Casting Announced for THE RESISTABLE RISE OF ARTURO UI in Chichester, Beg. June 29

Keith Baxter, Michael Feast, William Gaunt, Joe McGann and Lizzie McInnerny are among those confirmed to appear alongside Henry Goodman in The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui at the Minerva Theatre, Chichester, during Festival 2012.

Keith Baxter has previously appeared at Chichester in Elvira ’40, The Inconstant Couple, A Woman of No Importance, Tonight We Improvise, Antony and Cleopatra and The Country Wife. He also directed After October, Dangerous Corner and Rope at Chichester (the latter two productions both transferred to the West End). In another link to Chichester, he also appeared in The Way of the World and The Three Sisters at Stratford Ontario. Stratford Ontario’s artistic director Tyrone Guthrie created an auditorium with a thrust stage, which provided the inspiration for Chichester Festival Theatre’s design. Baxter’s numerous credits also include the stage and screen productions of Chimes at Midnight, directed by Orson Welles.

Michael Feast plays Roma. He has previously appeared at Chichester in A Month in the Country, Macbeth (also West End and Broadway), Twelfth Night, The Master and Margarita, Faustus, Nathan the Wise, The Seagull, A Christmas Carol and Vivat! Vivat Regina! Other theatre credits include The King’s Speech (UK tour and West End), The Forest, The Tempest, No Man’s Land and American Buffalo (National Theatre), Faust I & II (RSC Stratford), Murder in the Cathedral and Measure for Measure (RSC Stratford and London) and Ourselves Alone (Royal Court Theatre and Dublin).

William Gaunt plays Old Dogsborough. He has previously appeared at Chichester in The Cherry Orchard. Other theatre credits include Sixty Six Books – Concerning Faith (Bush Theatre), Henry IV Parts I & II (Shakespeare’s Globe), King Lear and The Seagull (RSC), Humble Boy, Albert Speer, The Cherry Orchard, Look Back in Anger, The Mysteries and An Inspector Calls (National Theatre), and West End productions of The Miracle Worker, Travels With My Aunt, Boys in the Band and Flip Side.

Joe McGann plays Giri/O’Casey. He has previously appeared at Chichester in The Water Babies. Other theatre credits include Of Mice and Men (Nottingham Playhouse and West End), the West End production of Oliver! directed by Sam Mendes, and national tours of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Guys and Dolls.

Lizzy McInnerny plays Betty Dullfoot. Her theatre credits include King Lear (Almeida Theatre), Closer (National Theatre and tour), Tales from Hollywood and The Front Page (Donmar Warehouse), the West End production of The Queen and I, Slip of the Tongue (Steppenwolf Theatre Chicago and West End), Talking in Tongues, Beside Herself and Bloody Poetry (Royal Court Theatre).

As previously announced, Henry Goodman plays Arturo Ui, one of the richest and most demanding male characters in the contemporary dramatic canon. His credits include Festival 2010’s Yes, Prime Minister, Copenhagen, The Holy Rosenbergs, Duet for One, Fiddler on the Roof, Performances, The Gondoliers, Feelgood, The Merchant of Venice, Chicago and Richard III.

The cast also includes Mark Carlisle, Alex Giannini, Amanda Gordon, Charlie Hamblett, Peter Moreton, James Northcote, Rolf Saxon, Colin Stinton, David Sturzaker and Steve Simmonds.

The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui is a violent, epic parable of the rise of Hitler, shot through with razor-sharp humour. It was written by Bertolt Brecht in 1941 just before the exiled playwright arrived in the USA, Brecht’s work includes The Threepenny Opera (with Kurt Weill), The Life of Galileo, Mother Courage and Her Children, The Good Person of Szechuan and The Caucasian Chalk Circle.

The play will be directed by Jonathan Church, Chichester Festival Theatre’s Artistic Director. His credits for Chichester include the Olivier Award-nominated production Singin’ in the Rain which transferred to the West End in February, The Critic and The Real Inspector Hound, The Grapes of Wrath, Pravda, Hobson’s Choice, The Circle and The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby. His other credits include the Olivier Award-nominated Of Mice and Men.

The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui will be at the Minerva Theatre, Chichester from 29 June – 28 July, Evenings 7.45pm (except Press Night: Wednesday 11 July 7.00pm), Matinees 2.30pm. Tickets: Previews/Press Night £23.50; Evenings/Matinees £29.50. To book, go to cft.org.uk or call the Box Office on 01243 781312.

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