Casting has been announced for Visit from an Unknown Woman; a new play by Christopher Hampton based on the compelling short story by Stefan Zweig.
Directed by Chelsea Walker, the play will have its UK premiere at Hampstead Theatre from 21 June to 27 July with a press night on Monday 1 July.
Set shortly before Nazi Germany’s occupation of Austria, Christopher Hampton’s riveting psychological drama will be brought to life by Natalie Simpson as the enigmatic Marianne and Thomas Levin as the captivating Stefan.
Natalie Simpson won the prestigious Ian Charleson Award in 2017 and her recent stage appearances include Jack Absolute Flies Again and Three Sisters at the National Theatre. Making his London theatre debut, Danish-born Thomas Levin’s credits include Constellations and Ghosts, Aarhus Teater and the Danish TV drama series Borgen. Further casting is to be announced.
‘There’s this monstrous idiot – this monstrous elected idiot – who keeps telling his fellow-idiots to throw my books on a bonfire and beat me up in the street…’
Vienna 1934. Stefan is one of the world’s most successful authors – widely read, universally admired, and translated into every language. His is the life of a wealthy playboy, enjoying only the finest things in life – from luxurious world travel to the company of his most dazzling contemporaries in Europe’s most fashionable restaurants. Only two things cloud his prospects: the rise of the Nazi Party, and the sudden appearance of a woman who he clearly knows… but who he cannot, for the life of him, remember.
Christopher Hampton’s adaptation of the short story, Letter from an Unknown Woman, by Stefan Zweig published in 1922 receives its UK premiere following a triumphant run at Vienna’s Josefstadt Theater. Winner of multiple awards including two Oscars, Hampton’s plays include Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Tales from Hollywood, and The Philanthropist, and he is celebrated for his translations of Reza and Zeller.
Chelsea Walker returns to Hampstead to direct following her acclaimed Hampstead Downstairs production of This Much I Know and Yous Two. Her recent work includes On the Beach (Sheffield): Missing Julie (Theatr Clwyd); Hedda Gabler (Sherman); Cougar (Orange Tree) and A Streetcar Named Desire (ETT).
The full creative team comprises; Rosanna Vize (Designer), Bethany Gupwell (Lighting Designer), Peter Rice (Sound Designer), Max Perryment (Composter), Michela Meazza (Movement Director), Lucy Fennell (Intimacy Director) and Arthur Carrington (Casting Director).
Hampstead Theatre is currently staging the UK premiere of Stephen Adly Guirgis’ Between Riverside and Crazy, directed by Michael Longhurst on the main stage until 15 June, and also the world premiere of Richard Molloy’s The Harmony Test, directed by Alice Hamilton, in Hampstead Downstairs from 15 June.
Visit From an Unknown Woman plays the main stage at Hampstead Theatre from 21 June – 27 July.
Tickets are available from £10 and are on sale now via hampsteadtheatre.com
