Jack Knowles News

The National Theatre has announced 15 productions of new plays and fresh adaptations by leading writers.

It was announced today that Alex Ferns, Marc Elliott and Philip McGinley will join the cast of the record-breaking production of The Girl on the Train for its London run.

Following last month's announcement of new work which included details of three new Caryl Churchill plays, the Royal Court Theatre announces today a fourth play, Imp, just received from the celebrated writer.

Zoe Boyle, Laurie Davidson, David Morrissey, Kate O'Flynn, Lesley Sharp and Sam Swainsbury have been cast in the world premiere of the end of history…, written by Jack Thorne and directed by Royal Court Theatre Associate Director John Tiffany. With design by Grace Smart, lighting by Jack Knowles and sound by Tom Gibbons. the end of history… runs in the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs Thursday 27 June 2019 - Saturday 10 August 2019 with press night on Wednesday 3 July 2019, 7pm.

The Girl on the Train starring Samantha Womack as Rachel Watson will transfer to London's Duke of York's Theatre, St Martin's Lane for a limited run from 23 July to 17 August 2019.

Inua Ellams' hit play Barber Shop Chronicles today marks its 250th performance by announcing new autumn dates and a special programme of work Fades, Braids & Identity which will run alongside the season at the Roundhouse in London, opening in nine weeks. The overwhelmingly successful Barber Shop Chronicles returns to London for the first time since its premiere in 2017, playing two sold out runs at the National Theatre and acclaimed performances at Leeds Playhouse. It has subsequently toured across Australia, New Zealand, the United States of America and Canada.

Rachel Watson longs for a different life. Her only escape is the perfect couple she watches through the train window every day, happy and in love. Or so it appears. When Rachel learns that the woman she's been secretly watching has suddenly disappeared, she finds herself as a witness and even a suspect in a thrilling mystery in which she will face bigger revelations than she could ever have anticipated.

Following its phenomenally successful West End stage debut in 2018, Paula Hawkins' nail-biting thriller The Girl on the Train heads out on a UK tour this spring, pulling into the Belgrade Theatre 13-18 May.

Marlene is the first woman to head the Top Girls employment agency. But she has no plans to stop there. With Maggie in at Number 10 and a spirit of optimism consuming the country, Marlene knows that the future belongs to women like her.

National Theatre has announced its listings for May - October 2019. Check out the full lineup below!

Top Girls comes to the National Theatre! Check out rehearsal photos below!

'Isn't that the problem with political theater, too much directness?' queries one of Anne Washburn's characters in her new play - which, in meta fashion, and over a leisurely three hours, not only addresses Trump head on, but also painstakingly analyses our responses to the President and the present moment, including the role of the arts.

The Royal Shakespeare Company has today announced further casting for its forthcoming double-bill of Restoration plays, John Vanbrugh's The Provoked Wife and Thomas Otway's Venice Preserved. The Provoked Wife, directed by Phillip Breen, plays in repertoire from the 2 May 2019 with Venice Preserved, directed by Prasanna Puwanarajah, running from 24 May 2019 in the Swan Theatre.

Audiences have just five weeks left to see this critically acclaimed production of Caroline, Or Change starring Sharon D. Clarke. The final performance will take place at the Playhouse Theatre on Saturday March 2nd at 7.30pm.

The National Theatre has announced its upcoming lineup for the first half of 2019.

As the overwhelmingly successful North American tour of Inua Ellams' much celebrated play Barber Shop Chronicles draws to a close, it is today announced that the production will return to London, two years after opening at the National Theatre. Back by popular demand, the production, spanning six cities over the course of one day, will be remounted specifically for the Roundhouse, London's most iconic in-the-round performance space.

BARBER SHOP CHRONICLES takes you on a cultural exchange trip across the continent of Africa, with a side journey to the UK, to meet and listen in on communities of men who go to the barber shop for much more than a shave and a haircut. Focusing on the relationships of men with fathers, children, friends, and lovers, playwright Inua Ellams provides an intimate view of a time-honored tradition. An ensemble of twelve populates the stage with 30 characters who give a lively, colorful performance.

Royal Shakespeare Company Associate Artist Alexandra Gilbreath returns to the company in Phillip Breen's riotous new production of John Vanbrugh's restoration comedy The Provoked Wife. Alexandra last appeared at the RSC as feisty courtesan Angellica Bianca in the 2016 production of The Rover by Aphra Behn. Other leading roles for the RSC include Hermione in The Winter's Tale, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Rosalind in As You Like It, Kate in The Taming of the Shrew and Mistress Ford in The Merry Wives of Windsor.

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and Georgetown University's Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics (The Lab) present Lab PerForum, a series of public discussions and workshops with artists from the Kennedy Center's WORLD STAGES series. The Lab PerForumcollaboration begins with discussions provoked by the Fuel, Royal National Theater, and West Yorkshire Playhouse co-production of Barber Shop Chronicles by Inua Ellams.