39 Steps team bring Ben Hur to Tricycle this Christmas

The Tricycle Theatre's new season includes a radical reworking of Molière's Tartuffe and a new production of Ben Hur from the team behind The 39 Steps.

The season opens in September with a month of comedy, including the return of Mark Thomas and Sean Hughes to the Kilburn venue and the Tricycle debut of Shazia Mirza.

These performances are complemented by a short run of Ravi and Asha Jain's A Brimful of Asha (8-19 September), fresh from a world tour.

The centrepiece of the season is the world premiere of A Wolf in Snakeskin Shoes, a new adaptation of Molière's classic comedy Tartuffe.

It centres on a terminally ill multi-millionaire who rejects costly experimental treatment and opts instead to face his end surrounded by his loving family. But things could be about to change with the arrival of a mysterious prophet.

The production, which runs from 8 October to 14 November, sees artistic director Indhu Rubasingham continue her collaboration with American playwright Marcus Gardley following The House That Will Not Stand in 2014.

For Christmas, the team behind the award-winning The 39 Steps, which premiered at the Tricycle prior to its West End transfer, bring their production of Ben Hur, based on General Lew Wallace's classic novel, to the Tricycle stage.

Written by Patrick Barlow and directed by Tim Carroll, the production sees "The greatest book ever penned brought to the stage by a towering team of just four actors, turning the Tricycle stage into one of the most authentic versions of ancient Rome ever seen."

Produced in association with with Fiery Angel and The Watermill Theatre, it runs from 19 November 2015 to 9 January 2016.

Also announced today is the Tricycle's new writer development programme, NW6, which will support five writers – Hassan Abdulrazzak, Zodwa Nyoni, Chino Odimba, Sam Potter and Francis Turnly – over the coming year.

Indhu Rubasingham said today: "I am thrilled to announce the Tricycle's new season – a combination of brilliant voices, some new, and some returning."