The National Theatre announce a star-studded line up for 2018-19, with Rhys Ifans and Indira Varma starring in Exit the King, and The IT Crowd’s Katherine Parkinson as a 1950s housewife in Home, I’m Darling.
The new season at the National Theatre in London will also include Hadestown, a return of award winning musical Follies and Shakespeare’s Pericles.
Exit the King by Eugène Ionesco (17 May 2018) will be directed by Patrick Marber (Three Days in the Country, Hedda Gabler) in a new version of this tragi-comedy. Cast in the title role, Rhys Ifans (Notting Hill, A Christmas Carol) will play the 400 year old King who is clinging on for dear life. He will be joined on the Olivier stage by Indira Varma (Game of Thrones, Man and Superman) as his first queen.
Home, I’m Darling (24 July to 5 Sep) sees Katherine Parkinson on a quest to be the perfect 1950s housewife. This new play by Laura Wade (Posh) explores the theme of how being a domestic goddess is not as easy as it seems and asks the question – how happily married are the happily married?
Hadestown (2 Nov 2018 to 26 Jan 2019) is a musical developed from the concept album by singer/ Anaïs Mitchell. Directed by Rachel Chavkin the musical blends vintage New Orleans jazz with modern American folk music to tell an ancient story of love by young dreamers on a journey to the underworld.
Following popular demand, the critically acclaimed Olivier Award winning revival of Follies will return in February 2019.
Also at the National, Shakespeare’s play Pericles (26-28 Aug 2018). The Star Seekers (8 Aug to 1 Sep) – an interactive family show where the audience takes the wheel and the actors improvise. The return of the River Stage Festival (13 July to 12 Aug), a free summer event, sees live music, dance, theatre, DJs, family workshops and club nights.
