Robert Bathurst to Lead Theatre Royal Brighton's BLUE/ORANGE

Theatre Royal Brighton Productions presents the second show in their debut season, Joe Penhall's multi award winning play, BLUE/ORANGE, directed by Artistic Director Christopher Luscombe (The Madness of George III, Spamalot in the West End) with Robert Bathurst (Cold Feet, Wild at Heart, Downton Abbey) in the role of Robert.

Blue/Orange will run from 13 – 22 September at the Theatre Royal Brighton, and then tour to the following venues: The Waterside, Aylesbury from 25-29 September

The Princess Theatre, Torquay from 2 – 6 October, The Grand Opera House, York from 9 – 13 October, The New Victoria, Woking from 16 – 20 October, The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham from 23 – 27 October, The Churchill, Bromley from 30 October – 3 November, The Theatre Royal, Glasgow from 6 – 10 November, The Richmond Theatre from 13 – 17 November, The Opera House, Manchester from 20 – 24 November, The Regent Theatre, Stoke-On-Trent from 27 November – 1 December.

Blue/Orange premiered at the Cottesloe Theatre in April 2000, starring Bill Nighy, Andrew Lincoln and Chiwetel Ejiofor and transferred to the Duchess in 2001.

Blue/Orange won an Olivier Award, a Critics' Circle Award and the Evening Standard Award for Best Play.

A young patient is convinced that a notorious military dictator is his father. Bruce, a junior psychiatric doctor wants to do further tests and plan longer care. Robert, a senior consultant, wants to thrust him back into the community. A riveting, compelling and witty battle of freedom and ambition unfolds.

Robert Bathurst's stage credits include Blithe Spirit at the Apollo Theatre/national tour, Present Laughter for a national tour, Whipping it Up at The Bush/New Ambassadors Theatre, Alex at The Arts Theatre, The Three Sisters at The Playhouse Theatre, Hedda Gabler on national tour and Alarms and Excursions at the Gielgud. Theatre. Robert's most recognised roles on screen include Sir Anthony Strallan in Downton Abbey, John Le Mesurier in Hattie, Mr Weston in Emma, Mark Taylor in Joking Apart and David Marsden in Cold Feet. Other screen credits include Roman's Empire, My Dad's The Prime Minister, Get Well Soon, The Stepfather, A Breed of Heroes, Pillars of the Earth, My Family, Kingdom, Poirot, White Teeth, Hornblower and Wild at Heart. His film roles include Heidi, The Thief Lord and The Wind in the Willows.

Joe Penhall's most recent play, Birthday, has just opened at The Royal Court Theatre. Joe's other plays include Haunted Child, Dumb Show, Pale Horse (winner of the Thames Television Best Play Award) and Some Voices (winner of the John Whiting Award) all at The Royal Court Theatre, Landscape with Weapon, National Theatre, The Bullet, Donmar Warehouse and Love and Understanding, Bush Theatre. His film and television work include his adaptation of The Road from Cormac McCarthy's award winning novel which premiered at the Venice Film Festival 2009; the screenplay Enduring Love based on the novel by Ian McEwan; the feature adaptation of his play Some Voices for Film Four; Moses Jones a three part detective drama for BBC2, winner of Best Screenplay at the Roma Fiction Festival 2009 and the BAFTA nominated The Long Firm for BBC2.

Christopher Luscombe began his career as an actor, his work including seven years with the Royal Shakespeare Company, as well as appearances at The National Theatre and in the West End. His recent credits as director include The Merry Wives of Windsor at Shakespeare's Globe, When We Are Married in the West End, which received an Olivier nomination for Best Revival, and the UK Tour of Spamalot for ATG. His acclaimed production of The Madness of George III opened at the Apollo Theatre in January after a hugely successful UK tour.

Theatre Royal Brighton Productions, a partnership between Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG) and Theatre Royal Brighton, was launched in 2011 under the Artistic Direction of Christopher Luscombe, with Maria Aitken and Philip Franks as inaugural associates. Each production presented by the company will open at the Theatre Royal Brighton, before going on a nationwide tour, followed by a West End transfer. Dandy Dick launched their inaugural season and is currently playing in Brighton ahead of a National tour. All Theatre Royal Brighton Productions will be produced by Howard Panter, Adam Speers and EvAnna White for Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG).

Theatre Royal Brighton, with a rich and varied history spanning over 200 years, is one of the country's best loved and one of the oldest Working Theatres in the country. By the end of the nineteenth century, it had established itself as the Actors' Theatre, where every leading player, including the Kemble and Siddons Families, Sarah Bernhardt, Edmund Kean, David Garrick and Sir Henry Irving, graced the stage. Ibsen premiered a UK production of A Doll's House here. Through the twentieth century, the theatre grew in stature and national reputation. Rattigan, Coward and Orton plays opened as a try-out date before a West End run. Artists who have given unforgettable performances here include Noël Coward, Edith Evans, John Gielgud, Alec Guinness, Laurence Olivier, Michael Redgrave, Ralph Richardson, Margaret Rutherford and Paul Scofield, as well as some of Britain's best loved contemporary performers, such as Judi Dench, Derek Jacobi, David Suchet and Dominic West.

Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG) was co-founded by Howard Panter and Rosemary Squire in 1992, and is the largest owner/operator of theatres in the UK with 39 venues, an internationally recognised theatre producer and a leader in theatre ticketing services through ATG Tickets. ATG's impressive portfolio of West End theatres includes historic buildings such as the Apollo Victoria, Donmar Warehouse, Duke of York's, Fortune, Harold Pinter, Lyceum, Phoenix, Piccadilly, Playhouse, Savoy, Trafalgar Studio 1 and Trafalgar Studio 2. ATG has been behind some of the most successful and innovative productions in Britain and internationally. Current and recent ATG co-productions include the upcoming Royal Court in the West End season of Posh and the 2012 Olivier Award nominee for Best New Play, Jumpy and Constellations, Lincoln Center's production of Rodgers & Hammerstein's South Pacific in London and on tour; Zach Braff's All New People; Ghost the Musical, in Manchester, London and on Broadway; the hugely successful UK tour and London production of Monty Python's Spamalot by Eric Idle; Being Shakespeare starring Simon Callow in the West End, New York, Chicago and national UK tour; and The Misanthrope starring Damian Lewis and Keira Knightley. ATG is also mounting productions around the world. ATG's recent productions in Australia include Legally Blonde, The Rocky Horror Show, Guys and Dolls and West Side Story. Recent ATG productions on Broadway include Geoffrey Rush and Susan SaranDon Starring in Exit the King.

ATG has a wholly owned subsidiary company Sonia Friedman Productions (SFP), led by Sonia Friedman, who is one of the most prolific producers in the West End and on Broadway, and the newly created Jerry Mitchell Productions, with the acclaimed Tony Award-winning director and choreographer, Jerry Mitchell, whose most recent productions include Legally Blonde (director and choreographer), Catch Me If You Can (choreographer) and Love Never Dies (choreographer). ATG also owns a major national family entertainment and pantomime company, First Family Entertainment (FFE).

Website: www.atgtickets.com/blueorange

Theatre Royal Brighton Productions booking line: 0844 871 3008

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