Cast Announced for INKHEART, HOME's First Ever Christmas Production

HOME's Christmas 2015 production for all the family is Inkheart, based on Cornelia Funke's worldwide best-selling fantasy novel for children. Inkheart will leap from page to stage in this funny, exciting, and actionpacked UK premiere, adapted for the stage by Stephen Sharkey and Walter Meierjohann, directed by Walter Meierjohann and designed by Stéphane Laimé, with music by Nikola Kodjabashia

Cornelia Funke will be the special guest at HOME's BIG Family Day on Sunday 13 December 2015, a great day packed full of fun creative workshops, family-friendly theatre, and films.

Director Walter Meierjohann has announced the cast of Inkheart, HOME's 2015 Christmas show, which runs from Fri 4 Dec 2015 to Sat 9 Jan 2016 in the state-of-the-art 500-seat theatre in Manchester's brand new international centre for contemporary theatre, visual art, and film.

Katherine Carlton, who graduated from the prestigious drama school LAMDA in 2013, takes the central part of Meggie, our 12-year-old hero who is drawn into a world of mystery, magic, and adventure when the characters in her favourite books come alive. Paul McEwan, with north west credits at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester, and the Dukes Lancaster, as well as at the Royal Shakespeare Company, plays Mo, her father, while Stockport-based Kelly Hotten, plays Resa, Meggie's mother, as well as being the narrator of the story. Kelly also has a number of appearances at the Royal Exchange Theatre, and TV credits in programmes including Doctors and WPC56. Chester-based Andy Sheridan, who plays the fire-eater Dustfinger, has appearances at The Lowry and the Royal Exchange, plus TV appearances including Coronation Street, Shameless, and Clocking Off, to his name. He also appeared in Control, the film of the life of Joy Division singer Ian Curtis.

Rachel Atkins and Griffin Stevens, who appeared in HOME's Manchester Theatre Award-winning production of Romeo & Juliet at Victoria Baths in Autumn 2014, return to play Elinor, Meggie's aunt, and Flatnose, one of a band of evil villains, respectively. Rachel is well-known to Radio 4 listeners as Vicky Tucker in The Archers. Flatnose's evil partner-in-crime, Capricorn, will be played by Will Irvine, who made a huge impression in Angel Meadow, HOME's first-ever production in Spring 2014. Angel Meadow won Best Production and Best Ensemble in the 2014 Manchester Theatre Awards. Veteran Scottish actor Kern Falconer plays Fenoglio, the wise old author whose characters leap off the pages of Inkheart and into the real world, Romania-born Andrei Costin, who appeared in Nottingham Playhouse's UK tour of The Kite Runner, plays Farid, and finally, Darryl Clark, who has recently been playing a number of characters in The 39 Steps at the Criterion Theatre in the West End, plays Basta, who along with Farid is one of Capricorn's two henchmen.

Inkheart runs Friday 4 December 2015 - Saturday 9 January 2016. More information available at http://homemcr.org/production/inkheart.