Young Vic Announces Principal Casting for Sheen Hamlet
The Young Vic has announced further casting for its forthcoming production of Hamlet, which opens on 9 November 2011 (previews from 28 October) starring Michael Sheen in the title role.
The cast also features Four Lions star Adeel Akhtar as Guildenstern/Francisco, Callum Dixon as Marcellus, Pip Donaghy as Barnardo and Eileen Walsh as Rosencrantz.
The production, helmed by former Royal Court artistic director Ian Rickson, making his Shakespearean debut, marks Sheen’s first Shakespearean role since Henry V for the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1997, and his first time on the London stage since Frost/Nixon, which began at the Donmar Warehouse in 2006 ahead of the West End, Broadway and the big screen.
James Clyde (Claudius) has Shakespeare credits including Peter Hall’s Twelfth Night (NT) and Neil Bartlett’s Romeo and Juliet (RSC). Sally Dexter (Gertrude) recently played Mother Superior in Sister Act and Mrs Wilkinson in Billy Elliot (both West End).
Michael Gould (Polonius) was recently seen in Earthquakes in London, Our Class and Women of Troy (all NT), while Vinette Robinson (Ophelia) has appeared in Tender Napalm (Southwark Playhouse) and Welcome to Thebes (NT); her TV credits include the BBC’s Sherlock.
Hamlet’s loyal companion Horatio will be played by a woman, Told by an Idiot co-founder Hayley Carmichael, who recently appeared at the Young Vic in Sweet Nothings.
Hamlet, which runs until 21 January 2012, is designed by Jeremy Herbert, with costumes by Nicky Gillibrand, lighting by Adam Silverman, sound by Gareth Fry, music by Stephen Warbeck, choreography by Punchdrunk’s Maxine Doyle and casting by Sam Jones.
The production is currently sold out, though more tickets will be released on 27 September at 10am.
