Tolkien, Shakespeare, others …and you!
IAN McKellen is to celebrate his 80th birthday next year by raising funds for theatres, with a new solo show which will play on 80 stages across the UK, including Theatre Royal Brighton from Monday 15 – Friday 19 July, 2019.
It begins in January 2019 with a tour of London from the National Theatre to the Theatre Royal Stratford East, as well as performances in the West End and outer London. Then, across the country, he will visit theatres large and small with which he has personal connections, including amateur groups he knew as a child and notable playhouses he has played in as a professional actor over the last half century.
Accessibly priced tickets will be available everywhere. All profits will benefit specific causes at each theatre.
His intimate show is a mixture of anecdote and acting, including Tolkien, Shakespeare, others…and you the audience.
Ian McKellen says: “I’m celebrating my 80th birthday by touring a new solo show to theatres I know well and a few that I don’t. The show starts with Gandalf and will probably end with an invitation to act with me on stage. In between there will be anecdotes and acting. I open at my local arts centre in January and end up by August in Orkney.
“Live theatre has always been thrilling to me, as an actor and in the audience. Growing up in Lancashire, I was grateful to those companies who toured beyond London and I’ve always enjoyed repaying that debt by touring up and down the country myself, with the National Theatre, Royal Shakespeare Company, Prospect Theatre, the Actors’ Company, as well as with commercial productions. Sean Mathias, the director and I have worked together for stage and screen, many happy times.
“I was first onstage at Theatre Royal Brighton as Shakespeare’s Richard II, one of the parts I shall reprise in my new solo show of anecdote and acting. I’ve always relished playing in Brighton and I’m delighted that the profits from my performances this time will benefit the very necessary renovations of this beautiful old theatre.”
Ambassador Theatre Group’s Executive Producer Adam Speers added: “ATG is proud to be presenting Ian McKellen On Stage and is committed to supporting regional touring. The UK’s regional venues are integral in supporting and developing artists and practitioners across all areas of the theatre, both on and off stage.
“All of us in this industry are united by a passion for the arts and love of what we do and this special show is a rare and excellent opportunity to celebrate what’s best in our industry while at the same time celebrating one of its greatest actors and raising vital funds to keep the lifeblood of theatre in this country flowing.”
Ian McKellen On Stage is presented by Ambassador Theatre Group and directed by Sean Mathias.
Event: Ian McKellen On Stage presented by Ambassador Theatre Group – directed by Sean Mathias
Where: Theatre Royal, New Road, Brighton
When: Monday 15 – Friday 19 July, 2019
Time: 7.45pm
Cost: Tickets £10.25 – £60.25
To book tickets online, click here: