The full cast has been announced for Robert Icke’s highly anticipated stage adaptation of Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck’s multi-award-winning film The Lives of Others.
Joining previously announced stars Keira Knightley, Stephen Dillane and Luke Thompson are Jamie Ankrah, Jake Benson, Matt Ray Brown, Lucy Doyle, Calum Finlay, Josh Gordon, Paul Higgins, Leda Hodgson, Nick Holder, Sibylla Meienberg, Irfan Shamji, Richard Sutton and Andrew Woodall.
Adapted and directed by Olivier Award winner Robert Icke, the production marks the world premiere stage adaptation of the Academy Award-winning film and reunites Icke with producer Sonia Friedman following collaborations including Oedipus, Manhunt, The Doctor and 1984.
The Lives of Others begins previews at the Adelphi Theatre on 14 October 2026, ahead of an official opening night on 29 October, and runs until 9 January 2027.
Set in East Germany in 1984, the story follows a writer and an actor placed under state surveillance by the Stasi. As an officer listens to their every conversation from the attic above their apartment, the act of observation begins to change the observer himself.
The production stars Academy Award nominee Keira Knightley, Emmy Award winner Stephen Dillane and Olivier Award nominee Luke Thompson, bringing one of modern cinema’s most acclaimed political dramas to the West End stage for the first time.
The original German-language film, released in 2006, won numerous international honours including the Oscar for Best International Film, the BAFTA for Best Film Not in the English Language and the European Film Award for Best Film.
The creative team includes set and costume designer Hildegard Bechtler, lighting designer Jon Clark, sound designer Giles Thomas, video designer Tal Yarden and original music by acclaimed composer Max Richter. Casting is by Julia Horan CDG.
Describing the production, the show’s promotional material states: “Listening changes everything.”
It continues: “1984. East Germany. A writer and an actor are placed under state surveillance. From the attic above their apartment, their Stasi man listens for evidence of subversion. But to observe a life is to risk changing your own.”
The production is presented in the West End by Sonia Friedman Productions and Winkler & Smalberg.
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
