West Yorkshire Playhouse News

London's most innovative theatre venue, Trafalgar Studios, has unveiled an explosive, star-studded Autumn Season for 2009.

TOO CLOSE TO THE SUN, a dramatic new musical of a fictional account of the last days in the life of Ernest Hemingway, has its World Premiere in London's West End this summer, opening at THE COMEDY THEATRE on Thursday 16 July for a strictly limited 8 week season (Press night: Friday 24 July).

James Macdonald returns to the Almeida to direct the world premiere of Christopher Hampton's new version of Ödön von Horváth's Judgment Day. Judgment Day will run at the Almeida from 3 September - 17 October 2009, with press night on 10 September. Set designs are by Miriam Buether with costume design is by Moritz Junge, lighting by Neil Austin, sound by Chris Shutt and music by Matthew Herbert.

A new cast has been announced for Patrick Barlow's adaptation of The 39 Steps, directed by Maria Aitken, currently in its third year at the Criterion Theatre. The new cast will feature John Hopkins as Richard Hannay. Other cast members include Stephen Critchlow, Stephen Ventura, and Natalie Walter. The new cast members of the hilarious 100-minute whodunnit begin July 13.

For the Almeida Theatre's 2009 Summer Festival (8 July - 1 August 2009), four cutting edge companies have been invited to collaborate with the Almeida at its home base in Islington and the surrounding area.

Producer Arielle Tepper Madover is pleased to announce that the critically acclaimed Donmar Warehouse production of William Shakespeare's HAMLET with Jude Law in the title role, directed by Michael Grandage, will come to Broadway this fall, following sold out runs in London's West End and a special engagement at Elsinore Castle in Denmark.

A new cast has been announced for Patrick Barlow's adaptation of The 39 Steps, directed by Maria Aitken, currently in its third year at the Criterion Theatre. The new cast will feature John Hopkins as Richard Hannay. Other cast members include Stephen Critchlow, Stephen Ventura, and Natalie Walter. The new cast members of the hilarious 100-minute whodunnit begin July 13.

Penny Downie and Paul McGann take the lead roles in the world première of Helen - Frank McGuinness's new version of Euripides' classic - at Shakespeare's Globe between 2 and 23 August 2009. Under the direction of Deborah Bruce, this is the Globe's first excursion into full-scale Greek drama and continues Dominic Dromgoole's commitment to new writing.

TOO CLOSE TO THE SUN, a dramatic new musical of a fictional account of the last days in the life of Ernest Hemingway, has its World Premiere in London's West End this summer, opening at THE COMEDY THEATRE on Thursday 16 July for a strictly limited 8 week season (Press night: Friday 24 July).

BroadwayWorld Congratulates Angela Lansbury, 2009 Tony Award Winner, 'Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play'

The Menier Chocolate Factory's hit production announces another 48 dates

Two-time Tony Award winners NATHAN LANE (The Producers, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) and BEBE NEUWIRTH (Chicago, Sweet Charity) will star as Gomez and Morticia in THE ADDAMS FAMILY, a new musical based on the bizarre and beloved family of characters created by legendary cartoonist Charles Addams. Produced by Stuart Oken, Roy Furman, Michael Leavitt and Five Cent Productions, by special arrangement with Elephant Eye Theatrical, THE ADDAMS FAMILY will open on Broadway Thursday, April 8, 2010 at a Nederlander theatre to be announced. Previews will begin Thursday, March 4, 2010 following a pre-Broadway engagement at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts, Oriental Theatre in Chicago that begins November 13.

BroadwayWorld Presents The 2009 Tony Award Nominees: 'Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play'

The Northern Broadsides and West Yorkshire Playhouse production of Othello, starring Lenny Henry in the title role, will transfer to the Trafalgar Studios from 11 September following a sell-out, regional tour.

The world premiere of The Boys in the Photograph, the latest musical collaboration between Andrew Lloyd Webber and Ben Elton will take place at the Manitoba Theatre Centre in Winnipeg from April 25 to May 23, 2009. The David Mirvish co-production will then move to the Canon Theatre in Toronto in June 2009.

Shakespeare's Globe launches its 2009 theatre season - Young Hearts - on Shakespeare's birthday, Thursday 23 April, with artistic director Dominic Dromgoole's production of Romeo and Juliet. It will be the first of nine productions during the Globe's most ambitious season to date, which explores the great expanse of the heart. Shakespeare's heartbreaking tale of these tragic and iconic young lovers is widely considered to be one of the greatest of all love stories, and this will be Dominic's first production of the play.

Sagar Arya, Daniel Betts, Paul Bhattacharjee, Lolita Chakrabarti, Michael Cochrane, Vincent Ebrahim, Nabil Elouahabi, Tom McKay, Danny Rahim, Jemma Redgrave, Jemima Rooper, Hugh Skinner, Ramon Tikaram and Rick Warden are the acting company for the Tricycle Theatre's Afghan Festival, The Great Game: Afghanistan.

For the Almeida Theatre's 2009 Summer Festival (8 July - 1 August 2009), four cutting edge companies have been invited to collaborate with the Almeida at its home base in Islington and the surrounding area.

Sagar Arya, Daniel Betts, Paul Bhattacharjee, Lolita Chakrabarti, Michael Cochrane, Vincent Ebrahim, Nabil Elouahabi, Tom McKay, Danny Rahim, Jemma Redgrave, Jemima Rooper, Hugh Skinner, Ramon Tikaram and Rick Warden are the acting company for the Tricycle Theatre's Afghan Festival, The Great Game: Afghanistan.