Hampstead Theatre has announced that Simon Russell Beale will be joined by Dervla Kirwan and Joseph Millson in the cast of Ian Kelly's new play about the dawn of celebrity.
Also in the cast are Micah Balfour, Sophie Bleasdale, Joshua Elliott,
Jenny Galloway,
Ian Kelly,
Forbes Masson and
Colin Stinton.
In Georgian London no one is more famous than Samuel Foote. Satirist, impressionist and dangerous comedian, he has become a celebrity in a city, and at the moment in time, when the concept of selling personality was born. He even has the ear of the king. Adored by many, despised by some, Foote finds himself at the sharp end of attacks from the press... and a surgeon's knife. And in an age obsessed with fame, his colleagues from the worlds of science and the stage - from
Benjamin Franklin to
David Garrick - begin to wonder: does fame make you mad? Simon
Russell Beale stars as Samuel Foote, one of the greatest lost figures of Georgian London.
Ian Kelly's comedy, based on his award-winning biography of Foote (Theatre Book of the Year 2013), explores our obsession with the rise and fall of celebrity through the true story of the
Oscar Wilde of the 18th century. Lighting will be designed by
Peter Mumford, and sound by
John Leonard.
Ian Kelly's other biographies include Antonin Careme, Beau Brummell, Giacomo Casanova (Sunday Times Biography of the Year 2008), and Dame
Vivienne Westwood.
Richard Eyre returns to Hampstead following The Last of The Duchess in 2011. His many West End and Broadway productions include Ghosts, Hamlet, Guys and Dolls, Carmen, The Marriage of Figaro, Quartermaine's Terms and The Pajama Game. Film credits include Iris, Notes on a Scandal and the forthcoming The Dresser.
Simon
Russell Beale is acknowledged as one of the UK's foremost actors. Stage appearances include Temple (Donmar), King Lear and Timon of Athens (National Theatre) and Privates on Parade (Noel Coward Theatre). TV includes Penny Dreadful series, Henry IV Parts I & II and Spooks. Film includes My Week with Marilyn, Tarzan, Into the Woods and The Deep Blue Sea. His awards include two BAFTAs, three Olivier Awards, and Evening Standard and Critics Circle Awards.
Dervla Kirwan's recent stage roles include The Weir (Donmar), Uncle Vanya and Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune (
Chichester Festival Theatre) and Aristocrats (National Theatre). Her TV work includes Ballykissangel, Goodnight Sweetheart, Silence, Material Girl and Moving On, and in film Ondine, Entity, Luna and Silent Hours.
Joseph Millson's many stage roles include Macbeth (Shakespeare's Globe), Rocket To The Moon and
Every Good Boy Deserves Favour (National Theatre), Love Never Dies (West End), The Priory (Royal Court) and Judgment Day (Almeida). TV includes The Last Kingdom, Banished, 24-Live Another Day and Penny Dreadful and film I Give It A Year, Dead of the Nite and The Dead 2-India
Micah Balfour's stage work includes Absolute Beginners (Lyric Hammersmith), Market Boy and The Royal Hunt of the Sun (National Theatre). TV includes Emmerdale and
The Musketeers. Film includes Diana and World War Z.
Sophie Bleasdale is currently an undergraduate at RADA where she has performed in Mad to Go and She Stoops To Conquer. TV includes Casualty and Ashes to Ashes.
Joshua Elliott is also an undergraduate from RADA, where roles include The Man of Mode and Hayfever.
Jenny Galloway was last at Hampstead in
Nina Raine's Tiger Country. Other stage work includes Hay Fever (Noel Coward Theatre) and Cause Célèbre (Old Vic). TV includes The Coroner and Ambassadors. Film includes In Transit and London Road.
Writer
Ian Kelly's stage credits include The Pitmen Painters (National Theatre/West End/Broadway), Beau Brummell and Cooking for Kings (New York). TV includes Downton Abbey and Chasing The Hill. Film includes Closed and Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows.
Forbes Masson's stage work includes The Ruling Class and Richard III (Trafalgar Studios). His many productions for the RSC include Ahasuerus, The Taming of the Shrew, Morte D'Arthur and As You Like It. TV includes My Life Story and Monarch of the Glen. He has been in many BBC Radio productions.
Colin Stinton was last at Hampstead in Sarah Helm's Loyalty directed by
Edward Hall. His distinguished stage career includes The Pajama Game and The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui (Chichester/West End) and Mother Courage and Her Children (National Theatre). TV includes The Agency and Harley Street. Film includes Rush, City Slacker and The Bourne Ultimatum.
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