NOREL PRODUCTIONS AND ADAM BLANSHAY PRODUCTIONS
ANNOUNCE THE TRANSFER OF FAREWELL MISTER HAFFMANN
FROM THEATRE ROYAL BATH TO PARK THEATRE
Norel Productions and Adam Blanshay Productions today announce the transfer of Jean-Philippe Daguerre’s Farewell Mister Haffmann adapted by Jeremy Sams and originally directed by Lindsay Posner. One of France’s most successful and long-running plays, this acclaimed UK première production transfers from Theatre Royal Bath Ustinov Studio to Park200 on 10 March, with previews from 6 March, and runs until 12 April.
The French play Adieu Monsieur Haffmann by Jean-Philippe Daguerre has been a commercial and critical success in France, winning four Molière Awards, including Best New Play. One of the longest running plays in France, it was also made into a film starring Daniel Auteil.
Farewell Mister Haffmannmade its UK premiere at the Ustinov Studio at Theatre Royal Bath in September 2023 in Lindsay Posner’s production that The Times described as “gritty, surprising and resonant” ★★★★, WhatsOnStage as, “a cracking night’s theatre” ★★★★ and The Mail on Sunday said, “The tension is crackling… I was totally gripped… it’s a hit” ★★★★.
Casting for the Park200 run is to be announced.
Farewell Mister Haffmann is on sale to Park Theatre members now. Public booking opens on 11 October at 10am.
The author of Adieu Monsieur Haffmann, Jean-Philippe Daguerre today said, “It is a great honour and a great pleasure for me to see our Adieu Monsieur Haffmann crossing the Channel to become Farewell Mister Haffman for this exceptional exploration in London. My eternal gratitude for the wonderful adaptation, the brilliant and elegant staging and the beautiful production. It has been beyond all my expectations.’
Jeremy Sams, who adapted the play from French, said, “It was a privilege to be the first adaptor of Farewell Mister Haffmann, and I’m delighted that it can now be seen in London. This is an important and (sadly) timely play which shows us how times of conflict challenge acceptance and deepen prejudice.”
The original director of Farewell Mister Haffmann, Lindsay Posner said, “In turns shocking, funny and deeply moving, this tense thriller combines the personal and the political to great effect. In these times the play feels more urgent than ever.”
Norel Productions and Adam Blanshay Productions
in association with Park Theatre present
FAREWELL MISTER HAFFMANN
By Jean-Philippe Daguerre
Adapted by Jeremy Sams
Original Director Lindsay Posner
General Management Alex Turner Productions
6 March – 12 April 2024
One of France’s most successful and long-running plays, and a winner of four Molière Awards, Farewell Mister Haffmann makes its London premiere following a critically acclaimed debut at Theatre Royal Bath.
Set in 1942 in Nazi-occupied Paris, Jewish jeweller Joseph Haffmann faces imminent danger as Jews are being rounded up across the city for deportation. Desperate, Joseph turns to his trusted employee Pierre Vigneau for help.
In a risky and unconventional deal, he transfers ownership of his jewellery shop to Pierre in exchange for being hidden from the Nazis. But the deal comes with an unexpected condition: in return for hiding him from the Nazis, Pierre requests that Joseph enter into a particular arrangement with his wife, Isabelle. This unusual request raises the stakes, as the three of them find themselves struggling with the dangers and moral complexities of their situation.
A Matisse painting and an art loving Nazi officer and his flamboyant wife complicate matters further for Pierre, Isabelle and Joseph. As the marital pressures and absurd demands pile up, their deal teeters on the edge of collapse.
Blending dark humour and suspense against the background of unprecedented times, this play shines a light on human resilience in the face of impossible choices.
Casting for the Park200 run is to be announced.
Jean-Philippe Daguerre is a French writer and director. His work over the last 20 years includes Paroles de Prévert, Le Médecin malgré lui, Les Contes des 1001 Nuits, Alice au Pays des Merveilles, Aladin, Cyrano de Bergerac and Le Cid. Jean-Philippe Daguerre is also the Artistic Director of Le Grenier de Babouchka Company. He was nominated for Molière Awards in 2016 for Aladin, in 2017 for Scapin and in 2018 for Le Malade Imaginaire and Clérambard. In 2018, the play Adieu Monsieur Haffmann, which he wrote and directed, won four Molière awards. Since then, he wrote and directed La Famille Ortiz, Le Petit Coiffeur, Le Voyage de Molière, La Chambre des merveilles and Huitième ciel.
Jeremy Sams is a translator, director, composer and playwright. His translations and adaptations have been used at the National Theatre, on Broadway, in the West End, as well at ENO and the Metropolitan Opera New York. He has directed and written music for many shows at the National Theatre, on Broadway, in the West End and pretty much everywhere else. His most recent credits are What’s in a name?,Edmond de Bergerac and Roman Holiday (Bath); The Lavender Hill Mob and The Good Life (UK tours); as well as the operas Flight (Royal College of Music) and Die Fledermaus (The Met).
Original Director Lindsay Posner has directed in every major London theatre as well as the RSC and on Broadway. His recent credits include the West End Production of A View from the Bridge (Ustinov Studio and Theatre Royal Haymarket), Noises Off (Theatre Royal Bath, Phoenix Theatre and UK tour), Edward Albee’s classic Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, The Lover and The Collection by Harold Pinter and Terence Rattigan’s The Deep Blue Sea (Ustinov Studio), the latter will be in the West End next year, and 1984 (Theatre Royal Bath and UK Tour).
Listings
Farewell Mister Haffmann
Park Theatre, Park200
Clifton Terrace, Finsbury Park, London N4 3JP
FAREWELL MISTER HAFFMANN
6 March – 12 April
Mon – Sat Evenings at 7.30pm, Thu and Sat matinees at 3pm
Box Office: 020 7870 6876*www.parktheatre.co.uk*Telephone booking fee of £3 per transaction applies. All ticket prices are inclusive of a £1.50 building levy.
Ticket prices
Previews: £15 – £29.50
Standard: £22.50 – £47.50
Mon eve, Thu mat: 65+: £20 – £26.50
Access: £18.50
Park Up (16-26 years): £10 on Band C seats throughout the run