Shakespeare in Love (play)


Shakespeare in Love is a play by Lee Hall adapted from the film of the same title.

Production

The play premiered at the Noël Coward Theatre in London's West End on 22 July 2014. It was produced by Disney Theatrical Productions and Sonia Friedman Productions and directed by Declan Donnellan, with design by Nick Ormerod and music by Paddy Cunneen. The original cast included David Oakes appearing as Marlowe, Tom Bateman as Will, and Lucy Briggs-Owen as the heroine Viola De Lesseps. The production closed on 18 April 2015.
The production played to sold-out audiences during the 2016 Stratford Festival season. The director of the production was Declan Donnellan, with the rest of the original creative team from London show returning for the Canadian production.
The first U.S. production of the play occurred on 18 February 2017, at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. The play was produced at the Burbage Theater of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, as the first presentation of its 2018–2019 season.
In 2017, the first South African production of the play took place at The Fugard Theatre. It was directed by Greg Karvellas, produced by Eric Abraham and starred Dylan Edy as William Shakespeare alongside Roxane Hayward as Viola De Lesseps. It played to sold-out audiences and, due to its success, was brought back in 2018 with Hayward reprising her role, opposite Daniel Mpilo Richard stepping in as Shakespeare.
A new production of the play, directed by Phillip Breen, will embark on a UK tour opening at the Theatre Royal, Bath from 4 to 13 October 2018, before heading to Theatre Royal, Nottingham, Festival Theatre, Malvern, Oxford Playhouse, Cambridge Arts Theatre, King's Theatre, Edinburgh and Chichester Festival Theatre, with further dates and casting to be announced.
It was announced in August 2018 that Shakespeare in Love will be one of the two headlining productions for the 30th anniversary of Bard on the Beach in the Kitsilano Neighbourhood in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Cast

;Original London Company
;Cast from 12 January 2015