Lily Collins and Álvaro Morte Will Make West End Debuts in BARCELONA

Lily Collins (Emily in Paris, Mank, To The Bone) and Álvaro Morte (Money Heist, Wheel of Time, Immaculate) will swap the big screen for the West End in the UK premiere of Bess Wohl’s play Barcelona. Directed by Lynette Linton (Shifters, Sweat, Blues for An Alabama Sky), the play will run for a strictly limited season at the Duke of York’s, from 21 October 2024.

Late night in Barcelona. An American tourist goes home with a handsome Spaniard. What begins as a carefree, one-night stand becomes an invitation to danger, as the personal and political catastrophically intertwine.

By turns funny, sexy and surprising, Barcelona is a seductive thriller that will keep audiences guessing - exploring the fantasy of who we pretend to be, versus the truth of who we are.

Lily Collins said, “It has been a childhood dream of mind to perform in the West End and I’m hugely excited to make my stage debut in Bess’ exciting play, Barcelona. Working with this team has truly been a gift and I cannot wait for audiences to be taken on a thrilling journey as the play unravels. I knew the moment I finished reading the script, I had to play Irene.”

Álvaro Morte said, “The London theatre scene is a vibrant and exhilarating canvas for fresh, groundbreaking work. I am thrilled and honoured to be a part of this captivating new play, marking my West End debut. I'm looking forward to bringing 'Barcelona' to life and sharing it with audiences.”

Bess Wohl said, “Having my work on the West End with such phenomenal collaborators is a dream come true. I'm honoured to have the chance to share this play with London audiences.”

Lynette Linton said, “What a privilege to be working with this incredible team of artists to bring Bess’ words to life. I can’t wait to get in the room with everyone. Come Through!”

There will be a weekly lottery to secure tickets to Barcelona, with 200 tickets released every week, on Monday (from 14 October), at just £25 (including front row seats). For further information about how to enter the lottery please click HERE.

Barcelona is written by Bess Wohl, and will be directed by Lynette Linton, with Set & Costume design by Frankie Bradshaw, Lighting by Jai Morjaria, Composition and Sound Design by Duramaney Kamara and Xana, Video Design by Gino Ricardo Green, Wigs, Hair and Makeup Design by Cynthia De La Rosa, UK casting by Heather Basten and US Casting byJim Carnahan, Movement Director & Intimacy Shelley Maxwell, Vocal Coaching by Hazel Holder and Dramatherapy by Wabriya King. Associate Direction by Katie Greenall, Associate Design by Natalie Johnson, Associate Costume Designer & Supervisor is Caroline Stevens, Production Manager is Kate West, Associate Production Manager is Charlotte Ranson.

Lily Collins (IRENE)

Lily is a Golden Globe nominated actress, author, and philanthropist and one of Hollywood’s most sought-after actresses. The London born multihyphenate will make her stage debut in the West End in Barcelona.

Collins can currently be seen in the Netflix hit rom-com series Emily in Paris, for which she received her second Golden Globe nomination. Collins plays the titular star while serving as a producer. Following the debut of the series’ third season, the show was the second most popular on Netflix and landed in the Top 10 in 93 countries, marking its biggest premiere yet. The highly anticipated fourth season will premiere on August 15, 2024. Collins can recently be seen in MAxxINE, the final installment in Ti West and A24‘s cult horror trilogy X, following the 2022 sequel PEARL. The film reverses the franchise’s trajectory through time to follow Maxine after the violent events of X, as their sole survivor continues her journey towards fame, setting out to make it as an actress in 1980s Los Angeles. MAxxINE has its theatrical release July 5, 2024. 

In November 2022, Collins launched Case Study Films alongside Charlie McDowell and Alex Orlovsky. The production company will look to tell compelling and outside-of-the-box stories through a commercial eye in both film and television.  Case Study will develop material internally and with outside filmmakers and talent, discovering, supporting and giving voice to the next generation of storytellers from all walks of life, as it generates projects for its principals. Recent projected helmed by Case Study include Memory, starring Jessica Chastain and Peter Sarsgaard which received accolades at the Venice Film Festival as well as an Indie Spirit nomination for Chastain and His Three Daughters, starring Carrie Coon, Natasha Lyonne and Elizabeth Olsen. Among the projects in production under the production banner are The Summer Book, directed by McDowell and starring Glenn Close and Anders Danielsen Lie, and Lurker, starring Archie Madekwe and Théodore Pellerin.

In addition to producing the film, Collins was recently seen in, Windfall, a modern-day noir pic from director Charlie McDowell, released in 2022. In 2020, she was seen in David Fincher’s critically acclaimed Netflix original drama, Mank, about screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz, and his battles with director Orson Welles over screenplay credit for Citizen Kane (1941). Collins appeared as “Fantine” in the BBC television mini-series adaptation of Les Misérables which premiered in the UK in December 2018 to rave reviews and in the U.S. on Masterpiece/PBS in April 2019. Also in 2019, Collins starred in Netflix’s Ted Bundy biopic, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, as well as FOX Searchlight’s J. R. R. Tolkien biopic, Tolkien. Her versatility and adaptability have allowed Collins to embody a range of roles including starring in the Netflix Original films Okja, To The Bone, Mirror Mirror, Love, Rosie, and Amazon’s series The Last Tycoon”.

Extending her talents from the screen to paper, Collins added author to her list of credits in 2017 with her international bestselling book, Unfiltered: No Shame, No Regrets Just Me, which garnered much praise. In the poignant and self-reflective book, Collins opens an honest conversation about the things young women struggle with—body image, self-confidence, relationships, family, dating and so much more, while recounting her own experiences within these themes.  Collins’ philanthropic endeavors also extend to her involvement with the national nonprofit organization, GO Campaign, and serves as an ambassador for the GO Campaign Gala. Collins serves on the Actors Branch Executive Committee of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

ÁLVARO MORTE (MANUEL)

Álvaro studied Dramatic Art in the city of Cordoba in Spain. He began his career working actively in theatre, including tours with such Spanish stars as Concha Velasco, Pepe Sancho, Ángela Molina and Javier Gutiérrez, and has worked with esteemed directors such as Andrés Lima and José Tamayo, among others. 

He achieved international success, playing El Professor (The Professor) in the successful series La Casa de Papel (known in the UK/ US as the Netflix drama Money Heist). Other titles include: Logain in the international series The Wheel of Time on Amazon; El Embarcadero with Verónica Sánchez and Irene Arcos and the international blockbuster Sin límites on TVE and Amazon Prime Video, which narrates the first round-the-world voyage on the occasion of the V Centenary of the expedition.

In film, Álvaro has starred in Durante la Tormenta by Oriol Paulo with Adriana Ugarte and Chino Darín, which was a great success in China, Objects by Jorge Dorado, a co-production between Spain and Argentina. Álvaro also voiced Gwangi in the Warner Bros. animated film Smallfoot. In 2024, Álvaro will premiere the film of Gerardo Herrero Raqa; and starred opposite Sydney Sweeney in feature film, Immaculate.

Álvaro has worked prolifically in Spain, with film and television credits including: Bandolera; Amar es Para Siempre; Lolita Cabaret; Aida; Isabel; La Memoria del Agua; Victor Ros; Cuéntame Cómo Paso; El Secreto de Puente Viejo. He also played one of the main characters of the legendary series of RTVE and Amazon Historias Para no Dormir, based on the episodes of Chicho Ibañez Serrador.

Álvaro has starred in and directed great classics of Spanish theater with 300 Pistolas, his theater company such as El Perro del Hortelano by Lope De Vega, Tres Sombreros de Copa by Miguel Mihura and La Casa de Bernarda Alba by Federico Garcia Lorca.

He has won numerous awards including: the Ondas Award for Best Leading Actor in TV; Fotogramas de Plata for Best Actor; Actors Union Award for Best Leading Actor for La Casa de Papel (Money Heist); Platinum Award for Best Actor in a Series; Platinum Audience Award for Best Actor; TV Iris Award for Best Actor; Esquire's Man of the Year Award; GQ's Inconquistables Award for Vanguard; Almeria Film Festival Award and many more.

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