THE WIFE OF WILLESDEN Extends at the Kiln Theatre and Sets New York Premiere

Kiln Theatre has announced a two-week extension for Zadie Smith's critically acclaimed smash-hit The Wife of Willesden due to public demand - now running at Kiln Theatre until Saturday 11 February 2023. Directed by Artistic Director Indhu Rubasingham, the production sees Clare Perkins reprising her role as Alvita.

The production will also make its New York première at the Harvey Theater at the BAM Strong in Brooklyn from 1 to 16 April 2023. This follows the already announced stateside dates at the American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University from February 25 to 18 March.

Indhu Rubasingham said today, "We are thrilled today to be extending the run of Zadie's adaptation of The Wife of Willesden, and have been delighted by the enthusiasm shown by audiences for its return to Kiln. For this piece, proudly set in Brent, to be heading to both Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) and The American Repertory Theatre (ART) is extremely exciting - and we can't wait to continue the journey from Kiln to the USA!"

Further casting includes: Marcus Adolphy (Winston/Mandela/Black Jesus), George Eggay (Pastor/Eldridge), Andrew Frame (Ian/Socrates/Bartosz), TROY Glasgow (Darren/Young Maroon), Claudia Grant (Polly/Sophie), Nikita Johal (Asma/Kelly), Scott Miller (Ryan/Colin), Jessica Murrain (Author/Zaire/Queen Nanny), Ellen Thomas (Aunty P/Old Wife) and Sophie Cartman (Understudy Alvita & Aunty P/Old Wife - US Only)

Directed by Indhu Rubasingham; Designed by Robert Jones; Lighting Design by Guy Hoare; Composition and Sound Design by Ben and Max Ringham; Associate Director Hannah Hauer-King; Associate Set Design by Ben Davies (US only); Associate Costume Design by Kinnetia Isidore;

Casting by Julia Horan CDG; Movement Direction by Imogen Knight; Fight Direction by Kev McCurdy; Voice & Dialect Coach Hazel Holder; Kiln-Mackintosh Resident Assistant Director Jessica Mensah.

A proper local legend. Married five times. Mother. Lover. Aunt. Friend. Alvita will tell her life story to anyone in the pub - there's no shame in her game. The question is: are you ready to hear it? Because this woman's got the gift of the gab: she can rewrite mistakes into triumphs, turn pain into parables, and her love life's an epic poem. They call her The Wife of Willesden...

A play that celebrates the human knack for telling elaborate tales, especially about our own lives.

Critically acclaimed, multi-award winning, best-selling author Zadie Smith's 'irresistably rambunctious' (The Telegraph) The Wife of Willesden makes her playwriting debut, transporting Chaucer's The Wife of Bath to 21st century North West London.

Director Indhu Rubasingham invites you to take your seat at the bar, order a pint or two, and listen to this bawdy, beautiful new comedy up close, and very, very personal.

The Kiln Theatre auditorium will be transformed into a local London pub, complete with pub tables in the stalls.

The Wife of Willesden was originally produced in 2021 by Kiln Theatre in association with Brent2020, London Borough of Culture.

Clare Perkins returns as Alvita, The Wife of Willesden, following performances at the Kiln including The House That Will Not Stand and Fabulation. Her other recent stage credits include Sweat (Donmar Warehouse/Gielgud Theatre), Emilia (Shakespeare's Globe/Vaudeville Theatre), Welcome to Thebes (National Theatre), The Convert (Gate Theatre), Mules (Royal Court Theatre), Little Revolution (Almeida Theatre), Mrs Dalloway (Arcola Theatre), Removal Men (The Yard), Genesis Inc. (Hampstead Theatre) and Generations of the Dead (Young Vic). For television, her credits include: Eastenders (as series regular Ava Hartman), Family Affairs (as series regular Denise Boulter), Professor T, I Hate You, Damned, The Wheel of Time, The Outlaws, Suspicion, Young Wallander, The Crown, Flack, Been So Long and Pigheart Boy; and for film: Ladybird Ladybird, Secrets and Lies, Bullet Boy, Censor and Medusa Deluxe.

Zadie Smith is the author of the novels White Teeth, The Autograph Man, On Beauty, NW, and Swing Time, as well as three collections of essays, Intimations, Changing My Mind and Feel Free and the collection of short stories, Grand Union. Her novels have won multiple literary awards and been translated into many languages. White Teeth was adapted for the stage at the Kiln Theatre in 2018. She is a professor of fiction at New York University and writes regularly for the New Yorker and the New York Review of Books. Zadie Smith divides her time between New York and London.

Indhu Rubasingham is Artistic Director of Kiln Theatre. Her work for the company includes Handbagged (winner of Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre - also West End, UK tour, Washington DC and New York), The Invisible Hand, Pass Over, When the Crows Visit, Wife, White Teeth, Holy Sh!t, Red Velvet (which transferred to New York and later to the Garrick Theatre as part of the Kenneth Branagh Season) and Handbagged (winner of Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre - also West End, UK tour, Washington DC and New York). Other productions for Kiln Theatre include A Wolf in Snakeskin Shoes, Multitudes, The House That Will Not Stand, Paper Dolls, Women, Power and Politics, Stones in His Pockets, Detaining Justice, The Great Game: Afghanistan, Fabulation and Starstruck. Other theatre credits include Kerry Jackson, The Father and The Assassin, The Great Wave, Ugly Lies the Bone, The Motherf**cker with the Hat (Evening Standard Award for Best Play), The Waiting Room (National Theatre), The Ramayana (National Theatre/ Birmingham Rep), Belong, Disconnect, Free Outgoing, Lift Off, Clubland, The Crutch and Sugar Mummies (Royal Court Theatre), Ruined (Almeida Theatre), Yellowman and Anna in the Tropics (Hampstead Theatre), Secret Rapture and The Misanthrope (Minerva, Chichester Festival Theatre), Romeo and Juliet (Chichester Festival Theatre), Pure Gold (Soho Theatre), The No Boys Cricket Club and Party Girls (Theatre Royal Stratford East), Wuthering Heights (Birmingham REP), Heartbreak House (Watford Palace Theatre), Sugar Dollies and Shakuntala (Gate Theatre), A River Sutra (Three Mill Island Studios), Rhinoceros (UC Davis, California) and A Doll's House (Young Vic).

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