Acclaimed actor and director Samuel West will direct the London premiere of April de Angelis’ new play After Electra at the Tricycle Theatre next year as part of a busy 2015 season for the Kilburn venue.
The new year will start with the previously announced arrival of the Lyric Hammersmith’s much talked about Secret Theatre, with the company’s A Series Of Increasingly Impossible Acts playing from 12 to 31 January, before 2012’s hit Lover’s Rock Monologues – musicians Janet Kay, Carroll Thompson and Victor Romero Evans’ story of the cultural phenomenon – returns for a limited run from 2 to 7 February.
Artistic Director Indhu Rubasingham will then take to the helm to direct the first major production in the season, the world premiere of John Hollingworth’s Multitudes.
Playing from 19 February to 21 March, Rubasingham described the production when announcing the 2015 line-up as being the “centrepiece” of the season, explaining: “Inspired by his hometown of Bradford, ]Multitudes] examines what it is to be British at a time when immigration is the touch paper of much political and media debate.”
The timely piece is set on the eve of a Conservative Party Conference, with the country in turmoil and Bradford awaiting a visit from the Prime Minister. Kash, a liberal British Muslim, prepares his address to politicians about the state of the nation. His girlfriend Natalie, a recent convert to Islam, cooks for anti-war protesters gathered at the Town Hall. Lyn, her mother, moans to anyone who’ll listen about the decline of her cherished England. It’s all too much for Kash’s daughter Khadira, who begins to plan a radical intervention.
Jumpy playwright De Angelis’ After Electra, a co-production with the Theatre Royal Plymouth, will follow the political drama from 7 April to 2 May.
Described as a “deeply moving and blisteringly witty black comedy challenging what it means to be a mother,” the story centres on 84-year-old Virgie, a woman who has always been more committed to her art than motherhood.
With a surprising trick up her sleeve for her birthday, her plans appear to be thwarted in the face of her family and friends. Will her loved ones consent to her last wish, or could the secrets of their past stand in the way of her true happiness? Their decision turns out to be very wrong indeed.
West, who is well-known for his many acting credits including the hit West End play Enron and television series Mr Selfridge, returns to directing on the London stage following Waste at the Almeida and Dealer’s Choice both at the Menier Chocolate Factory and in the West End.
The drama will be followed by The Father, Christopher Hampton’s version of French playwright Florian Zeller’s acclaimed black comedy about an 80-year-old man who starts to suspect he’s losing control of his mind.
Directed by Royal Court regular James Macdonald and starring Tony Award nominee Kenneth Cranham (Entertaining Mr Sloane, Loot, The Birthday Party and Gaslight in the West End), the poignant piece was first seen at Theatre Royal Bath earlier this winter where it received rave reviews.
Taking the theatre into the summer season will be Olivier Award-winning company OperaUpClose, who makes its Tricycle debut with a 1920s take on Verdi’s classic La Traviata from 22 June to 4 July, setting the story in a world of speakeasies and bootlegging.
Following in the spirit of their innovative and hugely accessible hits La Bohème and Don Giovanni, the company’s Artistic Director Robin Norton-Hale will direct the tale of Violetta, a so called ‘fallen woman’ who sacrifices her own happiness for the sake of her lover’s family and future.
Alongside the busy season of premieres and acclaimed drama, the Tricycle Theatre also has plenty on offer for family audiences. From 28 February to 1 March, children from local primary schools will take over the venue with Things Will Never Be The Same Again (and Other Stories), 11 new stories written by pupils in Year 5 and 6 from local London schools.
Follow the adventures of Dr Snogbottom and KillZombBanana in their quest to outwit their nemeses Shay & Shadow, find out just how Zedecai manages to be half man, half wolf and half-snake or hear the sad tale of sibling rivalry between Theresa and Timmy the talking trees.
The fun will continue from 22 to 29 March when Tricycle Takeover – a week of work made for, by and with young people – returns for the second year, with full details to be announced.
For full details of the Tricycle Theatre’s forthcoming season, visit the Tricycle Theatre’s website.