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Awarded Director of the Year (Shu-wing Tang) and Perfomer of the Year (Cecilia Yip for her portrayal of King Lear) at the International Association of Theatre Critics (Hong Kong). Nominated for Best Sound Design (Anthony Yeung) in the Hong Kong Drama Awards.
The old irritable King Lear wants to divide his kingdom among his three daughters but ends up banishing Cordelia, the youngest one, who really loves him. Unable to meet his commands, Lear’s two other daughters reject him at their homes, so Lear goes mad and wanders through a storm. Trying to rescue her father, Cordelia returns with an army, but they lose the battle, leading to the death of Lear and all his daughters.
Internationally renowned director, Shu-wing Tang, returns to London after his productions at Shakespeare’s Globe in 2012 and 2015 and at the New Diorama Theatre in 2017. Tang’s King Lear is a non-verbal theatre transcending the boundaries of Shakespeare’s plays but remains quintessentially Shakespearean.
REVIEWS
★★★★ “A breathtaking achievement.” - Broadway World
★★★★ “A hugely satisfying piece of nonverbal theatre” - Everything Theatre
★★★★ “A stunning sight that feeds our imaginations” - Spy in the Stalls
★★★★ "An exhilarating piece of physical theatre, performed by an astonishingly focussed cast." - Shadows on the Wall
★★★★ “This King Lear repays your investment by offering a mature, measured and malevolent approach to a familiar text.” - Lou Reviews
★★★★ “This vicious and chilling new version of King Lear takes on a fresh and original, perspective on the tragic tale” - A Youngish Perspective
An international cast featuring all female performers from Hong Kong and the National Theatre Marin Sorescu of Craiova promises to deliver a rarely seen and provocative performance of this classic, built on a highly minimalistic and stylised aesthetics created by a team of visionary artists from the city of Hong Kong.
This production premiered in Hong Kong in 2021 and was performed in Shanghai in 2023. The performances at Riverside Studios mark the production’s UK premiere and the beginning of a tour, with dates in Craiova, Romania; Berlin, Germany; and a return to Hong Kong for the 1st edition of International Shakespeare Festival in Hong Kong.
“Tang decides to explore the unlimited possibilities with the bold originality in style, making the adapted King Lear a newborn star.” – The Theatre Times.
“The performers have skillfully delivered their inner through the outer.” – The International Association of Theatre Critics
“Tang Shu-wing’s non-verbal King Lear uses gestures, bodily interactions and occasional howls of anguish to immerse audiences in the Shakespearean, tragedy…the all-female cast is to counter to the misogyny inherent in many of Shakespeare’s plays…” - South China Morning Post
Director: Shu-wing Tang
Set and Costume Designer: Hon-wai Yuen
Music Composer: Billy Ng
Sound Designer: Anthony Yeung
Lighting Designer: Tsz-yan Yeung
Cast: Cecilia Yip, Lindzay Chan, Amanda Leung, Cassandra Tang, Peggy Chow, Ting-Kwan Lau, Ki-yan Ko, Corina Druc, Costinela Ungureanu
King Lear is presented by Tang Shu-wing Theatre Studio, in partnership with National Theatre Marin Sorescu Craiova, Romania and sponsored by Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London