Shakespeare's Globe Announces Full Casting For Summer 2018 Tour

Shakespeare's Globe announces full casting for its 2018 tour, directed by Brendan O'Hea. From 7 May, a company of eight actors will embark on a national and international tour of Twelfth Night, The Taming of the Shrew and The Merchant of Venice, beginning and ending at The Globe. In the spirit of Shakespearean tradition, the company will allow the audience to decide which of the three plays they would like to see, with a voting mechanism to be determined over the course of rehearsals.

Michelle Terry commented:

"In the past decade we've toured across the world to castles, refugee camps, country houses and theatres. But one thing we never leave behind is the spirit of The Globe - in a shared space with story, storyteller and audience, we celebrate Shakespeare's work with as many people as possible.

"But we're keen to push the experiment further, so we asked, what would Shakespeare do? We know Philostrate says to Theseus in A Midsummer's Night's Dream: "Make choice of which your highness shall see first"; the choice of entertainment falling to the most powerful person of the household. So, following in Shakespearean tradition, our merry band will have three plays up their sleeve, and, for many performances, the responsibility to choose the entertainment will be given back to the most powerful person in our household: the audience. It's experimental, it's experiential, it's Shakespearean, it's shared, and it's at the heart of all that we do."

The cast comprises:

Luke Brady will play Feste (Twelfth Night), Lucentio (The Taming of the Shrew) and Bassanio (The Merchant of Venice). Luke's previous work includes St George and the Dragon (National Theatre), Sweeney Todd (Chichester, West End), and Vernon God Little (Young Vic). He graduated from RADA in 2016.

Steffan Cennydd will play Viola (Twelfth Night), Hortensio and Pedant (The Taming of the Shrew) and Lorenzo, Old Gobbo and The Duke (The Merchant of Venice). Previous theatre credits include The Melting Pot (Finborough Theatre) and Under Milk Wood (Watermill Theatre).

Cynthia Emeagi will take the roles of Olivia (Twelfth Night), Baptista (The Taming of the Shrew), and Jessica and Morocco (The Merchant of Venice). Cynthia appeared in Party Skills for the End of the World, created by Shunt, as part of Manchester International Festival. She graduated from Manchester School of Theatre last year.

Sarah Finigan will play Andrew Aguecheek (Twelfth Night), Bianca and Grumio (The Taming of the Shrew) and Shylock (The Merchant of Venice). Sarah's recent theatre work includes Much Ado About Nothing (Bedouin Shakespeare), Deny Deny Deny (Park Theatre), She Stoops to Conquer, All's Well That Ends Well (Changeling Theatre) and The BFG (Octagon Theatre). TV credits include Upstart Crow, Call the Midwife, Cuckoo (BBC), The Great Fire and The Edge of Heaven (ITV). Films include Overlord, Ashes in the Snow and Suffragette.

Colm Gormley will play the roles of Malvolio (Twelfth Night), Petruchio (The Taming of the Shrew) and Gratiano (The Merchant of Venice), returning to the Globe after playing Hortensio in Caroline Byrne's The Taming of the Shrew in 2016. Other recent theatre credits include The Country Girls (Chichester), War Horse (National Theatre), Twelfth Night (Sheffield Crucible), King Lear (RSC) and Truth & Reconciliation (Royal Court). TV work includes Victoria, Titanic (ITV) and Officially Special (Sky).

Russell Layton is Sir Toby Belch (Twelfth Night), Tranio and Widow (The Taming of the Shrew), and Antonio, Launcelot Gobbo and Prince of Arragon (The Merchant of Venice). Russell's previous theatre work includes Hurricane Michael (Assembly Edinburgh), Great Expectations (Watermill Theatre), Much Ado About Nothing (Stafford Open Air Theatre), Katherine Desouza (Birmingham Rep) and A Chaste Maid of Cheapside (Almeida). Television includes Kingdom (ITV) and EastEnders (BBC).

Rhianna McGreevy will play the Duke Orsino (Twelfth Night), Katherina (The Taming of the Shrew) and Nerissa (The Merchant of Venice) having graduated from LAMDA last year. Rhianna's theatre credits whilst training include Spring Awakening, Hamlet, Merrily We Roll Along, Richard III, Three Sisters and Medea (LAMDA).

Jacqueline Phillips will play the roles of Maria and Sebastian (Twelfth Night), Gremio and Vincentio (The Taming of the Shrew) and Portia (The Merchant of Venice). Jacqueline's recent theatre credits include Butterfly, Dust of the Street's Shining (Arc Stockton) and The Man and the Donkey (Customs House). Television credits include Inspector George Gently, The Dumping Ground (BBC) and Vera (ITV).

A director, actor, and education practitioner, Brendan O'Hea has previously performed in a number of productions at Shakespeare's Globe including Cymbeline (2015), Measure for Measure (2015), A Midsummer Night's Dream (2014), and Henry V (2012).

The full cast includes: Luke Brady, Steffan Cennydd, Cynthia Emeagi, Sarah Finigan, Colm Gormley, Russell Layton, Rhianna McGreevy and Jacqueline Phillips.

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