Richard II
Closing: May 10, 2025Richard II - 2025 West End History , Info & More
Bridge Theatre
One Tower Bridge London SE1 2SD
Richard II is charismatic, eloquent and loved by his friends. And a disastrous King – dishonest, capricious and politically incompetent.
Echoing down the centuries is the perennial problem: how to deal with a ruler who has a rock solid right to rule but is set on wrecking the country he leads.
Shakespeare’s subtle, ambiguous and beautiful play finds feudal England on the cusp of modernity, as a divinely sanctioned monarch is confronted, in the figure of Henry Bolingbroke, by the hard-headed pragmatism of real authority.
Richard II is played by Jonathan Bailey, whose past work includes Bridgerton, Fellow Travellers, Cassio in Nicholas Hytner’s National Theatre production of Othello and Edgar to Ian McKellen’s King Lear. He has also won an Olivier Award for his role of Jamie in Company and is Fiyero in the up and coming Wicked movie.
__Assisted performances__
Audio-Described Performance: Saturday 12th April, 14:30
Captioned Performance: Friday 2nd May, 19:30
Richard II - 2025 - West End Cast
FEATURED REVIEWS FOR Richard II
Jonathan Bailey is a magnetic king
8 / 10
Bailey is aided by a strong supporting cast. Pierreson’s Bullingbrook is a cool and calculated foil to Bailey’s impulsive king, bringing a powerful renegade energy to the production with his band of rebels. Martin Carroll, who stepped in as John of Gaunt, is desperate in his final moments, pleading for his country, which is being ruined at the hands of Richard. Simkins, no stranger to the Bridge stage having recently starred in its production of Guys & Dolls, is a committed Duke of York, unfailingly loyal even when it means selling out his own son, the Duke of Aumerle. This leads to a humorous scene between the Duke, Duchess of York (Amanda Root), and Aumerle (Vinnie Heaven), as they plead Bullingbrook’s forgiveness, scuttling across the stage on bended knee.
Jonathan Bailey is a monarch on the edge
6 / 10
The actors also seem constrained by Bob Crowley’s narrow design and the use of hydraulics to raise and lower sections of the stage. The Bridge’s auditorium has to be one of the most atmospheric in the country, but here the rising and falling of platforms — which worked so well in Hytner’s magnificent version of Guys and Dolls — becomes more of a distraction. The same is true of Grant Olding’s music, which might as well have been written for yet another TV drama about a maverick detective.
Category
by Stephi Wild - April 17, 2025
London Theatre Company has released behind the scenes photography from Richard II, starring Jonathan Bailey and directed by Nicholas Hytner. Check out the photos here!
by Stephi Wild - April 11, 2025
London Theatre Company has released an all new trailer for Richard II, starring Jonathan Bailey and directed by Nicholas Hytner. Check out the video and learn more about the show here!
by Stephi Wild - March 27, 2025
London Theatre Company has released more production photos of Richard II, starring Jonathan Bailey and directed by Nicholas Hytner, now playing at the Bridge Theatre until 10 May 2025. Check out the photos here!
by Michael Major - March 10, 2025
Watch Jonathan Bailey (Wicked, Bridgerton, Company) in the curtain call for Richard II, directed by Nicholas Hytner. Watch the new video from the Bridge Theatre now!
by Aliya Al-Hassan - February 19, 2025
Richard II is played by Jonathan Bailey, whose past work includes Bridgerton, Fellow Travellers, Cassio in Nicholas Hytner’s National Theatre production of Othello and Edgar to Ian McKellen’s King Lear. He has also won an Olivier Award for his role of Jamie in Company and is Fiyero in the Wicked movie. What did the critics think of the show?
by Cindy Marcolina - February 18, 2025
A nation in need, an unsuitable king, banishments, murders, attempted coups. Richard II has it all and so does Jonathan Bailey. He might be dancing through Hollywood and hanging out with the biggest celebs, but he proves that he’s still one of us with this triumphant return to the stage.
by Stephi Wild - February 14, 2025
London Theatre Company has released photos of Richard II. Starring Jonathan Bailey and directed by Nicholas Hytner, this fresh take on Shakespeare’s subtle, caustic and powerful play is currently playing the Bridge Theatre until 10 May 2025.
by Stephi Wild - January 14, 2025
London Theatre Company has released new photos from the Richard II rehearsal room, starring Jonathan Bailey of Wicked, Bridgerton and Company fame and directed by Nicholas Hytner. Check out the new photos here!
by Stephi Wild - January 7, 2025
All new photos and video footage have been released of Jonathan Bailey and the company of Richard II on their first day of rehearsals. Learn more about the new West End production of Richard II here!
Richard II History
Other Productions of Richard II
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| 2025 | Off-Broadway |
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