Simon Russell Beale Will Return to the Barbican To Narrate Greg Doran’s VENUS & ADONIS
Performances run Tuesday 23 — Saturday 27 June 2026 at The Pit.
Simon Russell Beale will return to the Barbican to narrate Greg Doran's production of Shakespeare's great poem Venus & Adonis, animated by a team of world-class puppeteers. Greg Doran: Venus & Adonis by William Shakespeare will be performed Tuesday 23 — Saturday 27 June 2026 at The Pit.
Comedy, tragedy and Shakespeare's extraordinary poetry are woven together in this thrilling production which brings to life the famous story of Venus and her obsession with the handsome Adonis.
Directed by Greg Doran, former Artistic Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company and a renowned Shakespearean, with puppets designed and created by Lyndie Wright, co-founder of the Little Angel Theatre and one of Britain's most celebrated puppet designers, this captivating theatrical experience comes to The Pit as part of a limited UK and European tour this June.
Simon Russell Beale narrates this revival, performed on stage by a team of world-class puppeteers, with live musical accompaniment from guitarist Nick Lee.
First created in 2004 and revived in 2017, this spellbinding show draws inspiration from the bewitching artistry of Japanese Bunraku puppets and the Jacobean Court Masque, using marionettes, rod, shadow and table-top puppets to tell the story.
This production offers an exclusive opportunity to witness, close at hand, the powerful, erotically charged tale of unrequited love that made Venus & Adonis Shakespeare's most popular printed work during his lifetime, as it has been reimagined today.
Toni Racklin, Barbican Head of Theatre & Dance, says, “We are thrilled to welcome Venus & Adonis back to London for its landmark revival, bringing this celebrated production to The Pit as part of its UK and European tour. It's our honour to continue collaborating with Simon Russell Beale and Greg Doran, two of the foremost interpreters of William Shakespeare, whose work has shaped audiences' understanding of his writing over many years. We're excited to offer audiences a unique opportunity to experience the intimacy of our studio space and the inventive storytelling it enables.”
Greg Doran, Director, says, “I am delighted to be reviving Venus and Adonis and bringing it home to the Barbican. this particular production has to be one of the shows of which I am most proud in my entire directing career. Shakespeare's marvellous poem deserves to be much better known, and this collaboration with brilliant world-class puppet makers and puppeteers, the mastery of Simon Russell Beale and an exquisite guitar score played by Nick Lee, brings the poem irresistibly to life.”
Gregory Doran joined the Royal Shakespeare Company as an actor in 1987, and became its Artistic Director in 2012, stepping down a decade later. He has directed every play in the First Folio. Notable productions include Antony & Cleopatra with Harriet Walter and Patrick Stewart, Hamlet and Richard II with David Tennant, All's Well that Ends Well with Judi Dench, and a digitally pioneering production of The Tempest with Simon Russell Beale. His production of Julius Caesar with an all-Black British cast was described by Michael Billington as one the ten best productions in the 60-year history of the RSC.
Greg's long relationship with his late husband, Sir Antony Sher, produced many acclaimed productions, including Titus Andronicus, Macbeth, The Winter's Tale, Othello, Henry IV (Parts 1&2) and King Lear. He initiated the RSC's “Live From Stratford-upon-Avon” programme – broadcasting to cinemas around the world and streaming into UK schools for free.
Greg is an honorary senior research fellow of the Shakespeare Institute, a trustee of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, and an honorary associate of the British Shakespeare Association. He was awarded the Pragnell Shakespeare Prize in 2023, and became President of the Stratford Shakespeare Club on its 200th anniversary. He was knighted for his services to Theatre in 2024.
Greg's recent work includes Richard III, with Arthur Hughes, (the first disabled actor to play the role for the RSC); Cymbeline, which marked his 50th production for the Royal Shakespeare Company. The Two Gentlemen of Verona as the Cameron Mackintosh Visiting Professor at Oxford University; and Gogol's The Government Inspector at Chichester.
My Shakespeare: A Director's Journey Through the First Folio published by Bloomsbury is now out in paperback. His quest to see as many extant copies of the First Folio across the globe (2023/4) is the subject of his latest book Walking Shadow: Love Loss and Shakespeare, published by Bloomsbury in April 2026.
Simon Russell Beale trained at Cambridge University and began his career at the Royal Court before spending eight years with the Royal Shakespeare Company and 20 years at the National Theatre. He has performed across the world in theatre, television, and film, including major Shakespeare productions such as Titus Andronicus, King Lear, Richard III, and The Tempest. His recent work includes television appearances in House of the Dragon and films such as The Death of Stalin and Firebrand. He was knighted in 2019 for services to the arts.
Lyndie Wright MBE trained as a painter at the Central School of Art in London and co-founded the Little Angel Theatre in 1961 with her husband John which she ran until 2001 creating shows such as Angelo, The Little Mermaid and The Soldiers Tale. She has been making world-renowned puppets ever since with theatre credits including the Royal Shakespeare Company (A Midsummer Night's Dream), Shakespeare's Globe (The Little Matchgirl, Macbeth), National Theatre (Coram Boy), Young Vic (The Life of Galileo, A Season in the Congo), Kneehigh Theatre (Dead Dog in a Suitcase, The Tin Drum, 946, Brief Encounter, with Little Angel A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings) and for the Puppet Theatre Barge. She has also created props and puppets for films including Pride and Prejudice (2005), Atonement (2007), and Cyrano (2021). Wright continues to create, teach, and inspire the next generation of puppeteers.
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