David Hare and Rufus Norris Will Bring the Slums of Mumbai to London’s National Theatre

David Hare will adapt Pulitzer Prize winner Katherine Boo’s acclaimed non-fiction novel Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in Mumbai Undercity for the National Theatre, according to The Daily Mail. The production is slated to play the National’s Olivier Theatre in the fall of 2014 as part of artistic director Nicholas Hytner’s final season. The forthcoming stage adapation of Behind the Beautiful Forevers will be directed by Rufus Norris (Festen). Casting has not begun for the production.

Set in the Annawadi slum of Mumbai, Behind the Beautiful Forevers tells the true story of several residents including a young trasher, a female slumlord, a student hoping to escape the slums for a better life and a couple who never turns down an opportunity. The novel received the 2012 National Book Award.

Hare first started collaborating with the National Theatre in 1978 with his play Plenty. Since that time, the National produced his works A Map of the World Pravda, Racing Demon, Murmuring Judges and The Absence of War. A former artistic director of the National, Hare also helmed several shows for the company, including King Lear. His additional plays include The Judas Kiss, Stuff Happens and The Vertical Hour.

Check out a trailer for the book below to get an inside look at the community at the center of Boo's work.