Exclusive: NYT reimagines Dorian Gray for 'selfie generation' in new West End season

The National Youth Theatre is staging a second West End rep season this summer, WhatsOnStage can reveal, which will feature a "radical re-telling" of The Picture of Dorian Gray entitled Selfie, a new version of Michael Morpurgo's Private Peaceful and a First World War-set Macbeth.

The productions, performed by a company of fifteen 18-25 year olds, will play in repertory at the Ambassadors Theatre – which is set to be acquired by Cameron Mackintosh – from 17 September to 28 November 2014.

Selfie will be directed by NYT artistic director Paul Roseby, and is a re-telling of Dorian Gray for the 'selfie generation' by playwright Peter Morris.

It sees a female 'Dorian' having to choose between artifice and reality in the growing technological age.

Simon Reade's adaptation of Michael Morpurgo's Private Peaceful, set in the First World War, tells the story of Private Tommo Peaceful, a soldier accused of cowardice awaiting a firing squad at dawn. It will be directed by Paul Hart, who directed last year's rep in Louise Brealey's Pope Joan.

Macbeth has been adapted to pre-WW1 Austria-Hungary by Ed Hughes, who will also direct. It begins previews the day after the vote for the Scottish independence referendum.

Last year's rep company have all since been signed up by agents, with a majority engaging in professional acting work since graduating from the company at the end of last year.

NYT's other work this year includes staging the Village Ceremonies at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, two new plays starring social inclusion participants at the Arcola Tent as well as continuing their creative cultural exchange programme in Saudi Arabia.

Artistic director Paul Roseby said: "The Rep company was established to provide an exciting, exacting and affordable West End boot camp for talented young actors, at a time when the value of higher education is being questioned by young people around the UK.

"To see the first company achieve such success so soon after leaving is testament to their own ability, but also to the invaluable experience they received on stage in the West End for 10 weeks with the National Youth Theatre. I call on commercial venues and producers to work with us to build on this success and launch the careers of more young acting and backstage talent."