Reece Dinsdale Leads David Hare's THE ABSENCE OF WAR Beginning Tonight at the Crucible

Reece Dinsdale will star in David Hare's THE ABSENCE OF WAR at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield from tonight, February 6, 2015, before the play heads out on a UK tour. Jeremy Herrin directs.

THE ABSENCE OF WAR is the last part of Hare's trilogy about contemporary Britain and goes behind-the-scenes with the Labour Party's leadership, centering on party leader George Jones.

John Thaw originated the role of 'George Jones' in the play's National Theatre premiere in 1993, and Hare told the Daily Mail that Dinsdale was "one of Thaw's favorite actors, because they spent five years together, and the idea that the role goes from John Thaw to Reece Dinsdale is a lovely lineage."

This political drama is coming just in time for Britain's General Election in May. Commenting on this, Hare said: "I've been saying there's a crisis in the Labour Party just as profound as there was in the days of [Neil] Kinnock, and I think it's the right moment."

Plus, according to Hare, the Labour Party has "not been able to articulate what it wants to say to the nation" and that is "exactly what happens in THE ABSENCE OF WAR. When the leader in my play is asked to speak from the heart, he doesn't know what the message is."

Hare's next project is THE BEAUTIFUL FOREVERS, which begins at the Olivier next month.