Seagrove & Andrews to Star in Maugham's 'Letter' in London

A new West End production of W. Somerset Maugham's The Letter will star Jenny Seagrove and Anthony Andrews, according to London Theatre Guide.  Booking through August 11th, the show will begin previews at the Wyndham Theatre on April 19th and open on May 1st.

The theatre website describes the play, written by the legendary novelist and playwright of The Constant Wife, as such: "Set in the heat of a Malaysian rubber plantation, a local playboy is murdered during the night by a planter's wife (Seagrove). When she claims she was acting in self-defence, the ex-pat community closes ranks and her trusting husband hires a family friend (Andrews) to defend her. But then a mysterious letter comes to light, casting doubt on her integrity, and things begin to fall apart."

Alan Strachan will direct the production, which previously played a short UK tour.  Andrew Charleson, Karen Ascoe, Jason Chan, Peter Sandys-Clarke, Sioned Jones, Andrew Joshi, Liz Sutherland, Jon David Yu and Jamie Zubairi will also be featured.

The Letter, originally starring Katharine Cornell, opened at the Morosco Theatre on September 26th, 1927 for a successful run of 104 performances.  A 1940 film version starred Bette Davis, who received an Oscar nomination.

Seagrove has appeared on the West End in The Night of the Iguana (opposite Woody Harrelson), The Odd Couple - The Female Version and The Constant Wife.  She has also been seen on the British TV show "Judge John Deed." Andrews' London theatre credits include The Woman in White, Ghosts and My Fair Lady.  He is perhaps most famous for his BAFTA-winning work as Sebastian Flyte in the miniseries "Brideshead Revisited," based on the novel by Evelyn Waugh.