Nick Dear’s The Dark Earth And The Light Sky will receive its world premiere at the Almeida theatre this November.
Directed by former Director of the National Theatre, Richard Eyre, The Dark Earth And The Light Sky will play at the Islington venue from 8 November (press night 15 November) to 12 January.
Set in the Hampshire countryside, The Dark Earth And The Light Sky looks into the life of Edward Thomas, a disaffected husband and tormented writer, who meets American poet Robert Frost during an era of change and destruction.
BAFTA-winning playwright Dear’s adaptation of Frankenstein, which played at the National Theatre last year, is nominated for three awards at this year’s Olivier Awards, which are being held on Sunday.
Another playwright who is well-known to the National Theatre, Inua Ellams, will also feature in the Almeida Festival this summer, which takes place from 2 to 28 July.
Ellams, whose Black T-Shirt Collection is currently playing at the Cottesloe theatre, kick starts the festival on 2 July with Knight Watch, a story about a man who is pulled into a culture he has tried to escape.
Other festival highlights include the award-winning Inspector Sands’s Mass Observation (5 to 14 July), which tells of 95 years that have gone by in a flash and an afternoon that lasts an eternity, Custom/Practice’s interpretation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream (16 to 21 July), and It Needs Horses/Home For Broken Turns, a double bill from Lost Dog.
New York ensemble the TEAM will also return to the Islington venue with RoosevElvis from 9 to 12 July while Greyscale is also returning with its latest production Gods Are Fallen And All Safety Gone, which will play on 18 and 19 July.
The Young Friends of the Almeida will also present a number of performances including Parallax, which is directed by former Artistic Director of the Gate theatre Natalie Abrahami.