RSC’s HAMNET to transfer to the West End this Autumn
The Royal Shakespeare Company and Neal Street Productions, in association with Hera Pictures, have announced the West End transfer of Hamnet, playing at the Garrick Theatre from 30 September 2023-6 January 2024, after a sell-out run in Stratford-upon-Avon next month.
This new play based on the best-selling novel by Maggie O'Farrell, adapted by award-winning playwright Lolita Chakrabarti, pulls back a curtain on the story of the greatest writer in the English language and the woman who was the constant presence and purpose of his life.
Madeleine Mantock (Blithe Spirit, West End) will play Agnes Hathaway in her RSC debut.
Warwickshire,1582. Agnes Hathaway, a natural healer, meets the Latin tutor, William Shakespeare. Drawn together by powerful but hidden impulses, they create a life together and make a family.
When the plague steals 11-year-old Hamnet from his loving parents, they must each confront their loss alone. And yet, out of the greatest suffering, something of extraordinary wonder is born.
The production will feature set and costume design by Tom Piper, with lighting by Prema Mehta, sound by Xana, music by Oğuz Kaplangi, casting by Amy Ball CDG and movement by Ayse Tashkiran.
Maggie O’Farrell said: “It’s wonderful and welcome news that Hamnet will transfer to the Garrick Theatre later this year. I was astonished at how fast the Stratford-upon-Avon tickets sold and it’s lovely to know that more people will have the chance to see it in its new London home. It has been a joy from start to finish to work with the RSC, Hera Pictures, Neal Street Productions, director Erica Whyman and playwright Lolita Chakrabarti on bringing this adaptation into being. I have been lucky enough to attend rehearsals, and to have a glimpse into the creative process of transposing a novel into a play has been fascinating. The cast are fantastic, each and every one, and are breathing new life into the story for its stage version. The motivation, for me, in writing the novel was to give a voice and a presence to the only son of William Shakespeare, who died when he was eleven and has ever since been relegated to a literary footnote in his father’s biography. Although Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon and maintained strong ties with the town throughout his life, choosing to return to his family there when he retired, London was of course the centre of his professional life. It feels particularly apt and moving, therefore, that a play which puts Hamnet centre stage will now move to the world of theatrical London.”
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