English Touring Theatre to present 80th anniversary production of The Good Person of Szechwan

Bertolt Brecht's The Good Person of Szechwan will be staged in Sheffield next spring with a brand new production to mark the play's 80th anniversary, before transferring to London.

Adapted by Nina Segal (In The Night Time [Before The Sun Rises]) and directed by Anthony Lau (Anna Karenina), the piece was commissioned by English Touring Theatre and co-produced by ETT with Sheffield Theatres and Lyric Hammersmith.

Lau, who is also RTYDS associate artistic director of Sheffield Theatres, said: "As the cost of living rises to dangerous levels and the number of billionaires in the world grows, Brecht's play about capitalism's relationship with morality is fiercely resonant. He examines these ideas with humour and playfulness, to better shed light on the tragedy and seriousness of a world where everyday kindness is disintegrating.

"I am hugely excited to revive Brecht's masterpiece alongside Nina Segal, the adaptor of this new version, and Georgia Lowe, the designer. They are both artists whose imagination, rigour and sense of mischief will inject new impetus to this production.

"Performed by a company of actors predominantly of East Asian heritage, audiences can look forward to a freewheeling story of gods, goodness and greed."

The play follows three gods who look to justify humanity's existence by searching for just one honest person in the world. It centres around penniless Shen Te and explores what happens when she is gifted with a life-changing amount of money.

The production will also feature lighting design by Jessica Hung Han Yun. Casting (by Jacob Sparrow) and additional creative team members will be announced at a later date.

The Good Person of Szechwan runs from 11 March until 1 April 2023 at the Crucible Theatre, with a press night scheduled for 15 March. It will then transfer to London's Lyric Hammersmith Theatre from 15 April to 13 May 2023, officially opening on 20 April.

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