Follies dates, casting and new Anaïs Mitchell musical announced at the National Theatre
© Johan Persson
The National Theatre staging of Stephen Sondheim and James Goldman's musical Follies is to return to the theatre in February 2019.
The revival of the musical, directed by Dominic Cooke, opened in September 2017 and the cast included Imelda Staunton, Janie Dee, Tracie Bennett, Peter Forbes and Philip Quast. It has been announced that Dee and Forbes will be returning with the show in 2019, but further casting is yet to be announced.
Follies will open in previews from 14 February, with tickets on sale until March 26 and further dates to be announced. The show won the Olivier Award for Best Musical Revival this year.
New musical Hadestown will also open at the National Theatre in November, following runs at the New York Theatre Workshop and Canada's Citadel Theatre. The show has music, lyrics and a book by singer and songwriter Anaïs Mitchell and was developed with Rachel Chavkin. Hadestown will run in the Olivier from 13 November, with previews from 2 November and will run until 26 January. It opens in London prior to a run on Broadway.
The new musical is an adaptation of Mitchell's concept album and mixes American folk music with jazz to tell an ancient tale about Orpheus and Eurydice and their journey into the underworld.
Further casting has also been announced for the upcoming production of Patrick Marber's Exit the King. Joining the already announced Rhys Ifans and Indira Varma will be Adrian Scarborough, Debra Gillett, Derek Griffiths and Amy Morgan.
Chris Bush's production of Pericles, which features a huge company from London of all ages, will also run for three dates in the Olivier this August.
The National Theatre also nnounces the return of the River Stage this summer, as well as new NT Live screenings including King Lear starring Ian McKellen and The Madness of George III with Mark Gatiss.
