Lindsay and Lumley to star in play NEWS
Television stars Robert Lindsay and Joanna Lumley will star opposite each other in a new stage production of the play The Lion in Winter.
A new stage version of James Goldman's The Lion in Winter, directed by Trevor Nunn, will feature TV stars Robert Lindsay and Joanna Lumley as Henry II and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine.
The Theatre Royal Haymarket Company production opens on November 5th and runs until January 28th 2012. There will be a press night on the 15th November.
Joining Lindsay, star of My Family and Lumley, best known for her role as Patsy in Absolutely Fabulous, are Tom Bateman, Joseph Drake and James Norton who play the sons of Henry and Eleanor - Richard, John and Geoffrey. The cast is completed by Sonya Cassidy and Rory Fleck-Byrne who play Henry's mistress Alais and her brother, the young King Philip of France.
The fictional play is set in Christmas 1183 and is based in Henry's chateau in Chinon, France. Henry is joined by his wife, whom he has imprisoned for the last 10 years, and his three sons, Richard, John and Geoffrey, for a festive family celebration.
The seasonal atmosphere soon turns into one of gamesmanship between Henry, Eleanor and their three sons. The sense of deceit, betrayal and intra family rivalry is enhanced by the presence of Alais and Philip. Alais, who has been betrothed to Richard for some years, is Henry's mistress and Philip (Philip II of France) is the son of Eleanor's ex-husband, Louis VII of France.
As Henry is advancing in years the issue of who will succeed him as King of England is central to the plot and is the essential backdrop to the scheming of the characters. Henry favours John, his youngest son, whilst Eleanor prefers Richard and plots his rise through Henry's demise. John, hungry for power also schemes for his father's downfall together with brother Geoffrey and Philip.
The play was originally staged on Broadway in 1966 and revived in 1999. It has also sported two film versions in 1968 and 2003. Other actors to have played Henry in the story have been Patrick Stewart and Laurence Fishburne, both highly regarded for their screen and stage work.
BritEvents has tickets available for what is sure to be a superb production.
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