Lesley Manville and Anna Maxwell Martin will star in the first major London revival of Tracy Letts’ Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning play August: Osage County, which arrives in the West End for a strictly limited 12-week season in 2027.
Produced by Melting Pot and Second Half Productions, the landmark family drama will run at the Noël Coward Theatre from 18 January to 10 April 2027, with press night scheduled for 26 January.
Manville will take on the role of Violet Weston, while Maxwell Martin will play Barbara Fordham. The production will be directed by Jeremy Herrin, whose previous credits include People, Places and Things and Wolf Hall.
First performed by Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre Company in 2007, August: Osage County went on to enjoy acclaimed runs on Broadway and at the National Theatre in London. The play later inspired the 2013 film adaptation starring Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts.
The drama follows the dysfunctional Weston family as they reunite in Oklahoma following a family crisis, forcing long-buried secrets, resentments and tensions to the surface.
Widely regarded as one of the defining plays of the 21st century, Letts’ work has earned international acclaim for its exploration of family, addiction and grief, blending dark comedy with devastating drama.
Lesley Manville said: “I’m delighted to be taking on August: Osage County with Jeremy Herrin directing. It’s an epic piece of American literature written by the truly great Tracy Letts. It has not been seen in London for almost 20 years, so I cannot wait to bring this complex, funny, tragic, ultimate family saga to the West End and create the matriarch, Violet Weston.”
Director Jeremy Herrin added: “August: Osage County is one of the great plays of our time, and it firmly places Tracy Letts as heir to O’Neill, Miller and Williams in the continuum of the best American playwrights. It’s a darkly funny and gripping family drama that transcends its form. As a brilliant actor himself and long-standing member of Steppenwolf, Tracy knows how to write for actors. I’m excited to bring together a fantastic ensemble for the first major revival of this play.
“I’m thrilled to be reunited with Lesley Manville after her Tony Award win, and I can’t wait to see her square up against Anna Maxwell Martin, whose work I’ve long admired. I’ve loved this play since I saw it on Broadway in 2008, and I can’t wait to explore all its twists and turns in the Noël Coward Theatre, the perfect space for this searing and epically entertaining show.”
Producers Simon Friend and Hanna Osmolska, along with Second Half Productions, said: “August: Osage County sits comfortably alongside the most established classics of American theatre. As this landmark play has only been presented in London for a short run two decades ago, it’s an honour to present its first major revival, led by two of the UK’s finest actors. The word ‘event’ is overused, but this production very much feels like one.”
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
