The full cast has been announced for the world premiere of The Standard of Living, a major new play by three-time Olivier Award winner James Graham, directed by Nicholas Hytner.
The production will play a strictly limited 12-week season at Theatre Royal Haymarket from 21 September to 12 December 2026.
Olivier Award winner Rory Kinnear will take on the role of influential economist John Maynard Keynes, the radical thinker who helped reshape the modern world and became a leading force behind arts funding in Britain.
Making her West End debut, Royal Ballet Principal Natalia Osipova stars as Lydia Lopokova, the celebrated Russian ballet dancer who fell in love with and married Keynes.
Joining Kinnear and Osipova are Thomas Flynn as Duncan Grant, Laurie Kynaston as Friedrich Hayek, Pip Carter as Lytton Strachey, Agatha Enecio as Dora Carrington, Naomi Frederick as Virginia Woolf, Claire Price as Vanessa Bell, and George Taylor as William Beveridge.
Completing the wider ensemble are Christopher Akrill, Luke Cinque-White, Dannie Norman, Xolisweh Ana Richards and Ben Warwick, with further casting still to be announced.
Featuring set design by Bob Crowley and costume design by Jenny Beavan, the production will bring to life the story of one of the twentieth century’s most important thinkers as he navigates the worlds of politics, economics, art and love.
Audiences will also be able to access £25 Under 30s “Keynes Tickets”, with sign-ups now open for release notifications.
The play asks: “Can you put a price on happiness, beauty and love?
“Husband to ballerina Lydia Lopokova. Lover to Duncan Grant. Friend to Virginia Woolf. Keynes moves between the corridors of power in Whitehall and the intoxicating freedom of a radical circle of artists, writers and lovers, all determined to live differently.
“But as markets crash, old systems crumble and Britain teeters on the edge of chaos, one question begins to consume him: What is a good life?
“Can art, love and human connection reshape the future before it’s too late? Or is the world too addicted to wealth and power to change?
“Alive with music, dance, desire and debate, The Standard of Living is a thrilling, funny and deeply moving portrait of a man who dared to imagine something better.”
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
