffernan (Oswald in Lear and Estate Worker in The Seagull), Peter Hinton (Duke of Burgandy in Lear and Yakov in The Seagull), Jonathan Hyde (Kent in Lear and Dr Dorn in The Seagull), Gerald Kyd (Soldier in Lear and Trigorin in The Seagull), Seymour Matthews (Curan in Lear and Old Servant in The Seagull), Ben Meyjes (Edgar in Lear and Medvedenko in The Seagull), David Weston (Gentleman in Lear and Butler in The Seagull), Guy Williams (Cornwall in Lear and Shamrayev in The Seagull), Philip Winchester (Edmund in Lear and Estate Worker in The Seagull), Zoe Boyle (Lady in Waiting to Goneril in King Lear and Servant in The Seagull), Naomi Capron (Maid in King Lear and Cook in The Seagull), Melanie Jessop (as Servant in Lear and Polina in The Seagull).
Joining Trevor Nunn on the creative team are: Christopher Oram (designer), Neil Austin (lighting) Fergus O’Hare (sound), Steve Edis (music) and Malcolm Ranson (fight director).
Further information
King Lear
The Courtyard Theatre
In repertoire from 24 March – 21 June 2007
Press Night: Tuesday 3 April 2007 at 7pm
The Seagull
The Courtyard Theatre
In repertoire from 17 April – 23 June 2007
Press Night: Thursday 31 May 2007 at 7pm
Box Office: 0844 800 1110, www.rsc.org.uk
For more information please contact:
Philippa Harland
020 7845 0512
philippa.harland@rsc.org.uk
Nada Zakula
01789 412622
nada.zakula@rsc.org.uk
For press tickets and Midlands media enquries, please contact Dean Asker on 01789 412660 or dean.asker@rsc.org.uk
Production images for King Lear will be available from 27 or 28 March, and for The Seagull from 19 April by registering free on the EPO (Electronic Press Office) www.epo-online.com. An image of Ian McKellen is available to download from this site now.
