RSC Chief Associate Gregory Doran's production of Twelfth Night will transfer after its sell-out run at The Courtyard Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon to the West End in December with Richard Wilson in his RSC debut as Malvolio. Joining him as the irrepressible duo Sir Andrew Aguecheek and Sir Toby Belch are James Fleet and Richard McCabe. Richard McCabe makes a welcome return to the RSC alongside Nancy Carroll as Viola, Alexandra Gilbreath as Olivia, Jo Stone-Fewings as Orsino, Sam Alexander as Sebastian and Miltos Yerolemou as Feste.
This production of Shakespeare's comedy will perform a straight run at the Duke of York's Theatre on St Martin's Lane from 19 December 2009 to 27 February 2010 - this includes a performance on 5th January which is seen as "twelfth night" - the final day of the twelve days of Christmas before Epiphany starts on the 6th January.
Gregory Doran's recent RSC productions of A Midsummer Night's Dream and Hamlet performed in The Courtyard Theatre before transferring for an acclaimed run at the Novello theatre in London's West End in 2008/9 for which Hamlet won the Whatsonstage award for Theatrical Event of the Year and the film adaptation of which will be screened on BBC2 on Boxing Day and will then be available on DVD. His other RSC credits include Love's Labour's Lost, Merry Wives - the Musical, Macbeth, King John, Henry VIII, The Canterbury Tales and Timon of Athens. He will direct a new stage version of Morte D'Arthur with the current RSC ensemble in 2010.
Doran said: "I am delighted to have finally persuaded Richard Wilson to play Malvolio, a part he was born to play. And it's a real pleasure to welcome back Nancy Carroll to play Viola and Alexandra Gilbreath to play Olivia. Nancy and Alexandra appeared opposite each other as Rosalind and Celia in my production of As You Like It in 2000. Twelfth Night is surely the most achingly sad of all Shakespeare's comedies tinged with a melancholy sadness and almost Chekhovian in its sense of loss."
Richard Wilson is best known for his much-loved role of Victor Meldrew in the TV comedy series One Foot in the Grave for which he has won many awards including the British Comedy Awards Top Television Comedy Actor Award and two BAFTAs. His long and distinguished career as both actor and director in theatre, film and TV most recently includes (as actor) Merlin (BBC1), Demons (ITV), New Tricks (BBC1), Whipping it Up (Bush Theatre/West End), Waiting for Godot (Royal Exchange) and What the Butler Saw (NT). As director his recent work includes Rainbow Kiss, The Woman Before (both Royal Court) and Primo (NT, South Africa, Hampstead, Broadway and then for television on BBC/HBO), amongst many others. Richard is a former associate director of The Royal Court Theatre, and was awarded an OBE in 1994 for services to drama as director and actor.
James Fleet is probably best known for his roles on television and in film. He played Frederick Dorrit in the BBC's recent adaptation of Little Dorrit, Hugo in The Vicar of Dibley, Kevin's dad in Kevin and Perry the Movie, the prime minister in Crossing the Floor, John Dashwood in Ang Lee's Sense and Sensibility and Tom in Four Weddings and a Funeral. James is currently performing in The Observer at the National Theatre in London.
Richard McCabe's work for the RSC includes: the title role in Josie Rourke's King John in the Swan Theatre in 2006, Apemantus in Gregory Doran's Timon of Athens, Three Hours After Marriage, White Devil and Marlowe in The School of Night directed by Bill Alexander who also directed Richard as Hamlet for Birmingham Rep - a production which toured to Elsinore. Richard's films include The Duchess, Einstein and Eddington, Greenway's Nightwatching, The Constant Gardener and Notting Hill, and he has a regular role in ITV1's Wallander with Kenneth Branagh.
Nancy Carroll's previous RSC appearances include Lady Percy in Henry IV (2000), Gregory Doran's production of As You Like It (2000) and The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (1998). She has more recently appeared on stage in Waste at the Almeida and in The Man of Mode and The Voysey Inheritance at the National Theatre. Her television work includes: Doctors and The Life and Times of William Shakespeare for the BBC - directed by Gregory Doran and Michael Wood.
Alexandra Gilbreath's most recent role for the RSC was Mistress Ford in Merry Wives - the Musical (2006) alongside Judi Dench and Alistair McGowan. Her other credits include: Maria in The Tamer Tamed, Kate in The Taming of the Shrew, Rosalind in As You Like It, Hermione in The Winter's Tale and Roxanne in Cyrano de Bergerac - all directed by Doran. She also played Juliet to David Tennant's Romeo in Michael Boyd's production in 2000. Her television credits include: Casualty, Trial and Retribution, Absolute Power and regular roles in The Bill and Monarch of the Glen.
Jo Stone-Fewings last played Orsino for the RSC in Lindsay Posner's version of the play in 2001. Other RSC credits include: Richard III, Henry VIIII, Cymbeline and The Taming of the Shrew (1998-9), and Philip Falconbridge in Doran's King John (2001). Other theatre: Richard Hannay in The 39 Steps at the Criterion, Joe Pitt in Angels in America for Headlong, Sparkish in The Country Wife at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket and Edgar in King Lear at the Chichester Festival Theatre. His films include Unstoppable and All the Kings Men.
Sam Alexander was in the RSC's last ensemble - playing Rosencrantz in Hamlet, Philostrate in A Midsummer Night's Dream and Dumain in Love's Labour's Lost - all directed by Gregory Doran. The film version of Hamlet with David Tennant in the title role will be seen on BBC2 over Christmas.
Miltos Yeremolou very recently played the clown in Kathryn Hunter's production of Othello for the RSC which opened at Warwick Arts Centre and toured around the UK. His other work for the company includes Laurence Boswell's production of Beauty and the Beast and Doran's production of The Winter's Tale. His other theatre includes Dromio in A Comedy of Errors at the Globe, Snowy in Tintin for The Young Vic, and Hanuman in The Ramayana at the National Theatre.
The company also includes: Ian Abeysekera (Officer), Laurence Dobiesz (Valentine), Alan Francis (Sea Captain), Tony Jayawardena (Fabian), Simeon Moore (Antonio), Pamela Nomvete (Maria), Demi Oyediran (Lady), Prasanna Puwanarajah (Priest), Ashley Taylor-Rhys (Curio) and Maya Wasowicz (Lady).
The designer is Rob Jones with lighting by Tim Mitchell, and music composed by Paul Englishby. Sound is by Martin Slavin, Movement is by Struan Leslie and the fight director is Terry King.
