Steve Waters’ new play Temple comes to the Donmar Warehouse starring Simon Russell Beale.
Howard Davies directs Simon Russell Beale as the Dean in a new play by Steve Waters at the Donmar Warehouse this Spring.
Temple is a fictional account, inspired by the Occupy London movement in 2011.
THE STORY
On 15 October 2011, Occupy London makes camp outside St Paul’s Cathedral. On 21 October, a building that remained open through the Blitz, terrorist threats and floods closes its doors. On 28 October, the City of London initiates legal action to begin removing Occupy London from outside the Cathedral.
Steve Waters’ new play is a fictional account of these events, set in the heart of a very British crisis – a crisis of conscience, a crisis of authority and a crisis of faith.
THE CAST
Simon who plays the Dean of St Paul’s will be joined on stage by Anna Calder-Marshall, Paul Higgins, Rebecca Humphries, Shereen Martin Malcolm Sinclair.
Simon Russell Beale (playing the Dean of St Paul’s) returns to the Donmar following his award winning role of Philip in The Philanthropist, Twelfth Night and Uncle Vanya (Olivier Award for Best Actor). His extensive list of theatre credits for the National Theatre includes King Lear, Timon of Athens, Collaborators, London Assurance, Major Barbara, Much Ado About Nothing, The Life of Galileo, The Alchemist, Jumpers (also West End and New York), Humble Boy (also West End), Hamlet, Battle Royal, Candide, Summerfolk, Money, Othello, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead and Volpone, and for the RSC The Tempest, King Lear, Ghosts, the title roles in Richard III and Edward II, The Seagull, Troilus and Cressida, The Man of Mode and Restoration. Other theatre credits include The Hot House (Trafalgar Studios), Privates on Parade and Death Trap (Noel Coward Theatre). Simon’s acting career also spans television and film, appearing in titles including Penny Dreadful, My Week with Marilyn, The Deep Blue Sea, The Gathering, Alice in Wonderland, An Ideal Husband, The Hollow Crown: Henry IV parts 1 & 2 (BAFTA Television Award for Best Supporting Actor), American Experience and Dunkirk.
REVIEWS
★★★★★“Simon Russell Beale’s performance instantly ranks as one of the finest in his career” Dominic Cavendish, The Telegraph
★★★ “Steve Waters’s recasting of events surrounding the Occupy protests is scrupulously balanced but lacks animation” Susannah Clapp, The Observer
★★★★ “Impeccably directed by Howard Davies…Simon Russell Beale plays a brilliantly beleaguered Dean” Paul Taylor, The Independent
★★★★ “a rich, deeply thoughtful piece about contemporary values” Sarah Hemming, The Financial Times
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