A new Whodunnit [Unrehearsed] and a two-part Forsyte Saga hit the Park Theatre stage in 2024

· Whodunnit [Unrehearsed] returns with a different celebrity taking the role of Inspector each night, VIPs for 2024 include Benedict Cumberbatch, Beverley Knight, Adrian Lester, Brian Cox and Jodie Whittaker

· The Forsyte Saga will have its stage premiere in a two-part adaptation

· Vicki McKellar and Olivier award-winning director Guy Masterson present a new thriller exploring the five hours immediately after the death of Marilyn Monroe

· Further shows include family dramas, a queer rom-com, international artists and emerging artists

X (Twitter): @ParkTheatre | www.parktheatre.co.uk

Park Theatre has announced a plethora of new shows for 2024, including the third instalment of their hugely popular Whodunnit [Unrehearsed] seriesand a two-part adaptation of The Forsyte Saga. Whodunnit [Unrehearsed] 3 (27 Mar – 4 May) will see over 45 celebrities take the role of theInspector without ever seeing the script and only hearing their lines via earpiece moments before speaking. The farcical murder mystery set aboard a train has staggering line up comedians, actors and presenters returning to play the Inspector, including Clive Anderson, Gillian Anderson, David Baddiel, Sanjeev Bhaskar,Marcus Brigstocke, Simon Callow, Michelle Collins, Nina Conti, Victoria Coren Mitchell, Les Dennis, Adrian Dunbar, Mark Gatiss, Tamsin Greig, David Haig, Harry Hill, Adam Hills, Ronan Keating, Ross Kemp, Maureen Lipman, Gareth Malone, Jason Manford, Stephen Mangan, Tim McInnerny, David Mitchell, Neil Morrissey, Eddie Nestor, Sue Perkins, Clarke Peters, Daisy Ridley, Rob Rinder, Tony Robinson, Catherine Tate, Sandi Toksvig, Meera Syal, Emma Thompson, Johnny Vegas, Tim Vine and Greg Wise, with new faces this year including Benedict Cumberbatch, Beverley Knight, Adrian Lester, Brian Cox and Jodie Whittaker, with more to be announced. The voice of Ian McKellen will once again feature in the fundraiser, which is presented by Park Theatre at the close of its 10^th anniversary year to combat the rising costs of making live theatre and running the venue during the cost-of-living crisis.

The Forsyte Saga (11 Oct – 7 Dec) has been announced for Autumn 2024 as Park Theatre’s first two-part drama, adapted by Shaun McKenna and Lin Coghlan. Spanning 40 years from the last gasp of the Victorian age to the beginning of the roaring 1920s, this is an epic tale of sex, money and power. Wealthy solicitor Soames Forsyte is a man of property, and his beautiful wife Irene is his most prized possession. When he commissions an architect to build him a house in which to keep her, the cracks in their marriage finally begin to show, until something happens so shocking that it tears the Forsyte family apart. The Forsyte Saga Part 1: Irene and The Forsyte Saga Part 2: Fleur play across alternate nights and run consecutively on matinee days, featuring a cast of nine in a stylish period production.

Further shows in the 2024 programme, following the previously announced Kim’s Convenience (8 Jan – 10 Feb) and Philip Ridley’s Leaves of Glass (16 Jan – 10 Feb), include further family dramas, a queer romantic comedy, a double bill of work by emerging artists, international artists, and a meticulously researched thriller asking what happened in the five hours between Marilyn Monroe’s death and the call to report it to the police.

Hir (15 Feb – 16 Mar, Park200) is by Pulitzer and Tony-nominee Taylor Mac and directed in this new revival by Steven Kunis. Isaac, the prodigal son, has returned from the brutality of war, only to discover his family home transformed by domestic revolution. The patriarchy has fallen, and mother Paige has been liberated from an oppressive marriage. Enlisting Isaac’s newly-out transgender sibling as her ally, Paige is now on a crusade to tear apart the old regimes. Hir is a disarmingly funny, strikingly original comedy exploring a family in transition, forced to build a brave new world out of the pieces of the old.

Playing alongside this in Park90, Edinburgh Fringe hit Cowboys and Lesbians(21 Feb – 9 Mar) is Billie Esplen’s queer romantic comedy which examines the intersection between sexuality and fantasy through the eyes of two closeted teenage girls, highlighting just how much the stories we consume affect the ones we tell about ourselves. Nina and Noa are 17 and wasting their youth on flashcards and fantasies about their teachers. They’ve never been to a party, they’ve never been kissed, and they’re absolutely never going to admit that they fancy each other. That is, until they start writing a Hollywood romance, inventing a fantasy world of lust, betrayal, and sexy cowboys.

Next up in Park90, Hide and Seek(12 – 30 Mar) is a play about bullying, homophobia and the power of social media, exploring how discriminatory voices can deeply impact young minds. Gio, who has never felt accepted by anyone – not by parents, teachers or peers – decides to disappear and hide out in a secluded cave. When his popular classmate Mirko discovers him, Gio enlists him as an accomplice, convincing him to preserve his secret despite the media frenzy over his disappearance. Hide and Seek is by one of Italy’s foremost playwrights, Tobia Rossi, and transfers to Park Theatre from VAULT Festival 2023.

Running at the same time as Whodunnit [Unrehearsed] 3 plays in Park200, Park90 sees the return of Make Mine a Double (2 – 13 Apr), a double bill of shows that aims to give theatre makers a lower-cost and lower-risk way of producing new work in the Finsbury Park venue, as well as offering multi-buy tickets to encourage local audiences to see compelling new work. The first will be The Light Houseby Alys Williams, a real-life story of falling in love and staying in love, even when the lights go out and you’re lost in the dark, even when the person you love doesn’t want to be alive. It’s paired with Sun Bear, a one-woman comedy from Sarah Richardson about Katy, an office-worker who is drowning under the pressure of it all. Cold, cutting and out of control, Katy is one team-building lunch away from tearing the whole office apart, personalised mugs and all.

Jez Bond said, “We’re delighted to be bringing the third instalment of Whodunnit [Unrehearsed] to Park Theatre, and so grateful to the astonishing slate of guest performers who are once again donating their time to us. As a venue that receives no regular public subsidy, their ongoing support to fundraisers such as this are vital to keep the venue open as costs climb, and ensure we can keep supporting emerging artists with programmes such as Make Mine a Double, which returns in April, as well as the community outreach we do and our continuing efforts to make performances accessible for all. We are also thrilled to be announcing our first two-part drama series in The Forsyte Saga, and our Spring shows, Hir, Cowboys and Lesbians and Hide and Seek which come to us as a new revival, from Edinburgh Fringe and from VAULT Festival.”

A first glimpse of Park Theatre’s Summer season, A Song of Songs in Park200 (9 May – 15 June) is a musical play from an unprecedented collaboration of international artists, winner of The San Francisco Critics Award for the best new production. A Song of Songs fuses a world music score, Middle Eastern harmonics, dazzling choreography and an inspiring story of passion and awakening. Drawing on influences that span continents and millennia – from ancient feminist eroticism to the sounds of modern European Flamenco, Klezmer and the Middle-East.

In Park90 is the world premiere of Ostan (16 May – 8 June) by Azhang Pezhman, a drama about Rebin, who has been stuck in the UK immigration system for almost a decade. Rebin has heard it all before. That is until the boss, Shapur, proposes using his struggling hand car wash business as a front for a human trafficking enterprise. Smuggling immigrants into the country in the boots of the carwash client’s cars.

In The Marilyn Conspiracy(19 Jun – 27 Jul, Park200), Vicki McKellar teams up with Olivier Award-winning director Guy Masterson in a meticulously researched thriller about the five hours after the death of Marilyn Monroe. All the facts are revealed, lies exposed, the myths debunked, and the shocking truth of what happened in those missing five hours is laid bare on stage.

Finally, before the Autumn run of The Forsyte Saga, 23.5 Hours(4 Sept – 5 Oct) is a deeply moving exploration of love, trust, truth and lies. Once a beloved high school teacher, Tom Hodges’s world shatters after he is accused of a terrible crime. When he returns from prison, long-buried scars resurface, putting the bonds of marriage and loyalty to the ultimate test.

Park Theatre presents exceptional theatre in the heart of Finsbury Park, boasting two world-class performance spaces: Park200 for predominantly larger scale productions by established talent, and Park90, a flexible studio space, for emerging artists. In ten years, it has enjoyed 12 West End transfers (including Rose starring Maureen Lipman, The Boys in the Band starring Mark Gatiss, Pressure starring David Haig and The Life I Lead starring Miles Jupp), two National Theatre transfers, 14 national tours, six Olivier Award nominations, has won multiple Offie Awards and won a Theatre of the Year award from The Stage.

Listings information

Park Theatre, Clifton Terrace, Finsbury Park, London N4 3JP

www.parktheatre.co.uk | 020 7870 6876*

* Telephone booking fee: £3 per transaction. Ticket prices are inclusive of a £1.50 building levy.

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Park200 15 Feb – 16 Mar

Hir | Presented by David Adkin and RJG Productions in association with Park Theatre

Written by Taylor Mac | Directed by Steven Kunis

Isaac, the prodigal son, has returned from the brutality of war, only to discover his family home transformed by domestic revolution.

The patriarchy has fallen, and mother Paige has been liberated from an oppressive marriage. Enlisting Isaac’s newly-out transgender sibling as her ally, Paige is now on a crusade to tear apart the old regimes – But in Taylor Mac’s disarmingly funny, strikingly original comedy, annihilating the past doesn’t always free you from it.

Named ‘one of the most exciting theatre artists of our time’ by Time Out New York, Pulitzer and Tony-nominee Taylor Mac has exploded the classic dysfunctional family drama and turned it on its head.

In a revival by critically acclaimed director Steven Kunis, Hir explores a family in transition, forced to build a brave new world out of the pieces of the old.

Running time 2hrs 20 min including interval

Audio described Friday 1 Mar 7.30pm with touch tour 6.30pm

Mon – Sat 7.30pm, matinees Thu and Sat 3pm I £47.50 – £22.50 (standard), £26.50 – £20 (65+ Mon eve and Thu mat), £17.50 (access), £10 (Park Up 16-26 years Band C throughout the run) I Previews 15 – 17 Feb, £15 – £29.50

Park90 21 Feb – 9 Mar

Cowboys and Lesbians | Presented by Spring Lamb in association with Park Theatre

Written and directed by Billie Esplen
Cast includes: Julia Pilkington, Georgia Vyvyan

Nina and Noa are 17 and wasting their youth on flashcards and fantasies about their teachers. They’ve never been to a party, they’ve never been kissed, and they’re absolutely never going to admit that they fancy each other. That is, until they start writing a Hollywood romance, inventing a fantasy world of lust, betrayal, and sexy cowboys. But, while making fun of all the classic teen romance clichés, they begin to realise that the real love story might have been under their noses the whole time…

Cowboys and Lesbians is a queer romantic comedy which examines the intersection between sexuality and fantasy through the eyes of two closeted teenage girls, highlighting just how much the stories we consume affect the ones we tell about ourselves.

Running time 75 mins approx.

Captioned Fri 1 Mar 7.45pm, Relaxed Thu 7 Mar 3.15pm

Mon – Sat 7.45pm, 3.15pm matinees Thu & Sat | £25 – £15 (standard), £9 (access), £10 (Park Up 16-26 years, throughout the run I Previews 21 – 22 Feb (£15)

Park90 12 – 30 Mar

Hide and Seek | Presented by ZAVA Productions in association with Park Theatre

Written by Tobia Rossi | Translated and directed by Carlotta Brentan

Hide and Seek is a moving and darkly entertaining play that pits two teenage boys against each other in the face of the contagious prejudice of their small Italian town. Gio, who has never felt accepted by anyone – not by parents, teachers or peers – decides to disappear and hide out in a secluded cave. When his popular classmate Mirko discovers him, Gio enlists him as an accomplice, convincing him to preserve his secret despite the media frenzy over his disappearance. The boys embark on an unexpected journey towards self-discovery and acceptance, setting in motion a series of dramatic consequences.

The play shines a light on bullying, homophobia and the power of social media, exploring how discriminatory voices can deeply impact young minds. It highlights how being yourself is still a risky proposition in our society when it comes to sexual orientation and independent thought.

Tobia Rossi is one of Italy’s foremost playwrights. Hide and Seek won the 2019 Mario Fratti Award at In Scena! Italian Theater Festival NY. The worldwide premiere of the English translation was presented in May 2022 at The Tank, NYC. This production transfers from VAULT Festival 2023 where it was first performed in front of a British audience.

Running time 85 mins (approx)

Audio described Fri 22 Mar 7.45pm with touch tour at 6.45pm | Relaxed Mon 25 Mar 7.45pm

Mon – Sat 7.45pm, 3.15pm matinees Thu & Sat | £25 – £15 (standard), £9 (access), £10 (Park Up 16-26 years, throughout the run I Previews 12 – 14 March (£15)

Park200

Whodunnit [Unrehearsed] 3 | A special fundraising run presented by Park Theatre

World Premiere

Written by Jez Bond & Mark Cameron | Directed by Jez Bond

Following the sell-out success of our previous Whodunnit murder mystery spoofs, this next instalment takes us all completely off the rails!

Diamonds are a girl’s best friend – or are they? As the temperature plummets, tensions rise and the bodies keep on falling. Can our illustrious Inspector keep this journey on track or will this be a bus replacement service for everyone? Murder, mayhem and this time… magnificent magic!

Every performance of Whodunnit [Unrehearsed] 3 features the voice of Ian McKellen with a different celebrity in each performance stepping in as the Inspector without any rehearsal and without ever having seen the script!

The staggering line up of unsuspecting Inspectors includes Clive Anderson, Gillian Anderson, David Baddiel, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Marcus Brigstocke, Simon Callow, Michelle Collins, Nina Conti, Victoria Coren Mitchell, Brian Cox, Benedict Cumberbatch, Les Dennis, Adrian Dunbar, Mark Gatiss, Tamsin Greig, David Haig, Harry Hill, Adam Hills, Ronan Keating, Ross Kemp, Beverley Knight, Adrian Lester, Maureen Lipman, Gareth Malone, Jason Manford, Stephen Mangan, Tim McInnerny, David Mitchell, Neil Morrissey, Eddie Nestor, Sue Perkins, Clarke Peters, Daisy Ridley, Rob Rinder, Tony Robinson, Meera Syal, Catherine Tate, Emma Thompson, Sandi Toksvig, Johnny Vegas, Tim Vine, Jodie Whittaker and Greg Wise (plus a few more very big names to be announced soon!) – all of whom will have their lines fed to them live onstage via an earpiece as they attempt to crack the case and avoid a train wreck on the journey to justice. We won’t be announcing which date each of our celebrity friends is playing the Inspector – the mystery is who will arrive on the platform at your performance!

After the show hear from our celebrity in a ‘behind the scenes’ conversation, when it’s your turn to do the interrogation. 

Running time tbc

Audio Described Fri 22 Mar 7.45pm, touch tour 6.45pm

Mon – Sat 7.30pm, matinees Thu and Sat 2.30pm I £99.50 – £57.50 (standard), (access 50% off up to two tickets), Standing room £15 (released at 10am on the day of the performance)

Park90 2 – 13 April

7pm (The Light House) & 8.30pm (Sun Bear)

Make Mine a Double

A double bill to give emerging artists and companies a chance to present their work in short run with another show

The Light House | Presented by Alys Williams in association with Park Theatre

London Premiere

Written and performed by Alys Williams | Directed by Andrea Heaton

Man overboard! Man overboard! Call control. Blow the whistle.

Love is a complicated business. It gets even more complicated when the person you love doesn’t want to be alive. Tender, funny and defiantly hopeful, The Light House is a real-life story of falling in love and staying in love, even when the lights go out and you’re lost in the dark. It’s a love letter to life.

Join the emergency response as we dance in the kitchen, sing in the streets and try to turn the lights back on. It gets lonely, muddling through these days and nights. So why don’t we do it together?

Running time 60 mins

Sun Bear | Presented by Sarah Richardson in association with Park Theatre

UK Premiere

Written and performed by Sarah Richardson

In Katy’s office everything is perfect. Perfect people, intrinsically entwined, working together as one big happy family. There is only one problem. Her.

Cold, cutting and out of control, Katy is one team-building lunch away from tearing the whole office apart, personalised mugs and all.

She is sinking. Having cut off all ties to any remaining lifeboat, Katy is drowning. Under the pressure of it all. Under the panic that refuses to give. Under the images of him that she just can’t shake. She is heading straight for rock bottom, with a line of burnt bridges blazing behind her.

But what sent her on this downward spiral? And is there anyone left that can stop her from the impending crash landing?

Mixing spoken word and theatre, Sarah Richardson presents the UK premiere of her award-winning, one-woman dark comedy.

Running time 60 mins

The Light House performance schedule

Mon – Sat 7pm, matinees Thu and Sat 2.30pm

Sun Bear performance schedule

Mon – Sat 8.30pm, matinees Thu and Sat 4pm

Early Bird rate – valid until 23 Feb 2024 Standard: £17.50 | Both Make Mine a Double shows multibuy offer: £12.50 each

Regular pricing – from 24 Feb 2024 Standard: £22.50 | Both Make Mine a Double shows multibuy offer: £17.50 each

Access: £9

Park200 9 May – 15 June

A Song of Songs | Presented by John Gertz in association with Love Sick Development LLC and Park Theatre

European Premiere

Directed by Chris Renshaw | Written and Adapted by Ofra Daniel I Music byOfra Daniel and Lior Ben Hur incollaboration with Ali Paris

From an unprecedented collaboration of international artists comes A Song of Songs, a critically acclaimed musical play, and winner of The San Francisco Critics Award for the best new production. A Song of Songs fuses a world music score, Middle Eastern harmonics, dazzling choreography and an inspiring story of passion and awakening. Drawing on influences that span continents and millennia – from ancient feminist eroticism to the sounds of modern European Flamenco, Klezmer and the Middle-East.

A Song of Songs tells the story of a young wife (Ofra Daniel) in a loveless marriage who discovers she has an unseen admirer. Intrigued, she enters into a mysterious and fervent love affair, finding herself on a dazzling journey of sexual and personal empowerment.

A Song of Songs creative team features a multicultural collection of award-winning artists including: the prolific Israeli actress and composer Ofra Daniel and the Tony Award nominated director Christopher Renshaw (We Will Rock You, Zorro, The King and I, Taboo) and composed by Lior Ben-Hur (Sol Tevél) and Ofra Daniel (Behind Closed Doors, Edges, What if?, Kassit – The Musical – San Francisco).

This new production of A Song of Songs is a true multicultural theatrical event. The 2017 San Francisco premiere had audiences on their feet and was hailed as “extraordinary… lush… full of surprises… Highest Rating! This story seems ordained by gods!” (San Francisco Chronicles).

Running time 2hrs inc interval

Park90 16 May – 8 Jun

Ostan | Talking Shop Productions in association with Park Theatre

World Premiere

Written by Arzhang Pezhman | Directed by Gaby Dellal

Rebin has been stuck in the UK immigration system for almost a decade, which has given him plenty of time to get into a routine.

Work.

Play.

Apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain.

Repeat.

Work is the local hand carwash, under the nurturing eye of the manager, Destan, an Iranian-Kurd. The Iranian bit helps because the owner, Shapur, is very proud of his Persian roots.

Play is online gaming with friend Noah, a truck driver and loyal customer of the carwash. Though maybe not so loyal on the virtual battlefield.

Indefinite Leave to Remain is Gorkem. New worker, fresh off the boat. A Turkish-Kurd who claims to be the grandson of the Kurdish freedom fighter, Apo Ocalan.

Rebin, an Iraqi-Kurd with no safe passage home, just sees history repeating itself. While he stays true to his story and stuck in the system, he’s seen half a dozen like Gorkem make their way through the carwash, claiming heroic tales of escape, securing indefinite leave to remain and moving on with their lives.

Rebin has heard it all before.

That is until the boss, Shapur, proposes using the struggling business as a front for a human trafficking enterprise. Smuggling immigrants into the country in the boots of the carwash client’s cars.

Rebin’s routine is about to be shattered. Indefinitely.

Running time 90 mins (approx.)

Audio Described Wed 22 May 7.45pm, touch tour 6.45pm, Sat 25 May 7.45pm, touch tour 6.45pm

Mon – Sat 7.45pm, 3.15pm matinees Thu & Sat | £25 – £15 standard, £9 (access), £10 (Park Up 16-26 years, throughout the run I Previews 16 – 18 May (£15)

Park200 19 Jun – 27 Jul

The Marilyn Conspiracy | Presented by Guy Masterson – Theatre Tours International Ltd and Park Theatre

London Premiere

Written by Vicki McKellar and Guy Masterson | Directed by Guy Masterson

On Wednesday August 1st 1962, seven people gathered at Marilyn Monroe’s home to celebrate her new $2m two-picture deal with 20th Century Fox.

At 04:30 the following Sunday 5 August, her apparent suicide was called in to the police and was reported as a drugs overdose. But the truth is far more shocking: She was found unconscious by her housekeeper the night before at 22:35, and subsequently died at 23:40, all after a late visit from a very important guest…

The same seven people then regathered in her home on Saturday night – and yet her death was only reported nearly 5 hours later.

What did they talk about?

In this powerful, new, meticulously researched thriller co-written by Vicki McKellar and Olivier Award-winning West End and Broadway director Guy Masterson, all the facts are revealed, lies exposed, the myths debunked, and the shocking truth of what happened in those missing 5 hours is laid bare on stage.

Running time 2hrs 15 mins including interval (approx.)

Captioned Wed 17 Jul 7.30pm

Park200 4 Sept – 5 Oct

23.5 Hours | Presented by Blue Touch Paper Productions and OPM Productions in association with Park Theatre

European Premiere

Directed by Katharine Farmer

Once a beloved high school teacher, Tom Hodges’s world shatters after he is accused of a terrible crime. When he returns from prison, long-buried scars resurface, putting the bonds of marriage and loyalty to the ultimate test. In this deeply moving exploration of love, trust, truth and lies, Tom’s family and friends are forced to confront profound questions about themselves and one another.

His wife Leigh never thought she’d be “one of those women”. But she finds herself standing by her man who has never wavered from his claim of innocence. Each new revelation pushes her to re-examine their entire life as she struggles to remain present for their son Nicholas who can’t escape the relentless bullying on social media. 23.5 Hours delves into the harrowing aftermath of a conviction and the far-reaching impacts it imposes on both family and community. This delicately balanced, beautifully nuanced new family drama digs deep beneath the surface of a happy suburban existence to explore the collateral damages of our actions.

Running time 2hrs 15min inc interval

Parents and Babies performance Thursday 3 October 11am

Park200 11 Oct – 7 Dec

The Forsyte Saga: Parts 1 and 2 | Presented by Ashley Cook for Troupe in association with Park Theatre

World Premiere

By John Galsworthy

Adapted by Shaun McKenna and Lin Coghlan | Directed by Josh Roche

‘’Now I know what Soames did, what my father did, I will never be able to not know it.’’

London, 1886. Wealthy solicitor Soames Forsyte is a man of property, and his beautiful wife Irene is his most prized possession. When he commissions an architect to build him a house in which to keep her, the cracks in their marriage finally begin to show, until something happens so shocking that it tears the Forsyte family apart. Years later, Soames’ daughter Fleur is haunted by the family secret when history begins to repeat itself…

John Galsworthy’s classic story The Forsyte Saga (famously adapted for television and recently for BBC Radio 4) is newly dramatized for the stage in two parts by Shaun McKenna and Lin Coghlan, bringing the unheard female voices to the fore for the first time. Spanning 40 years from the last gasp of the Victorian age to the beginning of the roaring 1920s, this is an epic tale of sex, money and power.

The Forsyte Saga Part 1: Irene and The Forsyte Saga Part 2: Fleur play across alternate nights and run consecutively on matinee days, featuring a cast of nine in a stylish period production.

Running time Part 1: 2hr 20 min including interval | Part 2: 2hrs 20 mins including interval

Captioned performances (Part 1 & 2) Saturday 26 October | Audio described performances (Part 1 & 2) Saturday 2 November

Book for both parts together and save 10%*. The two parts of The Forsyte Saga are separate and intended to be seen sequentially. However, each part constitutes a complete theatre-going experience on its own.