Indigo Productions and Crossroads Live in association with Curve, present
DR HANNIBAL LECTER WILL SEE YOU NOW…
JOHN PARTRIDGE TO STAR
AS THE ELEGANT FACE OF EVIL IN
FIRST CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR THE
WORLD STAGE PLAY PREMIERE
Seminal psychological thriller adapted for the stage by
celebrated playwright Gina Gionfriddo
from the multi-million-selling novel by Thomas Harris
Directed by Nikolai Foster
Indigo Productions and Crossroads Live, in association with Curve, are delighted to announce first casting for the upcoming UK and Ireland tour of The Silence of the Lambs, ahead of the global cultural phenomenon’s world premiere play debut. The electrifying new production opens at Leicester’s Curve theatre on Saturday, 01 August 2026.
It is today revealed that British actor, singer, presenter, writer and director John Partridge, known for his long-running role as Christian Clarke in BBC 1’s EastEnders and extensive range of West End credits from CATS to Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, will don the iconic mask as the refined and sadistic Dr Hannibal Lecter.
When FBI trainee Clarice Starling is sent to interview the psychiatrist and infamous murderer Hannibal Lecter, it’s hoped his brilliant mind will help catch the sadistic new serial killer, Buffalo Bill. Another girl is missing, and time is running out. But Dr Lecter has questions of his own, and now Clarice must decide: keep a safe distance, or let Hannibal ‘The Cannibal’ into her head?
Acclaimed television writer and playwright Gina Gionfriddo (Law & Order (NBC), House of Cards (Netflix), Becky Shaw) brings Thomas Harris’s gripping literary masterpiece to the stage in a new modern adaptation directed by Curve’s Artistic Director, Nikolai Foster. Gionfriddo’s theatrical adaptation delves into the psychological tension of Thomas Harris’s landmark novel, drawing the audience deep into Clarice and Lecter’s intelligent, intricate, and bone-chilling game of cat-and-mouse, as the FBI scramble to catch Buffalo Bill, a serial killer still at large.
John Partridge says of his casting in the upcoming tour ‘’How often does an actor get to play a role that by simply saying the character’s name, it takes your breath away. It’s a huge honour, and I intend to savour every morsel of it!’’
Director Nikolai Foster adds: “Taking on a role like Hannibal Lecter requires real guts, tenacity and an appetite to confront the darkest depths of the human condition. Working with John on the role has been incredibly inspiring – his instincts are razor sharp – and there is no finer actor to bring to life Thomas Harris’s most chilling creation in our world premiere stage adaptation.”
At just 16, John Partridge left college to join the original UK tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s CATS, later transferring to the West End production at the New London Theatre to star as Rum Tum Tugger. He reprised the role in the official filmed version opposite Elaine Paige and John Mills.
John’s extensive West End, touring and international theatre credits include: Everybody’s Talking About Jamie (Peacock Theatre); A Chorus Line (London Palladium); The Drowsy Chaperone (Novello Theatre); Notre-Dame de Paris (Dominion Theatre); The Fix (Donmar Warehouse), directed by Sam Mendes; Tommy (Shaftesbury Theatre); Grease (Dominion Theatre); Starlight Express (Apollo Victoria Theatre); The Hunting of the Snark (Prince Edward Theatre); Taboo 20th Anniversary Concert (London Palladium); The Witches of Eastwick in Concert (Sondheim Theatre); The Chalk Garden (Theatre Royal Windsor & Yvonne Arnaud Theatre); The Doncastrian Chalk Circle (National Theatre & CAST Doncaster); The Emcee in Cabaret (Rufus Norris production, UK tour); The View Upstairs (Soho Theatre); Rough Crossing (UK tour); The Case of the Frightened Lady (UK tour); La Cage Aux Folles (UK tour); Chicago (UK tour); The Tempest (Northcott Theatre); Miss Saigon (UK tour); Rent (European tour); Black Goes With Everything (Churchill Theatre, Bromley); Marilyn in Boy George’s Taboo (The Venue); and most recently Billy Haynes in The Code (Southwark Playhouse Elephant).
On screen, John is widely known for his long-running role as Christian Clarke in EastEnders (BBC, 2007–2016). His screen work also includes Involuntary Activist (Iris Prize/BBC) and Cleopatra (Netflix).
A well-known television personality, John won Celebrity MasterChef (BBC) and has appeared on The Real Full Monty (ITV), Taking The Next Step (CBBC), Tumble (BBC) and Battlechefs with Marco Pierre White (Watch). He has also served as a celebrity judge on Over the Rainbow (BBC), guest-hosted The National Lottery Draws (BBC), and is a regular contributor on Jeremy Vine (Channel 5).
Full creative team and further casting to be announced.
The Silence of the Lambs is produced by Indigo Productions and Crossroads Live in association with Curve.
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THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS
2026 / 2027 UK TOUR DATES
Leicester, Curve
Sat 01 Aug – Sat 15 Aug 2026
Newcastle, Theatre Royal
Tue 18 Aug – Sat 22 Aug 2026
Glasgow, Theatre Royal
Mon 24 Aug – Sat 29 Aug 2026
www.atgtickets.com/venues/theatre-royal-glasgow/
Aberdeen, His Majesty’s Theatre
Tue 01 Sep – Sat 05 Sep 2026
www.aberdeenperformingarts.com
Edinburgh, Festival Theatre
Tue 08 Sep – Sat 12 Sep 2026
Nottingham, Theatre Royal
Tue 15 – Sat 19 Sep 2026
Milton Keynes, Milton Keynes Theatre
Mon 28 Sep – Sat 03 Oct 2026
www.atgtickets.com/venues/milton-keynes-theatre/
Salford, Lowry
Tue 06 Oct – Sat 10 Oct 2026
Bradford, Alhambra Theatre
Mon 12 Oct – Sat 17 Oct 2026
www.bradford-theatres.co.uk/alhambra-theatre
Oxford, New Theatre
Mon 19 Oct – Sat 24 Oct 2026
www.atgtickets.com/venues/opera-house-manchester/
Peterborough, New Theatre
Tue 27 Oct – Sat 31 Oct 2026
www.newtheatre-peterborough.com
Hull, New Theatre
Mon 02 Nov – Sat 07 Nov 2026
Belfast, Grand Opera House
Tue 10 Nov – Sat 14 Nov 2026
Dublin, Bord Gáis Energy Theatre
Tue 24 Nov – Sat 28 Nov 2026
Birmingham, Alexandra Theatre
Tues 05 Jan – Sat 09 Jan 2027
www.atgtickets.com/venues/the-alexandra-theatre-birmingham
Blackpool, The Grand Theatre
Mon 11 Jan – Sat 16 Jan 2027
Eastbourne, The Congress Theatre
Mon 18 Jan – Sat 23 Jan 2027
www.trafalgartickets.com/eastbourne-theatres-eastbourne
Malvern, Malvern Theatre
Tue 26 Jan – Sat 30 Jan 2027
Swansea, Grand Theatre
Mon 15 Feb – Sat 20 Feb 2027
Chester, Storyhouse Theatre
Mon 22 Feb – Sat 27 Feb 2027
Brighton, Theatre Royal
Tue 02 Mar – Sat 06 Mar 2027
www.atgtickets.com/venues/theatre-royal-brighton
Tunbridge Wells, Assembly Hall Theatre
Mon 08 Mar – Sat 13 Mar 2027
York, Grand Opera House
Mon 15 Mar – Sat 20 Mar 2027
www.atgtickets.com/shows/the-silence-of-the-lambs/grand-opera-house-york/
Coventry, Belgrade Theatre
Tue 30 Mar – Sat 3 Apr 2027
Richmond, Richmond Theatre
Tue 06 Apr – Sat 10 Apr 2027
www.atgtickets.com/venues/richmond-theatre/
Cheltenham, Everyman Theatre
Mon 12 Apr – Sat 17 Apr 2027
Bournemouth, Pavillon Theatre
Tue 20 April – Sat 24 Apr 2027
Wolverhampton, Grand Theatre
Mon 26 Apr – Sat 01 May 2027
Cardiff, New Theatre
Mon 10 May – Sat 15 May 2027
www.trafalgartickets.com/new-theatre-cardiff
Buxton, Opera House
Mon 17 May – Sat 22 May 2027
Woking, New Victoria Theatre
Mon 31 May – Sat 05 Jun 2027
www.atgtickets.com/venues/new-victoria-theatre
Liverpool, Empire Theatre
Tue 15 Jun – Sat 19 Jun 2027
www.atgtickets.com/venues/liverpool-empire
Sunderland, Empire Theatre
Mon 21 Jun – Sat 26 Jun 2027