Casting announced for Macbeth and A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Wilton's Music Hall
Casting news
THE Watermill Theatre has announced casting for the London transfer of its highly acclaimed productions of Shakespeare’s Macbeth and A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
The Watermill Ensemble’s productions will run in rep at Wilton’s Music Hall from January 22 to February 15, 2020 following their successful Autumn tour of the UK.
The run follows the company’s production of Twelfth Night which was staged at Wilton’s in 2018. It also marks the third London transfer by the Newbury theatre in two months, with Amélie The Musical opening at The Other Palace on November 29 and One Million Tiny Plays About Britain opening at Jermyn Street Theatre on December 4.
Billy Postlethwaite will revive his performance of Macbeth in Paul Hart’s production, which premiered at The Watermill Theatre in the spring of 2019 and will play Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Postlethwaite, whose credits include Chernobyl (HBO/Sky), Game Of Thrones (HBO), Stanhope in Journey’s End (The Watermill) and The Madness of King George (Nottingham Playhouse), follows in his father’s footsteps in taking on the role of Macbeth.
Postlethwaite will be joined by Molly Chesworth (as Malcolm and Puck), Lucy Keirl (Fleance/Porter and Hermia), Emma McDonald (Lady Macbeth and Titania/Hippolyta), Peter Mooney (Donalbain and Quince), Lauryn Redding (Lady Macduff and Bottom), Jamie Satterthwaite (Duncan and Oberon), Robyn Sinclair (Banquo and Helena), Mike Slader (Macduff and Demetrius) and Tom Sowinski (Lennox and Theseus).
Playing in repertory, Artistic Director Paul Hart’s visceral actor-musician led productions are presented by the Newbury based theatre’s celebrated resident Shakespeare company, The Watermill Ensemble, whose previous successes have also included Romeo and Juliet and Twelfth Night.
This staging of A Midsummer Night’s Dream employs the hedonistic soulful sounds of Nina Simone and Billie Holiday as an intoxicating backdrop to the story of four lovers who throw off the decorum of the royal courts, on one fateful magic-filled night in the enchanted Athenian woods.
Macbeth, the blood-soaked tale of the “butcher and his fiendlike queen”, is set against the electrifying soundtrack of The xx, Johnny Cash and The Rolling Stones performed live by an accomplished cast of actor-musicians.
The Watermill Theatre’s Artistic Director, Paul Hart said: “I am so thrilled to have two of our most recent Shakespeare productions transfer to Wilton’s Music Hall following a successful national tour, which allowed us to take our bold and unique versions of these plays to over 13,000 people. We are thrilled to return with as ever an amazingly talented cast following the success of Twelfth Night last year. I can think of no space more fitting than Wilton’s – indeed our A Midsummer Night’s Dream is literally set in a Victorian Music Hall, and the chance to return to such an intimate setting for Macbeth is hugely exciting.”
For more information or to book tickets, call the box office on 020 7702 2789 (Monday to Friday from 11am to 6pm) or visit www.wiltons.org.uk/.