Burrows and Bernal to Appear at Almeida
The Earthly Paradise centers on poet and designer William Morris, who takes a dreamy Oxfordshire manor house for the summer of 1871. While there a whisper goes around that he only took the house to make the very public affair between his wife Janey and close friend Dante Gabriel Rossetti less conspicuous. When Morris leaves them to their sanctuary and goes abroad, the alchemy of love works unexpected changes. Burrows best known to international audiences for her roles in the films Circle of Friends, Timecode, Enigma and Troy will play Janey Morris. Alan Cox will portray Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Sean Gilder is to play John Hennie and Nigel Lindsay is set for the role of William Morris. Directed by Robert Delamere, the show is scheduled to run at Almedia through January 8.
Blood Wedding, written by Lorca in 1932 in response to a newspaper article concerning a local murder in rural Spain, is a story of love, lust and betrayal. A young Andalusian bride elopes with her childhood sweetheart Leonardo Bernal on her wedding day, abandoning her husband-to-be at the altar. Bernal is best known for his lead roles in Amores Perros for which he won Best Actor at the Cannes Film Festival and Y Tu Mama Tambien for which he also won Best Actor at the Venice Film Festival. He can currently be seen playing Che Guevara in Walter Salles' The Motorcycle Diaries. Tanya Ronder's new adaptation of Blood Wedding, directed by Rufus Norris, is scheduled to run at the Almeida through June 18.
The Almedia is currently presenting the musical drama Brighton Rock. In addition to the shows mentioned above, the company's season also includes Macbeth with Simon Russell Beale and Emma Fielding January 13 to March 5 and Hedda Gabler with Eve Best March 10 to April 30.