Tobacco Factory Theatres Announces Cast For 2019 Factory Company Season

Tobacco Factory Theatres has announced the casting of its second Factory Company - the resident professional ensemble that will perform new in-house productions of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream and Timberlake Wertenbaker's Our Country's Good between February and May 2019.

Following his critically acclaimed production last year of A View From the Bridge and his autumn 2018 production of Beautiful Thing, Mike Tweddle, Artistic Director of Tobacco Factory Theatres directs his dynamic interpretation of one of Shakespeare's best loved comedies. Then, Anna Girvan, who cut her teeth in Bristol and at Tobacco Factory Theatres, takes on Wertenbaker's twentieth century masterpiece about the morality of crime and punishment.

Speaking about the season, Mike Tweddle said: "I'm so delighted that we'll be bringing together a world class ensemble of actors for four months once again who'll perform two of the most exciting and entertaining plays you could hope to see and play a powerful role in our community engagement activities. A Midsummer Night's Dream is a raucous, razor-sharp exposé of flawed relationships and societal snobbery and a glorious celebration of the fantastical. Our Country's Good is one of the great 20th century plays. It transports the audience to a distant time and shore in order to shine a light on some of the biggest issues of today. Wertenbaker's writing is hilarious, heart-wrenching and stunningly profound and requires a director and cast with imaginative flair and fearlessness."

For A Midsummer Night's Dream, the four lovers will be played by Evlyne Oyedokun (Julius Caesar, RSC), Paksie Vernon (Network, Angels in America, RSC), Joseph Tweedale (Macbeth, A View From the Bridge, Tobacco Factory Theatres) and Dan Wheeler (Romeo and Juliet, Insane Root Theatre). In the fairy world, Charleen Qwaye (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, National Theatre) will play Titania, Luca Thompson (Shakespeare's Worst, Bristol Shakespeare Festival) plays Oberon and Puck will be played by Kim Heron (Translunar Paradise, Light, Ad Infinitum). Amongst The Mechanicals, Heather Williams will play Bottom (Up Down Man, Myrtle Theatre and Tobacco Factory Theatres).

In Our Country's Good, the progressive Captain Arthur Phillip will be played by Luca Thompson and the opportunistic Second Lieutenant Ralph Clark by Joseph Tweedale. Danann McAleer (King Lear, Bristol Old Vic) will play Captain David Collins and the role of Liz Morden will be played by Kim Heron.

For the full cast list and cast biographies, see tobaccofactorytheatres.com/casting-announced-for-next-factory-company-season/

Directors Mike Tweddle and Anna Girvan lead a creative team of local and national artists for both productions, including Designer Anna Reid (Twelfth Night, Southwark Playhouse), Sound Designer Max Perryment (The Convert, The Young Vic), Lighting Designer Chris Swain (Beautiful Thing, Tobacco Factory Theatres) and Fight Director Kaitlin Howard (Twelfth Night, HOME Manchester).

The season also incorporates Get Involved events connecting the productions with the local community, artists and audiences. See the Tobacco Factory Theatres website for more information: tobaccofactorytheatres.com/campaigns/factory-company-season/

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