King Lear
William Shakespeare’s famous tragedy returns to the stage once again in a new production from the Royal Shakespeare Company to be staged at the Courtyard Theatre. King Lear has been an influential part of our culture since it was penned between 1603 and 1606, with movies, television shows and regular stagings taking place all over the world.
The show will feature Greg Hicks in the eponymous role of the toppled King who descends into madness. He stars opposite Kathryn Hunter in the role of the Fool, whilst David Farr takes on the duties of director.
King Lear is one of the most highly regarded plays in the Shakespeare canon, with critics hailing the piece as one of the biggest achievements from the Bard across his extensive back catalogue. It tells the story of the title character, who begins a fall into madness as he distributes his estate to those who suitably flatter him. It is a mistake that costs him his status and batters his pride and all that is left for him to do is to head out into the wilderness with only a fool and a mad man by his side.
Greg Hicks returns to work for the acclaimed director David Farr after the pair successfully collaborated on “A Winter’s Tale”. He has been a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company since 1976 and was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award in 2004 for his role in “Coriolanus” at the Old Vic. His other credits include “Acastos” at the National Theatre, “Tamburlaine” at the Barbican Theatre and television shows like “Waking the Dead”, “Bergerac” and “Fortunes of War”. For the Royal Shakespeare Company his credits include “Julius Caesar” in 2009, “Macbeth” in 2004 and “Hamlet” in 2004.
Meanwhile Kathryn Hunter is the RSC Associate Artist and has appeared in a number of plays for the company; “The Grain Store” and “A Tender Thing” are two new plays she has appeared in whilst her other credits include “Othello”, “Romeo and Juliet” and the upcoming “Antony and Cleopatra” under the direction of Michael Boyd. Her screen credits include “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” and television’s “Silent Witness”.
King Lear makes its appearance at the Courtyard Theatre from 2nd March 2010 (previews from 18th February 2010) to 26th August 2010.
