Casting announced for Attic Theatre Company’s new production of Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, directed by Louise Hill
Presented at the new Merton Arts Space between 30 November – 18 December 2016
Attic Theatre Company is pleased to announce casting for its new production of Great Expectationsdirected by Louise Hill. The first professional theatre event in the new Merton Arts Space, Wimbledon will mark Louise Hill’s final show with Attic Theatre Company after two and a half years at the helm. Theresa Heskins’ adaptation brings Dickens’ epic tale of romance, ruthless ambition and revenge to this newly redeveloped performance venue at Wimbledon Library between 30 November and 18 December. The Company includes Hannah Boyde, Tom Chapman, Rory Fazan, Anthony Glennon, Derek Howard, Rhiannon Neads, Roger Ringrose and Carmen Rodriguez.
Louise Hill has been Artistic Director with Attic Theatre Company since 2014 and has been a driving force in the conception and realisation of the new Merton Arts Space. She commented: “ In 2014 the libraries team invited us to stage our new writing festival in Wimbledon Library, as a way of trying out the space for theatre. It has such a buzz about it – there’s a feeling of being where you shouldn’t be, making theatre (and noise!) in a library after hours. It feels appropriate, as we tell the story of Great Expectations, to be surrounded by the hundreds of stories waiting to be discovered on the library shelves. Attic has a deep-rooted commitment to bringing exciting theatre to its home borough of Merton, so I’m delighted that my final production marks the opening of the new Merton Arts Space, a brand new resource for the local community.”
Louise’s recent theatre credits include The Low Road (LAMDA), Fields Unsown (Attic Theatre Company), Quality Street, What Every Woman Knows, Outward Bound and Pack (all Finborough Theatre), Boston Marriage (RWCMD) and The Merchant of Venice (UK tour).
Pip will be played by Tom Chapman. Theatre includes Some Tiny Plays About How Fucked We All Are(Middle Child/Paines Plough), Generation Ellipses (PLAY/Paines Plough), En Folkefiende (Pleasance Dome/Edinburgh Fringe) and King John (Rose Theatre, Kingston).
Derek Howard will play Magwitch, Jaggers and Father. Theatre includes Berenice (Donmar Warehouse), An Ideal Husband (The Vaudeville), The Country Wife (The Haymarket), Somewhere in England (The Quarry Theatre Bradford) and The Merchant of Venice and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (GB Productions tour).
Carmen Rodriguez will play Miss Havisham and Mother. Carmen’s previous work with Attic includes the Vintage New Writing project and the 2015 Playfest (directed by Louise Hill). Other theatre includes King John (Rose Theatre Kingston),The Seagull (Minack Theatre), Building Walls (Theatre 503), The Lion in Winter(Haymarket) and An Ideal Husband (Vaudeville Theatre).
Hannah Boyde will play Mrs Joe and Startop. Hannah performed in Fields Unsown, Louise Hill’s most recent production for Attic. Other theatre credits include Mess (Caroline Horton/Touring Internationally), Lands of Glass (Unfolding Theatre), Henry V (Unicorn Theatre) and Quality Street (Finborough Theatre).
Anthony Glennon will play Joe and Drummle. Theatre includes The Jungle Book, Alice in Wonderland andWind In The Willows (Sixteen Feet Productions) and Twelfth Night (Attic Theatre Company).
Roger Ringrose will play Pumblechook, Wemmick and Camilla. Recent theatre credits include Untold Stories(The Watermill Theatre), Each His Own Wilderness (The Orange Tree), The Picture (Salisbury Playhouse),Burnt by the Sun and Never So Good (National Theatre) and King Henry VI Pt III (Shakespeare’s Globe).
Rory Fazan will play Herbert Pocket, Sarah Pocket and Sergeant. Rory trained at LAMDA – theatre work there includes The Dark Things, Bull, A Small Family Business, Dracula, The Wild Duck and The BFG.
Rhiannon Neads will play Estella, Biddy and Molly. Theatre credits include Adele is Younger Than Us(Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2016), A Christmas Carol (Old Red Lion), Copenhagen, Love and a Bottle, Pornography and Sweeney Todd (all at LAMDA).
This production of Great Expectations will be designed by final year Theatre Design students from Wimbledon College of Art, with mentor support from professional theatre designer Alex Marker. Alex trained at Wimbledon School of Art, and is currently Resident Designer and Deputy Chief Executive of the Finborough Theatre, where he has designed over thirty-five productions. This collaboration offers the students an invaluable opportunity to put their academic training into practice before they graduate.
As part of the events programme surrounding this production, local actor Jason Flemyng, who played Joe in the 2012 film of Great Expectations, will give a reading from the novel on 7 December. Jason commented: “It’s great to see arts companies and libraries collaborating in this way, especially when cuts to both are rife, and as a result of this venture we have a unique new performance space in the region. I’m proud to be supporting Attic and can’t wait to see their new staging of Dickens’ popular tale.”