Stage production of Game of Thrones coming in 2023

A new stage production based on Game of Thrones has been confirmed.

Producers Simon Painter and Tim Lawson are working in partnership with Kilburn Live, and have plans to premiere the show in 2023.

The play is being written and adapted by award-winning playwright Duncan Macmillan, working alongside Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin, and directed by Dominic Cooke.

Macmillan's stage works include Lungs, Every Brilliant Thing, Rosmersholm and People, Places and Things. Cooke, who was previously artistic director of the Royal Court, recently directed Stephen Sondheim's Follies at the National Theatre.

George R.R. Martin said: "An amazing team has been assembled to tell the tale… Their knowledge and love of my world and characters has impressed me from the very first, and their plans for this production blew me away since the first time we met.

"Working with them (back before the pandemic, when we could actually get together) has been a treat, and I am eager for our collaboration to resume. Our dream is to bring Westeros to Broadway, to the West End, to Australia and eventually, to a stage near you. It ought to be spectacular."

According to press material:

"Set at a pivotal moment in the history of the series, the play will for the first time take audiences deeper behind the scenes of a landmark event that previously was shrouded in mystery.

"Featuring many of the most iconic and well-known characters from the series, the production will boast a story centred around love, vengeance, madness and the dangers of dealing in prophecy, in the process revealing secrets and lies that have only been hinted at until now."

Game of Thrones is based on Martin's unfinished fantasy saga A Song of Ice and Fire, charting the many battles over the land of Westeros. The HBO adaptation premiered in 2011 and ran for eight seasons, winning 59 Emmy awards.

The large cast included Kit Harrington, Emilia Clarke, Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Sophie Turner, Maisie Williams, Sean Bean, Michelle Fairley, Richard Madden, Iain Glen and Alfie Allen.

Casting for the stage version is still to be announced.

"I have such admiration for George's world and his characters," said Duncan Macmillan. "His generosity and trust during this process has been incredible. Working on this play during lockdown has felt like a real privilege. I can't wait until we can be back in a theatre to experience this together."

Dominic Cooke added: "One of George's inspirations for the original books was Shakespeare's history plays so the material lends itself naturally to the theatre. Duncan Macmillan and I are having a great time digging into the dynastic power struggles at the heart of George's extraordinary imaginative world and he has been hugely generous and supportive towards both of us."

Producer Simon Painter is best known for creating large scale touring shows including The Illusionists franchise which he launched with Tim Lawson. Their productions have played in over 400 cities in 40 countries.

Lawson has also staged productions internationally including Fiddler on the Roof, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, A Chorus Line and Jekyll and Hyde.

In addition to Painter and Lawson, Vince Gerardis and Jonathan Sanford will serve as executive producers on Game of Thrones.