John Gabriel Borkman - Donmar Warehouse
Preview by Lizzie Guilfoyle
PENELOPE Wilton and Ian McDiarmid will star in David Eldridge’s new version of John Gabriel Borkman which runs from February 15 to April 14, 2007, at the Donmar Warehouse.
Disgraced and destitute following a fraud scandal and imprisonment, John Gabriel Borkman paces alone in an upstairs room. Downstairs, his family are trapped in the claustrophobic atmosphere of a household bound for explosion.
A scorching indictment of 19th century capitalism, Ibsen’s penultimate play paints a devastating picture of a selfish ambition.
Wilton has previously appeared at the Donmar in Little Foxes. Her other London credits include The House Of Bernarda Alba (National Theatre) and Afterplay (Gielgud Theatre), while last summer, hers was the disembodied voice that taunted Michael Gambon in Samuel Beckett’s Eh Joe at the Duke Of York’s Theatre.
Her numerous screen credits include The History Boys, Match Point and Calendar Girls (film); and Dr Who (three episodes in 2005) and Ever Decreasing Circles (TV).
McDiarmid (Borkman) is the former Artistic Director of the Almeida and has previously appeared at the Donmar in Pirandello’s Henry IV, directed by Michael Grandage. Last year, he won a Tony Award for his performance in Faith Healer on Broadway. And he is, of course, the evil Palpatine in the Star Wars films.
Michael Grandage will direct a cast that also includes Emma Beattie, David Burke, Deborah Findlay and Rafe Spall.
Tickets: £13 to £29.
For more information call the box office on 0870 060 6624 or visit the website.