Ivo van Hove to direct Hanya Yanagihara’s ‘A Little Life’

James Norton, Luke Thompson, Omari Douglas, and Zach Wyatt lead the cast.

Hanya Yanagihara’s A Little Life will open in the West End next year. A Little Life begins previews at the Harold Pinter Theatre on 25 March, with an opening night on 30 March, and performances to 18 June. Book A Little Life tickets on London Theatre.

The A Little Life play is based on Yanagihara’s Booker Prize-winning 2015 novel, and adapted by Yanagihara, Ivo van Hove, and Koen Tachelet. A Little Life follows four college friends — Willem, Malcolm, JB, and Jude — in New York City as their inner secrets come to light.

“One of the greatest, most unexpected joys and honours in my life has been watching as more readers than I could ever have imagined have taken A Little Life and its characters into their hearts over the past seven years. One of those readers was the visionary Ivo van Hove, and I’m thrilled he’s bringing his interpretation of the book to London next spring, with the most extraordinary cast I could have hoped for” said author Hanya Yanagihara.

The A Little Life cast includes James Norton as Jude, Luke Thompson as Willem, Omari Douglas as JB, and Zach Wyatt as Malcolm. Elliot Cowman, Zubin Varla, Nathalie Armin and Emilio Doorgasingh also star.

“It’s a joy to be returning to the London stage, to a community that has made us feel so welcome, and especially to be bringing Hanya’s incredible novel A Little Life to the stage in the English language for the first time – quite genuinely a dream come true,” said director Ivo van Hove.

A Little Life features set and lighting design by Jan Versweyveld, costume design by An D’Huys, and music and sound design by Eric Sleichim.

What is A Little Life about?

The A Little Life story follows four college friends as they live and work in New York City. Willem is an actor, Malcolm is an architect, JB is an artist, and Jude is a lawyer. Even though the foursome live in different worlds, Willem, Malcolm, and JB find themselves drawn to Jude. When secrets are revealed, the trio realise that to know Jude is to understand love.

A Little Life is at the Harold Pinter Theatre.

Book A Little Life tickets on London Theatre.

Photo credit: A Little Life cast (Photo by Charlie Gray)