Nicole Kidman returns to West End in new Grandage production

Nicole Kidman will return to the London stage in a new production directed by Michael Grandage.

The actress will star in Photograph 51, a play about Rosalind Franklin, the British scientist who helped to discover the structure of DNA.

Written by Anna Ziegler, the play is described on Ziegler's website as being "about ambition, isolation, and the race for greatness". It will open at the Noel Coward Theatre on 5 September 2015, running until 21 November.

Director Grandage has long been rumoured to be planning a second West End season following the success of his five-play programme at the Noel Coward theatre between 2012 and 2014 featuring Judi Dench, Sheridan Smith, Daniel Radcliffe and Jude Law.

Kidman last appeared in the West End when she starred in Sam Mendes's production of David Hare's The Blue Room at the Donmar Warehouse in 1998.

Grandage will offer 25% of tickets for the entire run – more than 20,000 – at £10, across all levels of the auditorium, and there will also be access performances, both captioned and audio described.

The director said: "We’re thrilled to be returning to the West End with Nicole Kidman in Photograph 51 at such a vibrant time for London theatre. At the heart of all our work is a desire to make theatre accessible to everyone."