RSC's Queen Anne transfers to the Theatre Royal Haymarket

New RSC production to hit the West End

The Royal Shakespeare Company have announced that their production of Queen Anne will transfer from the Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon to the Theatre Royal Haymarket from 30 June 2017 to 30 September, with an official opening on 10 July.

Written by Helen Edmundson and directed by Natalie Abrahami, this new play explores the life of one of England's little-known sovereigns and her intimate friendship with her childhood confidante Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough.

Romola Garai will star as Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough alongside Emma Cunniffe who will return to the role of Queen Anne. After originally opening at the Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in November 2015, the production comes to London for a strictly limited season.

"1702. William III is on the throne and England is on the verge of war. Princess Anne is soon to become Queen, and her advisors vie for influence over the future monarch. Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough, a close friend with whom Anne has an intensely personal relationship, begins to exert increasing pressure as she pursues her own designs on power. Contending with deceit and blackmail, Anne must decide where her allegiances lie, and whether to sacrifice her closest relationships for the sake of the country."

Romola Garai is best known for appearing in films such as 'Amazing Grace', 'Atonement', 'Vanity Fair' and Suffragette. Her theatre credits include Calico, King Lear and The Seagull (RSC), The Village Bike (Royal Court), Three Sisters (Lyric Hammersmith), and Measure for Measure (Young Vic).

Emma Cunniffe's stage credits include Tales from Hollywood (Donmar), Losing Louis (Hampstead/West End), Women Beware Women (RSC), Proof (Menier Chocolate Factory), and The Entertainer (Old Vic).

Writer Helen Edmundson's plays include The Clearing, (Bush Theatre), Mother Teresa is Dead, (Royal Court) and The Heresy of Love (RSC).

Queen Anne follows the current RSC productions Much Ado About Nothing and Love Labour's Lost which are currently running at the Theatre Royal Haymarket and a revival of Edward Albee's The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?.

Queen Anne tickets are now on sale.