The National Theatre of Scotland has announced full casting for the world premiere of James Graham’s new play Make It Happen starring Brian Cox.
The drama charts the rise and fall of The Royal Bank of Scotland, led by Fred “The Shred” Goodwin, and promises to be a bitingly funny new satire that delves into the unchecked growth, spiralling greed and nail-biting hubris that brought the world’s economy to its knees.
Goodwin’s fervent belief in the wisdom of the ‘founder of modern capitalism’, Adam Smith, led the once prudent RBS to soar and then plummet, placing Scotland at the heart of the global financial crash of 2008.
Set in Edinburgh, Make It Happen will star multi-award-winning actor Brian Cox (Succession, The Score), returning to the Scottish stage for the first time in a decade playing Adam Smith, the ghost of fiscal past. Cox is joined by Sandy Grierson (Lanark) as Fred Goodwin, the former CEO of Royal Bank of Scotland.
The full ensemble cast will include Sandy Batchelor, Andy Clark, Maya Bassi Curtis, Callum Cuthbertson, Charlotte Delima, Hannah Donaldson, Kirsty Findlay, Lorraine Graham, Graham Mackay-Bruce, David Mara, Ann Louise Ross, Lawrence Smith, Declan Spaine and Gavin Jon Wright.
The ensemble will play a range of other characters including Gordon Brown, Alistair Darling, Maggie Darling, Shriti Vadera, Laura Kuenssberg and key players at the Royal Bank of Scotland, and will be joined on stage by live musicians.
Written by James Graham (Sherwood, Dear England), Make It Happen is directed by Andrew Panton, Artistic Director of Dundee Rep Theatre.
The creative team also includes Set Designer, Costume Co-Designer & Video Co-Designer Anna Fleischle; Associate Set Designer & Costume Co-Designer Angelica Rush; Musical Supervisor and Arranger Martin Lowe; Movement Director Emily Jane Boyle; Lighting Designer Lizzie Powell; Sound Designer Tingying Dong; Video Co-Designer Lewis den Hertog; and Casting Director Stuart Burt CDG.
The show is a National Theatre of Scotland, Edinburgh International Festival and Dundee Rep Theatre co-production, in association with West End producers Playful Productions and Neal Street Productions. There is much West End chatter about a possible London run for the play.
The play will run at Dundee Rep from 18 to 26 July 2025, and then play the Festival Theatre during the Edinburgh International Festival, from 30 July to 9 August 2025.
Andrew Panton, director, said in a statement: “It’s an honour to collaborate with such a brilliantly talented cast and creative team to tell this important story. We’re all excited to be creating this show at Dundee Rep Theatre, where our local audiences will have the first chance to see Brian Cox, returning to where he started his career. To then bring the show to the world’s largest arts festival, in the city where our story begins, is a hugely exciting opportunity.”
Other National Theatre of Scotland shows making the headlines at the moment are The Fifth Step, which is currently playing at @SohoPlace Theatre in London starring Jack Lowden and Martin Freeman.
Brian Cox recently starred in the West End premiere of Oliver Cotton’s play The Score, directed by Trevor Nunn at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in London.
Current productions of James Graham’s plays include Dear England starring Gwilym Lee, which is in its final performances at the National Theatre ahead of a four-week run at the Lowry theatre in Salford and then a tour; new drama Punch, which is transferring to the West End’s Apollo Theatre from 22 September; and a national tour for Graham’s stage adaptation of Alan Bleasdale TV drama Boys from The Blackstuff.
More about tickets to Make It Happen
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