Cast: Octagon's View From the Bridge

The Octagon Theatre is set to stage Arthur Miller's classic A View from the Bridge next month.

The production stars Colin Connor and Tristan Brooke as Eddie Carbone and Rudolpho. It also features David Nabil Stuart, playing Marco, and Natasha Davidson, as Eddie’s, naive niece Catherine. Joining them is James Quinn playing Louis.

Barbara Drennan, Patrick Poletti, Russell Richardson, and Eamonn Riley are returning to the Octagon as Beatrice, Alfieri, Mike, and Tony, respectively.

The plots follows Longshoreman Eddie Carbone – who lives with his wife and niece in a tight-knit American-Italian neighbourhood in 1950’s Brooklyn. Eddie works, goes bowling, looks after his family and hopes for a better future for his orphaned niece, Catherine – raised by him and his wife Beatrice as their own.

In a community where family comes first, Eddie welcomes Beatrice’s cousins into their cramped apartment, two illegal immigrants desperate to earn money to send back to their impoverished families in Sicily. But Eddie soon finds himself battling with his inner demons.

Directed by David Thacker, who had a close working relationship with the writer stemming from his years as artistic director at the Young Vic theatre, A View from the Bridge was David’s first experience of Miller, having watched Bob Charlton’s production of the same play in York, many years before.

David comments: "It’s a play of great importance, generally and personally. When I first saw it in 1975, I was knocked out by it. I'd never before seen a play with that combination of qualities. It was utterly gripping and psychologically very accurate; it was the first time I'd seen a great play with a working class tragic hero, and it made me cry.

He also feels that the play is as a relevant now, as it ever was with UKIP constantly in the headlines on the theme of immigration.

"I can think of no more powerful contribution we can make at the Octagon than to encourage our audience to empathise with the plight of the illegal immigrants in the play who are working hard and desperately trying to save a few dollars to send home to their families."

A View from the Bridge is at the Octagon from 15 January – 14 February 2015.