Round-up of news and treats and other interesting things

Romola Garai will star as Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough alongside Emma Cunniffe as the eponymous monarch in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of Queen Anne. They will be joined by Jonathan Christie, Michael Fenton-Stevens, James Garnon, Richard Hope, Hywel Morgan, Beth Park and Carl Prekopp with further casting to be announced soon.

After originally opening at the Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in November 2015, Queen Anne will transfer to Theatre Royal Haymarket for a thirteen week limited run from 30 June until 30 September. Written by Helen Edmundson (The Heresy of Love, RSC) and directed by Natalie Abrahami (Happy Days, Young Vic), this gripping play explores the life of one of England’s little-known sovereigns and her intimate friendship with her childhood confidante Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough.


Tucked away in Camberwell, The Blue Elephant announced a new season of collaborations with exciting emerging artists, bringing urgent, thought-provoking and intriguing work to the black-box fringe venue in Camberwell.
The Blue Elephant continues to support work at all stages of development and the season includes scratch nights and work-in-progress showings as well as Haste Theatre’s Oyster Boy and Resuscitate’s Rounds. Both these shows have had successful past productions but are now premiering ‘revamped’ and further developed versions at the Blue Elephant in March.
Other highlights include When the Dove Returns, by recent East 15 graduates Backpack Theatre, and Female Intuition, two nights of new writing written and directed by women.
The season closes with a new production of Twelfth Night by Original Impact Theatre, reimagining the play for new audiences.

Co-Artistic Director, Niamh de Valera, says, 
“We’re delighted to share this season with you and are looking forward to audiences’ reactions. We feel very lucky that we’re able to continue our work supporting emerging artists and programming really special, engaging shows, as the future is always so uncertain. We do have to raise a lot of money to stay open for the next year but we’re starting on a high note with a season we’re very excited about so we’re hopeful it will set the tone for the year!”



Casting for the Old Vic's Woyzeck has also been announced. Joining John Boyega (Woyzeck), is the delicious (proof) Ben Batt (Andrews), the equally but differently delicious (proof) Nancy Carroll (Maggie), plus Sarah Greene (Marie) and Steffan Rhodri (Captain).

Jack Thorne's new version is described thus: 'It’s 1980s Berlin. The Cold War rages and the world sits at a crossroads between Capitalism and Communism. On the border between East and West, a young soldier and the love of his life are desperately trying to build a better future for their child. But the cost of escaping poverty is high, and its tragic consequences unfold in this searing tale of the people society leaves behind'. Could be a good'un.

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