Latest news with #AWhistleintheDark
Irish Daily Star
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Star
Paul Mescal will return to the Irish theater for exciting production after rave reviews
It has been revealed that Paul Mescal will return home for an on-stage production. The Co Kildare native will appear in the Irish staging of Tom Murphy's 20th century play A Whistle in the Dark, set to take place at the famous Abbey Theatre in Dublin . The production will be followed by two runs at The National Theatre in London of the same play. After that, Mescal will star in yet another 20th century classic, Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman. The Gladiator actor has been returning to his on-stage roots lately, having starred in an off-Broadway production of A Streetcar Named Desire. Read More Related Articles Melania Trump shows true colors with 3-word command to Donald at Pope's funeral Read More Related Articles Trump is 'overwhelmed and distracted' after 100 days as POTUS, expert says Both plays that will be led by Mescal focus on dysfunctional family relationships. A Whistle in the Dark centers around an Irish emigrant in the English midlands who tries in vain to escape his violent family. The Abbey's artistic director, Caitríona McLaughlin called A Whistle in the Dark, which was first performed at the Royal Court Theatre in London in 1961, 'a taut, explosive, pressure cooker of a play.' Information about the other actors in the play has not yet been released, but it seems the Irish staging might be as far off as early 2027. Paul Mescal got his big break on the series Normal People (Image: Daisy Edgar-Jones Instagram) Mescal's acting roots are in theater and he got his first professional acting role in The Great Gatsby, at the Gate Theatre in Dublin in 2017. He first appeared at the Abbey the following year in Asking for It, a dramatization of the bestselling novel by Louise O'Neill. Since he got his big break on Normal People, the actor's career has skyrocketed, with his most notable roles being in Gladiator, Aftersun and All of Us Strangers. However, he surprised fans last year by signing on for an on-stage production of A Streetcar Named Desire. It seems there is a trend of Irish actors stepping away from the screen and returning to the stage. Over the next two years, Derry Girls' actresses Nicola Coughlan and Siobhán McSweeney will appear together in J.M. Synge's The Playboy of the Western World. Derry Girls' costars Siobhán McSweeney and Nicola Coughlan have been cast in The Playboy of the Western World. (Image: 2025 BAFTA) But Mescal's hiatus from the film screen won't be long - he is set to star as Sir Paul McCartney in the Beatles biopic later this year. Fellow Irish actor Barry Keoghan , Joseph Quinn and Harris Dickinson will join him as the other members of the legendary band. He will also star opposite Irish actress Jessie Buckley in the film Hamnet, where he will play William Shakespeare. For the latest local news and features on Irish America, visit our homepage here .
Express Tribune
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
National Theatre taps Paul Mescal, Monica Barbaro, and Nicola Coughlan for new season
Paul Mescal, Letitia Wright, Monica Barbaro, and Nicola Coughlan are set to make their debuts at London's prestigious National Theatre, marking a major moment in their stage careers. The announcement comes as part of new artistic director Indhu Rubasingham's fresh lineup of productions, emphasizing global talent and diverse storytelling. Mescal will lead a repertory company at the Lyttelton Theatre in 2027, starring in A Whistle in the Dark and playing Biff in Death of a Salesman. Rubasingham highlighted that the Gladiator II star was selected not for his celebrity status, but for being "a proper theatre actor." Monica Barbaro will join Lesley Manville and Aidan Turner in Les Liaisons Dangereuses, directed by Marianne Elliott. Meanwhile, Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan will headline The Playboy of the Western World from December 4. Black Panther actress Letitia Wright will star in The Story, a new play tackling racism and media culture. Other major announcements include James McArdle, Clare Perkins, and Ukweli Roach starring in Bacchae, and Hiran Abeysekera leading a new Hamlet production in 2025. Rubasingham also announced partnerships with The Shed and the Brooklyn Academy of Music, aiming to take productions from London to international stages and schools. The National Theatre's evolving mission, Rubasingham said, is to create "state-of-the-world" plays that resonate across cultures, signaling a shift towards a more global, inclusive future for British theatre.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Paul Mescal, Letitia Wright, Monica Barbaro And Nicola Coughlan To Make Star Debuts At London's National Theatre
Gladiator II's Paul Mescal, A Complete Unknown's Monica Barbaro, Black Panther's Letitia Wright and Bridgerton's Nicola Coughlan will be making their debuts at the National Theatre, regarded by many as Britain's top cultural institution. They're among a host of star names invited to tread the NT's boards by Indhu Rubasingham, the organization's new artistic director and co-chief executive. More from Deadline Rosamund Pike Set For National Theatre Debut In New Legal Drama From Suzie Miller, Who Created 'Prima Facie' For Jodie Comer CAA Signs Indhu Rubasingham, Artistic Director Of London's National Theatre 'Bridgerton' Star Nicola Coughlan Trashes UK Supreme Court Ruling On Definition Of A Woman The theatre chief also revealed that she and famed rapper and grime music genius Stormzy are developing a show that will be staged at the National at a later date. Mescal, who by the way has been known to rap, will lead a repertory company at the National's Lyttelton Theatre in 2027. There he will star in two plays: Tom Murphy's A Whistle in the Dark, about a married Irishman living in the Midlands who allows his three brothers to lodge with him and his young wife. Directed by Caitríona McLaughlin, it's a co-production with Dublin's Abbey Theatre, where McLaughlin is artistic director. The Irish-born Mescal will then play Biff in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, to be directed by Rebecca Fracknall, who worked with the actor on the celebrated Almeida Theatre production of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire. Much sought after on stage and screen, Mescal was able to spread his commitment to the Williams play across well over two years in London and New York, all the while carving a schedule between stage runs where he could film Gladiator II with Ridley Scott and make time for Oliver Hermanus' Cannes-bound The History of Sound in which he stars opposite Josh O'Connor. He also had time to play William Shakespeare in Hamnet alongside Jesse Buckley, Emily Watson and Joe Alwyn. That Chloé Zhao-directed film begins a limited stateside release November 27. Mescal is also portraying Paul McCartney in Sam Mendes' Paul McCartney biopic for Apple. Rubasingham pushed back against suggestions that she and co-chief executive Kate Varah were seeking Hollywood names to bolster ticket sales. Rubasingham told Deadline that she wanted Mescal treading boards at the National because he's 'a proper actor, he's a proper theatre actor. It's about backing quality actors.' Same was true, Rubasingham said, of Barbaro, Oscar-nominated for her Joan Baez in James Mangold's Bob Dylan movie. 'We obviously knew she'd trained thoroughly in acting and dance and acting before we even approached her,' Rubasingham reasoned. Barbaro will join Lesley Manville (The Crown), fresh from her best actress Olivier Award win two weeks ago for Oedipus, and Aidan Turner, so good in Rivals on Disney+, in a major revival of Pierre Choderlos de Laclos' Les Liaisons Dangereuses directed by multiple Tony- and Olivier-winning Marianne Elliott. The adaptation is by Christopher Hampton. Coincidentally, Manville played the ingenue Cécile de Volanges in the original 1985 production for the Royal Shakespeare Company. Coughlan will star in John Millington Synge's The Playboy of the Western World in the Lyttelton from December 4, again directed by Caitríona McLaughlin, with Éanna Hardwicke and Siobhán McSweeney. Wright will star in Tracey Scott Wilson's new play The Story, about a young reporter pursuing a hot lead and the racism and vitriol she has to endure. Rubasingham described the play as 'chillingly relevant.' It will be directed by Clint Dyer. James McArdle (Mare of Easttown), Clare Perkins (Wheel of Time) and Ukweli Roach (Big Mood) will lead Rubasingham's production of Bacchae into the Olivier stage from September 13. Written by Nima Taleghani from the ancient Greek tale about the God of theatre, it will feature designs by Robert Jones, choreography by Kate Prince and an original score by D.J. Walde. The show will be filmed for future streaming on National Theatre at Home. Robert Hastie will direct Olivier-winning actor Hiran Abeysekera (Life of Pi) playing the Danish prince in Hamlet at the Lyttelton Theatre from September 2025. The show will be also be shot for future National Theatre Live release in cinemas around the world. Rubasingham noted that Hamlet was the first production — starring Peter O'Toole — to be staged at the National Theatre in 1963. A new adaptation of The Jungle Book by Anupama Chandrasekhar, based on Rudyard Kipling's classic tale, will be directed on the Olivier stage by Rubasingham in time for the December 2026 holidays. The production will feature puppetry by Finn Caldwell and Nick Barnes. Co-chief executive Varah said the National has signed up to collaborate with The Shed in Manhattan and the Brooklyn Academy of Music, while Rubasingham added that she's always in conversation with Oskar Eustis at the Public Theater in NYC. Rubasingham declared that she's more interested in 'state-of-the-world plays than state-of-the-nation plays.' To that end, she and her team are pursuing partnerships with actors, writers, directors and designers from around the world and seeking 'artists that open the doors to audiences.' Productions will tour UK theatres and schools; indeed, many shows will be scaled down to be presented at schools here in the UK and over in Brooklyn in partnership with BAM. The National Theatre's now very much the International Theatre. Best of Deadline 'Ginny & Georgia' Season 3: Everything We Know So Far Everything We Know About The 'Reminders of Him' Movie So Far Everything We Know About 'The Phoenician Scheme' So Far
Irish Independent
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Paul Mescal to star in A Whistle in the Dark in Dublin's Abbey Theatre and London's National Theatre
Both 20th century plays will take place in the Lyttelton Theatre, and focus on dysfunctional family relationships, the struggle for identity, and societal and familial expectations. Co-Director of the Abbey Theatre, Artistic Director Caitríona McLaughlin said: 'It is very meaningful for us at the Abbey Theatre to have such fulsome engagement in this next chapter of the National Theatre of Great Britain. It will be an honour to bring The Playboy of the Western World and A Whistle in the Dark before audiences in London. Every generation deserves to see these two seminal works of the Irish canon.' The productions will take place as part of National Theatre co-chief executive Indhu Rubasingham's inaugural programme, with dates for the performances yet to be announced. Tom Murphy play A Whistle In The Dark will be directed by Caitriona McLaughlin, while Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman will be directed by Rebecca Frecknall. Further casting and ticket sale dates will be announced in due course. Speaking about the new programme, Rubasingham said: 'The National Theatre is a very special place at the heart of our national discourse, and I am incredibly proud to be its seventh director. 'I am so excited about everything to come, and the wealth of projects and artists announced today. 'The National Theatre is a beacon of creativity, humanity and possibilities. It holds the stories of so many people who have made this place mean so much to so many. 'This is just the beginning, a flavour of what's to come, the start of the next chapter.' The National Theatre will also work with rapper Stormzy on a production. The news about Mescal came after it was announced the 29-year-old will play Paul McCartney in four films directed by Sam Mendes about The Beatles. He shot to stardom during the pandemic for his role as love interest Connell Waldron in BBC miniseries Normal People, based on the novel of the same name by Irish author Sally Rooney. Mescal also won an Olivier Award for a stage adaptation of A Streetcar Named Desire, before starring in Gladiator II, directed by Sir Ridley Scott, as an arena fighter who tries to bring down two maniacal emperors.
Irish Times
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Paul Mescal to return to Irish stage in ‘taut, explosive, pressure cooker of a play'
Paul Mescal is to return to the Irish stage to star in A Whistle in the Dark, by Tom Murphy. He will lead the cast of the play, about an Irish emigrant in the English midlands who tries in vain to escape his violent family, when it comes to Dublin in 2027, after opening at the National Theatre in London. The coproduction is being directed by the Abbey's artistic director, Caitríona McLaughlin, who calls A Whistle in the Dark, which was first performed at the Royal Court Theatre in London in 1961, 'a taut, explosive, pressure cooker of a play'. It will be the first time that the UK National Theatre will have staged Murphy's work. Mescal, whose first professional role was in The Great Gatsby , at the Gate Theatre in Dublin in 2017, appeared at the Abbey the following year in Asking for It , a dramatisation of Louise O'Neill's bestselling book. READ MORE Earlier this year he appeared on stage in New York in the Tennessee Williams play A Streetcar Named Desire; he won an Olivier Award for best actor for his portrayal of Stanley Kowalski when the production ran in the West End of London in 2023. Murphy's powerful and menacing masterpiece, which he wrote at the age of 25, centres on the Carney family visiting their emigrant son in Coventry, and their inability to escape tribal violence and twisted masculinity. The play is the best known and most performed of the acclaimed and influential Irish playwright, who died in 2018. McLaughlin will also direct JM Synge's The Playboy of the Western World for the UK National Theatre's Christmas season this year, with an all-star Irish cast that includes Declan Conlon, Nicola Coughlan, Lorcan Cranitch, Megan Cusack, Éanna Hardwicke, Siobhán McSweeney and Marty Rea. McLaughlin said it was 'very meaningful for us at the Abbey Theatre to have such fulsome engagement in this next chapter of the National Theatre of Great Britain. It will be an honour to bring Playboy of the Western World and A Whistle in the Dark before audiences in London. Every generation deserves to see these two seminal works of the Irish canon.' She was 'thrilled to take on these two great Irish plays. The Playboy of the Western World holds a special place in my heart because it is synonymous with the origins of our theatre and has such significance to the history of our art form. A Whistle in the Dark is a taut, explosive, pressure cooker of a play. 'Both plays hold in common the opportunity to reinvent yourself, the desire to realise one's own potential, and what happens when that opportunity is squandered or lost.' Mescal, who is from Maynooth, in Co Kildare, and studied at the Lir Academy, in Dublin, shot to fame following his portrayal of Conall in Normal People, the 2020 television adaptation of Sally Rooney's novel. He was nominated for an Oscar for Aftersun and recently starred in Gladiator II. His Abbey debut was the stage version of Louise O'Neill's Asking for It.
