It was announced yesterday at a special Royal Theatrical Support Trust (RTST) ceremony that the winner of the RTST Sir Peter Hall Director Award 2021, Denzel Westley-Sanderson, will direct a new production of Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest – in a co-production between English Touring Theatre (ETT), Leeds Playhouse and Rose Theatre.
Denzel Westley Sanderson and Sir Ian McKellen at The RTST Sir Peter Hall Director Awards. 08.05.2022 – Courtesy of Roy J Baron
Salomé’s biblical story has been one of much intrigue, the daughter of Herod II and Herodias, a memorable request made by her, one that has inspired man a retelling, her story referenced throughout art, literature and drama. Adapted by Oscar Wilde in 1896, the one act tragedy includes the depiction of the heroine’s dance of the seven veils as well as her shocking request. Presenting a regendered interpretation of the tale, Lazarus Theatre Company craft a 75 minute spectacle, filmed earlier on this year at the Southwark Playhouse and now available to catch on demand.
Courtesy of Adam Trigg.
130 years after Oscar Wilde’s infamous fable of narcissism and decadence, Dorian Gray is back in a rock musical adaptation. ‘Can you hear me?’ he asks in his opening ballad. The answer, over swishy synths and a store-bought drum track is, unfortunately, yes. Writer-director Linnie Reedman weaves in some pertinent advice from Wilde himself: ‘If one hears bad music, it is one’s duty to drown it.’ Wilde was thinking of conversation, but with Dorian: Rock Opera streaming to your living room, a stiff drink might also help.
Oscar Wilde’s sophisticated and rib tickling drama takes audiences on a skip through country houses, lavish lounges and troublesome aristocrats. The York Theatre Royal is the perfect setting for this historical masterpiece that has survived the test of time, and is truly a tribute to classical theatre as we know it today.
