Chichester Festival Theatre unveils 2025 season – featuring Natalie Dormer, Giles Terera and more

Chichester Festival Theatre has announced its 2025 season, featuring five world premieres, two UK premieres, and a mix of musicals and classics. Notably, the season includes 12,000 ten pound tickets and 9,000 five pound Prologue tickets for young audiences.

The Royal Shakespeare Company’s former artistic director Gregory Doran will open the season directing a new adaptation of The Government Inspector by Phil Porter, starring Tom Rosenthal. The production runs from 25 April to 24 May at the Festival Theatre, with further casting revealed today.

Kathleen Marshall (Crazy for You) will direct and choreograph a new production of Top Hat this summer, which we have covered in detail here. The production is one of two musicals that feature in the season. Katy Rudd will direct The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, a musical adaptation of Rachel Joyce’s novel with music and lyrics by Passenger, creator of hit tune “Let Her Go”. Find out more about the show and its two leading stars here.

Other world premieres include Choir by Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti, running from 2 to 30 August at the Minerva Theatre, with a press night on 8 August. The creative team includes designer Anisha Fields, lighting designer Jai Morjaria, music and sound designer Alexandra Faye Braithwaite, arranger Rich Forbes, musical director Michael Henry, movement director Annie-Lunnette Deakin-Foster, and casting director Jacob Sparrow.

Safe Space, penned by Moulin Rouge! star Jamie Bogyo, runs from 11 October to 8 November at the Minerva Theatre, with a press night on 17 October. The production is directed by Roy Alexander Weise, with casting director Isabella Odoffin. It will explore issues around contemporary campus politics.

Natalie Dormer will star in Anna Karenina, adapted and directed by Phillip Breen, running from 7 to 28 June at the Festival Theatre, with a press night on 13 June. Further casting has also been revealed for the show.

As already revealed, Beverley Knight will leads Marie and Rosetta, a co-production with Rose Theatre and ETT, directed by Monique Touko. We reported on the production earlier this year.

Giles Terera will play the title role in Hamlet, directed by artistic director Justin Audibert, marking Chichester’s first production of the play. The production runs from 6 September to 4 October at the Minerva Theatre, with a press night on 16 September. The creative team includes designer Lily Arnold, lighting designer Ryan Day, sound designer Ed Clarke, movement director Lucy Cullingford, fight director Cristian Cardenas, and casting director Matilda James.

Lord of the Flies, adapted by Nigel Williams from William Golding’s seminal text about a group of school children marooned on an island and descending into feral behaviour, will be directed by Anthony Lau. The production runs from 19 September to 11 October at the Festival Theatre, with a press night on 25 September. The casting director is Jacob Sparrow.

For family audiences, Chichester Festival Youth Theatre will present A Boy Called Christmas, adapted by Philip Wilson with music by Tom Brady, directed by Dale Rooks. The production runs from 15 to 31 December at the Festival Theatre, with a press night on 18 December. At the same time, The Three Little Pigs by Stiles and Drewe will be staged in a co-production with the Unicorn Theatre, running from 6 to 28 December at the Minerva Theatre, with a press performance on 10 December.

Looking ahead to 2026, Chichester will collaborate with the RSC on The BFG, running from 16 March to 12 April 2026, directed by Daniel Evans. The show was revealed as part of the RSC’s season last month.

Chichester Festival Theatre will also open the Nest, a new studio space for emerging artists and community projects.