New Version of OTHELLO Will Feature Three Iagos at Riverside Studios

Trish Wadley Productions has announced initial casting for a new version of one of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies, Othello. Martins Imhangbe will play the title role in this new production conceived by director Sinéad Rushe, which will feature Iago played collectively by three actors - Michael Fox, Orlando James and Jeremy Neumark Jones - and a cast of actor-musicians. Rose Riley plays Desdemona with further casting to be announced.

The production opens at Riverside Studios, London on 6 October, with previews from 4 October, and runs until 28 October 2023.

Producer Trish Wadley said: “I am thrilled to be bringing this show to Riverside Studios, working with such an inspirational and talented group of creatives. This imaginative and fresh take on Othello conceived by director Sinéad Rushe will allow audiences to be fully immersed in the story, and to understand how Iago is able to penetrate Othello’s mind so deeply. Michael Fox’s original music which will be played live during the performance adds another dimension and I can’t wait to see this production to come to life.”

From the producer of the recent acclaimed and sell-out production of The Shape of Things at Park Theatre, this fast-paced new production of Othello sees Iago performed by an ensemble of three actors and features live music composed by Michael Fox.

‘Tis in ourselves that we are thus, or thus. Our bodies are gardens, to the which our wills are gardeners. We have reason to cool our raging motions, our carnal stings, our unbitted lusts.’

Othello is at the peak of his success: in life, in war, and in love. Until he finds himself utterly betrayed by the person he has trusted most: ‘honest’ Iago.

In this re-imagining of Othello, Iago’s shape-shifting, corrosive force is portrayed as a contagion that infects Othello’s imagination and surrounds him from all sides. The squad of Iagos revels in different manoeuvres: switching between a public and private ‘face’, replacing each other as reinforcements, and swarming together as a collective, strategic think-tank.

Michael Fox plays Iago. Fox is perhaps best known as Andy the footman in Downton Abbey, both television and film. He also composes music and formed the folk duo Michael and Michelle with his Downton Abbey co-star Michelle Dockery, releasing their first EP with Decca Records last year. His theatre credits include Clybourne Park (Park Theatre), Kerry Jackson (National Theatre), All in a Row, A Lie of the Mind (Southwark Playhouse), and An Enemy of the People (Chichester Theatre). Other television work includes Endeavour, The Ark, Bombing Auschwitz, New Worlds, Littlebigmouth, and Mrs Bradley Mysteries; and for film, Dunkirk, The World Will Tremble, Good People, and Bonver. 

Martins Imhangbe plays Othello. He has become well known for his portrayal of the boxer Will Mondrich in the Netflix hit series Bridgerton and was commended in the Ian Charleson Award 2019 for his role in The Tragedy of King Richard II. His other theatre credits include Othello (ETT), Death of a Salesman (Young Vic), The Tragedy of King Richard II (Almeida Theatre), Absolute Hell (National Theatre), The Royale (Bush Theatre), Luce (Southwark Playhouse), The Skriker (Royal Exchange Theatre), Lionboy (Complicité), and Romeo and Juliet (Orange Tree Theatre). His film work includes The Last British Execution and Digging. 

Orlando James plays Iago. His theatre work includes Even Stillness Breathes Softly Against A Brick Wall (Orange Three Theatre), The Winter’s Tale, ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore, Macbeth (Cheek by Jowl), Shakespeare in Love (West End), Another Country (Theatre Royal Bath and Chichester Theatre), The Madness of George III (Theatre Royal Bath and UK tour), Curious (Riverside Studios) and Country Feedback (The Old Vic). His television work includes Six Wives and Doctor Who; and for film, Wonder Woman II and The Laureate.

Jeremy Neumark Jones plays Iago. His theatre work includes Macbeth, Private Peaceful and The Real Inspector Hound (National Youth Theatre), and Much Ado About Nothing (Thelma Holt). His television work includes The Feed, The Last Post, Siblings, One of Us, Grantchester, and Jekyll and Hyde; and for film Forgiveness, Tiebreaker, Denial, and Leavey. 

Rose Riley plays Desdemona. Her theatre work includes Hamnet (RSC), Grafting (Rose Theatre Kingston), The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time (National Theatre), Loaded (Birmingham Old Rep), South of Home (Theatre 503), RE:HOME (The Yard Theatre), One Minute (Delirium/The Vaults), and Tiger Country (Hampstead Theatre). Her television work includes Call The Midwife, Doctors and Life After Life; and for film 90 Minutes, Big Brother and Home.

Sinéad Rushe is an Olivier Award nominated theatre director and acting coach. Her theatre work include AntigoneNOW (UC Davis, USA), Loaded (Old Rep Birmingham), Concert (Barbican Theatre, New York and international tour), Night Just Before the Forests (Macau Arts Festival China), Diary of a Madman (Sherman Cymru and international tour), and Out of Time (Barbican Theatre, New York and international tour – Olivier Award nomination). She is the Artistic Director of Creative Actor Training and Lead Acting Tutor at RADA. She is the author of Michael Chekhov’s Acting Technique: A Practitioner’s Guide, and co-translator into French of four plays by Howard Barker. www.sineadrushe.co.uk

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