FULL CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR THE RSC’S TWELFTH NIGHT
TWELFTH NIGHT
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Prasanna Puwanarajah
The Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon
Thursday 5 December 2024 – Saturday 18 January 2025
Press Night: Thursday 12 December, 7pm
Box Office: rsc.org.uk, 01789 331111
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Full casting is announced for the RSC’s upcoming production of Twelfth Night, which runs at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon between Thursday 5 December 2024 and Saturday 18 January 2025, with a press performance on Thursday 12 December, 7pm.
Joining the previously announced Samuel West (Malvolio) and Gwyneth Keyworth (Viola) are Freema Agyeman (Olivia) and Bally Gill (Orsino).
Freema Agyeman will make her RSC debut as Olivia. Her most recent theatre credits include Jamie Lloyd’s Romeo and Juliet (2024) and the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre’s God of Carnage (2023). She is perhaps best known for her roles as Martha Jones in Doctor Who and, more recently, as Dr. Helen Sharpe in New Amsterdam.
Bally Gill, who played Oberon/Theseus in Eleanor Rhode’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream earlier this year, returns to the RSC as Orsino. This will be his fifth time performing in a Shakespeare play at the RSC, having also appeared in Coriolanus, Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet. He was awarded the Ian Charleson Award in 2018 for his performance as Romeo. Bally’s TV credits include Agent Singh in Slow Horses and Rashid in Interview with the Vampire.
Amongst Samuel West’s well-known credits are All Creatures Great and Small, Apple TV’s Slow Horses and Darkest Hour. Gwyneth Keyworth is best known for playing Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird at the Gielgud Theatre, for which she won the WhatsOnStage Award for Best Supporting Performer in 2023.
The full cast comprises: Freema Agyeman (Olivia), Emily Benjamin (Priest), Norman Bowman (Antonio), George Fletcher (Second Officer/Orsino’s Attendant), Bally Gill (Orsino), Demetri Goritsas (Sir Andrew Aguecheek), Michael Grady-Hall (Feste), Danielle Henry (Maria), Gwyneth Keyworth (Viola), Michael Lyle (First Officer/Orsino’s Attendant), Cat McKeever (Sea Captain), Daniel Millar (Fabian), Reece Miller (Orsino’s Attendant), Charlotte O’Leary (Olivia’s Woman), Thom Petty (Curio), Rhys Rusbatch (Sebastian), Joplin Sibtain (Sir Toby Belch), Tom Sowinski (Orsino’s Attendant), Samuel West (Malvolio) and David Whitworth (Valentine).
Director, Prasanna Puwanarajah, who returns to the RSC having last directed Venice Preserved here in 2019, said:
“I’m delighted and honoured to be back in the RSC rehearsal rooms working on this beautiful play with such a terrific company of performers and creative collaborators; some are new to the RSC and some are veterans of the company, some are long-term collaborators of mine and some are exciting and wonderful new creative partnerships. They are a kind, creative, bold and soulful group of artists, and I’m so grateful to Casting Director Matthew Dewsbury, the whole of the RSC Casting Department and to Daniel Evans and Tamara Harvey for their work in putting together this stunning ensemble.”
Joining director, Prasanna Puwanarajah in the creative team are: James Cotterill as Set & Costume Designer, Zoe Spurr as Lighting Designer, Matt Maltese as Composer, George Dennis as Sound Designer, Polly Bennett as Movement Director and Matthew Dewsbury CDG as Casting Director.
- ENDS –
For more information or media enquiries related to Twelfth Night please contact:
Armani Ur-Rub, RSC Senior Publicist
armani.ur-rub@rsc.org.uk
LISTING INFORMATION
Twelfth Night
Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon
Thursday 5 December – Saturday 18 January 2025
Press Night: Thursday 12 December, 7pm
https://www.rsc.org.uk/twelfth-night/
A woman survives a shipwreck and washes up on an unknown shore. Alone and bereaved of her twin brother, she embarks on a secret new life as a go-between for two people in the extremity of love and grief. Caught up in the ensuing love triangle she experiences the chaos and humanity of unexpected love; and she discovers that in Illyria, everyone is hiding something.
Chilled Performance – Saturday 21 December, 1.15pm
Handheld Captioned Performance - Friday 27 December, 7.15pm
Audio Described Performance: Saturday 04 January, 1.15pm
Captioned Performance – Saturday 11 January, 7.15pm
Chilled Performance – Thursday 16 January, 1.15pm
Audio Described Performance – Friday 17 January, 7.15pm
Director Talk – Wednesday 11 December, 5.15-6pm
Post Show Talk: Monday 6 January
Unwrapped: Twelfth Night – Saturday 18 January, 10.15 – 11.15am
For more information on events: https://www.rsc.org.uk/twelfth-night/related-events
NOTES TO EDITORS
The RSC is supported using public funding by Arts Council England
The work of the RSC is supported by the Culture Recovery Fund
The RSC is generously supported by RSC America
With thanks to Season Supporters Backstage Trust and Miranda Curtis CMG
RSC £10 Tickets for 14-25s supported by TikTok
The RSC Acting Companies are generously supported by The Gatsby Charitable Foundation
The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC)
The Royal Shakespeare Company’s mission is to bring people together to experience stories that deepen our understanding of ourselves, each other and the world around us, and that bring joy. Shakespeare’s restless exploration of all of human nature is our inspiration and touchstone.
The Company’s roots lie in the bold vision of a local brewer, Edward Fordham Flower, who in 1879 established a theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon with his son Charles. The RSC as we know it today was formed by Sir Peter Hall, whose ambition was to produce new plays alongside those of Shakespeare and his contemporaries. We continue this today across our three permanent theatres in Stratford – the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, the Swan Theatre and The Other Place – and indeed online and around the globe. We believe everybody’s life can be enriched by culture and creativity. Our transformative Creative Learning and Engagement programmes reach over half a million young people and adults each year. We have collaborated with generations of the very best theatre makers and we continue to nurture the talent of the future.
Arts Council England is the national development agency for creativity and culture. We have set out our strategic vision in Let’s Create that by 2030 we want England to be a country in which the creativity of each of us is valued and given the chance to flourish and where everyone of us has access to a remarkable range of high-quality cultural experiences. We invest public money from Government and The National Lottery to help support the sector and to deliver this vision. www.artscouncil.org.uk. Following the Covid-19 crisis, the Arts Council developed a £160 million Emergency Response Package, with nearly 90% coming from the National Lottery, for organisations and individuals needing support. We are also one of the bodies responsible for administering the Government’s unprecedented Culture Recovery Fund, of which we delivered over £1 billion to the sector in grants and loans. Find out more at www.artscouncil.org.uk/covid19.
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