No longer booking
  • Venue Orange Tree Theatre, London
  • Performance dates Booking to 17 May 2025
  • Running time 2 hours 25 minutes (including interval)

The RSC’s acclaimed production of Mark Ravenhill’s new play Ben and Imo transfers to London’s Orange Tree Theatre, starring Samuel Barnett and Victoria Yeates.

Samuel Barnett (The History Boys, Penny Dreadful) stars as Benjamin Britten and Victoria Yeates (Call the Midwife) as Imogen Holst in a new play by award-winner Mark Ravenhill (Shopping and F**king), and directed by Erica Whyman (Hamnet).

Ben and Imo tells the fascinating true story of the creative relationship between composer Benjamin Britten and Imogen Holst, daughter of Gustav Holst, and an accomplished musician in her own right.

Ben and Imo is playing at the Orange Tree Theatre in London from 19 April to 17 May 2025.

Set in 1953 in the lead up to Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation, Britten has just nine months to write a new opera, Gloriana, about her predecessor, Elizabeth I. Into the world of the disheartened composer enters the exuberant and passionate Imogen Holst. Her candid and can-do attitude proves to be the perfect foil for the capricious and often maddening Britten, and what begins as an arrangement of practical support turns into a bond that not only sees Gloriana to its premiere but endures throughout the rest of their lives.

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Stars and Creatives

Who is in the cast of Ben and Imo?

Starring Samuel Barnett as Benjamin Britten and Victoria Yeates as Imogen Holst.

Ben and Imo - Casting: Samuel Barnett and Victoria Yeates

Who are the creative team of Ben and Imo?

Written by Mark Ravenhill.

Directed by Erica Whyman, Designer Soutra Gilmour Lighting designer Jackie Shemesh, Sound designer Carolyn Downing, Casting Matthew Dewsbury CDG, Music Conor Mitchell, Dramaturg Pippa Hill.

Venue Information

Orange Tree Theatre , 1 Clarence Street, Richmond, London, TW9 2SA

Nearest Tube or Train: Richmond

Nearest Buses: 65, 190, 371, 391, 419, 490, 493, R68, R70, H22, H37, N22

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Critics' reviews of Ben and Imo

★★★★ "A small gem of a play" - Evening Standard

★★★★ "Vibrant, strongly acted" - Arts Desk

“Yeates and Barnett have a vivid rapport, bringing to life this intense relationship” - Financial Times

“Whyman’s sensitive direction… Finely crafted performances" - The Observer

Frequently Asked Questions

Ben and Imo is playing at the Orange Tree Theatre in London
The running time of Ben and Imo is 2 hours 25 minutes (including interval)
Yes, Ben and Imo has matinee performances on the following days:
No, sorry, Ben and Imo has now completed its run and is no longer on sale.

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