Full casting for Edward Albee’s The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia? is announced today. Joining Damian Lewis and Sophie Okonedo, who play husband and wife Martin and Stevie in Ian Rickson’s production, will be Jason Hughes as Martin’s oldest friend Ross and Archie Madekwe as their son Billy.
Edward Albee’s The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia? will play a strictly limited 12 week season at the Theatre Royal Haymarket from 24 March to 24 June 2017. In the play, a husband and successful New York architect with everything to lose must confess to his wife and son that he is having an affair and face the dizzying, explosive consequences.
Ian Rickson will be joined by an Olivier and Tony Award®-winning creative team in Rae Smith (set and costume design), Neil Austin (lighting design) and Greg Clarke (sound design), with an original score by PJ Harvey.
JASON HUGHES is perhaps best known for his television work, which includes playing lawyer Warren Jones in the BBC TV series This Life and as Detective Sergeant Ben Jones in Midsomer Murders from 2005 until 2013. A respected stage actor, previous work includes Our Country’s Good and Look Back in Anger opposite Michael Sheen at the National Theatre, Violence and Son and 4.48 Psychosis for the Royal Court and US tour, Way Upstream at Chichester Festival Theatre, Caligula at the Donmar Warehouse and Design for Living at Theatre Royal Bath.
ARCHIE MADEKWE makes his professional stage debut as Billy. Prior to this he trained at LAMDA. Previous work includes Fresh Meat and Casualty, as well as the films Legacy and Second Coming. Archie also appeared in National Youth Theatre’s 2013 production of Pope Joan at St James’s Church, Piccadilly.
DAMIAN LEWIS OBE won unanimous international acclaim for his role in Emmy® and Golden Globe® award-winning drama Homeland. Lewis starred as Sergeant Nicholas Brody opposite Claire Danes and was awarded the 2013 Golden Globe® for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series and a 2012 Primetime Emmy Award® for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series among other accolades for his role. Most recently Lewis has starred in Showtime series Billions. With an expansive list of diverse film, theatre and television credits Damian Lewis has evolved into one of this generation’s most respected and sought-after actors.
Prior to his role in Homeland, Lewis first came to the attention of international audiences in 2001 with his Golden Globe®-nominated performance in the award-winning HBO miniseries Band of Brothers, directed by Steven Spielberg and produced by Tom Hanks. He also starred as Soames Forsyte in the acclaimed British production of The Forsyte Saga and Charlie Crews in Life. In 2015 Lewis starred as Henry VIII in Wolf Hall opposite Mark Rylance in the BBC Two television miniseries adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s Booker-Prize winning novels Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies.
Prior to American Buffalo in 2015, Lewis starred as Alceste in Martin Crimp’s 2009 adaptation of The Misanthrope opposite Keira Knightley. After training at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Lewis joined the British theatre community and appeared in a number of plays between 1993-98, primarily as a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. During that time, he starred as Laertes in Jonathan Kent’s Broadway production of Hamlet opposite Ralph Fiennes. In 2003, Lewis returned to the London stage opposite Helen McCrory in Five Gold Rings at the Almeida Theatre. In 2005 he starred in the National Theatre’s production of Ibsen’s Pillars of the Community.
In addition to his illustrious work on stage, Lewis has appeared on film in Julian Fellowes’ adaptation of Romeo and Juliet which starred Douglas Booth and Hailee Steinfeld in the titular roles, The Sweeney, David Gordon Green’s Your Highness, and Werner Herzog’s Queen of the Desert opposite Nicole Kidman.
SOPHIE OKONEDO OBE made her Broadway debut in the 2014 revival of A Raisin in the Sun for which she won the Tony Award® for Best Featured Actress in a Play. In 2016 she received a second Tony® nomination for her portrayal of Elizabeth Proctor in Ivo van Hove’s Broadway production of The Crucible which also starred Ben Whishaw, Saoirse Ronan and Ciarán Hinds.
Okonedo was last on the London stage in Jeremy Herrin’s Haunted Child at the Royal Court in 2011. Previous work at the Royal Court includes Katie Mitchell’s Nightsongs, I Just Stopped by to See the Man, Been So Long and Women and Sisters. At the National Theatre Okonedo has appeared in Troilus and Cressida and Money, and has had roles in numerous productions for the Royal Shakespeare Company including Tamburlaine The Great, The Changeling, A Jovial Crew and The Odyssey.
The Goat, Or Who Is Sylvia? runs at the Theatre Royal Haymarket from 24 March to 24 June. Book your tickets today.