Yerin Ha, Phia Saban, and Lydia Wilson Will Lead Jean Genet's THE MAIDS

The full cast has been announced for Jean Genet's The Maids – in a new translation written and directed by Kip Williams. Williams directs Yerin Ha, Phia Saban and Lydia Wilson in the world premiere of this bold new translation. This production marks Williams' Donmar debut following his critically acclaimed Olivier and Tony Award winning reimagining of The Picture of Dorian Gray and ahead of his adaptation of Dracula starring Cynthia Erivo playing all 23 roles opening at the Noël Coward Theatre next year.

With their mistress away, two maids act out their darkest fantasies as they obsessively role-play her murder, until performance and reality begin to blur. 

This bold new translation of The Maids is a compelling, timely parable of modern identity and the destructive desire to both emulate and annihilate those we idolize.

Kip Williams follows his international hit production of The Picture of Dorian Gray with this wild reimagining of Jean Genet's classic play. 

French playwright, poet and novelist Jean Genet's other plays include The Balcony, The Blacks, The Screens, Deathwatch and Splendid's. His books include Our Lady of the Flowers, Miracle of the Rose, The Thief's Journal, Querelle of Brest and Funeral Rites.

Kip Williams is a multi-award-winning director of theatre, opera and film. He is the former Artistic Director and Co-CEO of Sydney Theatre Company (STC), positions he held from 2016-2024. Williams' most recent work is his adaptation of Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray (Theatre Royal Haymarket, Music Box Theatre), with Sarah Snook. Williams' adaptation of Strange Case of Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde, a companion cinetheatre production to Dorian Gray, played the Adelaide Festival and Perth Festival in 2023. Next year, Williams will direct his adaptation of Dracula at the Noël Coward Theatre, with Cynthia Erivo playing all 23 roles.

He has directed over 20 productions for Sydney Theatre Company, including his multi-award winning production of Suddenly Last Summer, his reinterpretations of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Julius Caesar and Romeo and Juliet, the celebrated 7 hour epic The Harp in the South by Kate Mulvany, his gender inclusive production of Lord of the Flies with Mia Wasikowska, and his ongoing collaborations with actor Hugo Weaving in Brecht's The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui, Shakespeare's Macbeth, and Tennessee Williams' Cat On A Hot Tin Roof. Williams was a Board Director of National Institute of Dramatic Art from 2016 to 2023.

Yerin Ha's theatre credits include Lord of the Flies (Sydney Theatre Company). Her television credits include Dune: Prophecy, Halo and will join the upcoming fourth series of Bridgerton as the series lead Sophie Baek; and for film, Sissy.

Phia Saban's theatre credits include Oedipus (Wyndham's Theatre). Her television credits include House of the Dragon and The Last Kingdom.  

Lydia Wilson's theatre credits include The 47th (The Old Vic), Walden (Harold Pinter Theatre), The Duchess of Malfi (Almeida Theatre), King Charles III - Olivier Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress (Almeida Theatre, Wyndham's Theatre, and Music Box Theatre, New York), Hysteria (Hampstead Theatre), ‘Tis Pity She's A Whore (Barbican and Cheek by Jowl UK tour), The Acid Test, The Heretic (Royal Court Theatre), Blasted (Lyric Hammersmith Theatre), Pains of Youth (National Theatre) and The House of Special Purpose (Chichester Festival Theatre). Her television credits include Nine Bodies in a Mexican Morgue, Funny Woman, The Swarm, Flack, Requiem, Ripper Street, Misfits, Making of a Lady, Black Mirror, Dirk Gently, Any Human Heart, The Crimson Petal and the White, Pete Versus Life, South Riding and the upcoming Disney+ Original series Alice and Steve; and for film, The Score, All Is True, Still, Star Trek Beyond, Love Is Thicker Than Water, About Time and Never Let Me Go.