Former EastEnder Shane Richie and James Jagger star in two one-act black comedies at the King’s Head from 28 August-23 September (press night 30 August).
Lone Star and Private Wars, two 1979 plays by American playwright James McLure, tackle the subject of battle-scarred soldiers returning from war. The first takes place in the cluttered backyard of a small town Texas bar. Roy, once a local high school hero, is back in town after a tour of duty in Vietnam, trying to re-establish his position in the community. The second play, Private Wars, centres on three GIs recovering from their injuries on the terrace of an army hospital. But their jokes and mockery hide their fears about the civilian world to which they will soon return.
Richie is best known as Alfie Moon in the soap EastEnders, a role he left in 2005. A former holiday camp entertainer, stand-up comedian and television presenter, Richie’s career has encompassed both stage and screen acting. During the 1990s he starred in the West End production of Grease, going on to co-write and star in the 70s-based musical Boogie Nights, which premiered at the Savoy in 1998. More recently he has starred in One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest on tour and Scrooge: The Musical. His screen work includes Macbeth, Dead Clean, Shoreditch and Flushed Away (the voice of Sid the rat).
Jagger, son of Rolling Stone Mick Jagger and Jerry Hall, makes his professional stage debut in this production. He recently appeared in the film Knife Edge.
Richie and Jagger are joined in the cast by William Meredith, who has previously been seen on the London stage playing Amos Hart in Chicago.
The production is directed by Henry Mason, former assistant director at Hampstead theatre, in his professional stage directing debut.
CB