RSC announces 2024 to 2025 season

The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) has unveiled its forthcoming season, the first under new co-artistic directors Tamara Harvey and Daniel Evans. 

Kicking off the duo’s tenure will be a production of Love’s Labour’s Lost, led by Bridgerton star and WhatsOnStage Award nominee Luke Thompson (A Little Life). Directed by Emily Burns, the piece is inspired by “tech bros”, akin to Elon Musk. It runs from 11 April.

Emma Rice will direct Hanif Kureishi’s stage version of The Buddha of Suburbia – in a co-production with Wise Children from 18 April. 

Alongside the Kiln Theatre, the venue will present Sanaz Toossi’s English in The Other Place, while Uzhhorod Theatre Company from Ukraine will come to the RSC with King Lear. 

The Merry Wives of Windsor follows – with Samantha Spiro leading the production directed by Blanche McIntyre. 

Also playing in June will be Joe Robertson and Joe Murphy’s Kyoto, co-directed by Justin Martin and Stephen Daldry. Co-produced with Good Chance Theatre, the piece explores the Kyoto agreement and the machinations behind political responses to the climate catastrophe.

Outdoor venue the Garden Theatre will be back with a new production of As You Like It, playing with all tickets at £20. At the same time, Tinuke Craig will direct Sheridan’s The School for Scandal in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre.

Over the summer, Alfred Enoch (As You Like It, Red) will star in Harvey’s revival of Pericles in the Swan Theatre, while into the autumn Holly Race Roughan will direct David Edgar’s new political thriller The New Real, co-produced with Headlong.

Othello will be directed by Tim Carroll, led by John Douglas Thompson in the title role, with Will Keen as Iago and Juliet Rylance as Desdemona. In the Royal Shakespeare Theatre for Christmas, Prasanna Puwanarajah will direct Shakespeare’s comedy Twelfth Night. 

In the Swan Theatre for the festive season, Kimberley Rampersad will direct a new version of The Red Shoes by Nancy Harris. The production is designed by Colin Richmond with music by Marc Teitler.

Into 2025, Evans himself will take on the lead role in Christopher Marlowe’s Edward II, directed by Daniel Raggett and designed by Leslie Travers.

Northern Ballet’s version of Romeo and Juliet will visit Stratford, adapted by Christopher Gable and Massimo Moricone, with music by Sergei Prokofiev.

Concluding the season, Luke Thallon will play Hamlet, in a production directed by the Almeida’s artistic director Rupert Goold.

There will be 25,000 tickets available at £25 or under across the season (on top of the £10 TikTok ticket offers for 14 to 25 year-olds).