Nick Hern Books To Publish The Stage Adaptation Of A LITTLE LIFE

Leading specialist theatre publishers Nick Hern Books will publish the stage adaptation of Hanya Yanagihara's bestselling novel A Little Life alongside its sold-out run in London's West End.

A Little Life follows the complex relationships of four college friends in New York City: Willem, an actor; Malcolm, an architect; JB, an artist; and, at the centre of their group, Jude, a lawyer.

Over the decades, their relationships deepen and darken, changed by ambition, addiction and pride. Yet their greatest challenge is Jude himself, whose secrets - and shame - define not just his own life, but that of his friends as well.

The original novel of A Little Life has sold over a million copies and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and the Women's Prize for Fiction.

The stage adaptation - conceived by celebrated theatre director Ivo van Hove, and adapted by Koen Tachelet, van Hove and Yanagihara herself - was first performed in a Dutch-language production at Internationaal Theater Amsterdam in the Netherlands in 2018, before transferring to New York in 2022. It is now playing at the Harold Pinter Theatre in London's West End before a further run at the Savoy Theatre, London, directed by Ivo van Hove and with a cast led by James Norton (Happy Valley, Grantchester, McMafia) as Jude.

In addition to the full text of the play, the published edition - released in paperback and ebook on 27 April, with an RRP of £12.99 - will include introductions by Yanagihara and van Hove, a production history and a colour-plate section reproducing paintings of the West End cast. Copies of the playscript can be pre-ordered now at www.nickhernbooks.co.uk/a-little-life.

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