The Royal Court Theatre and Playful Productions have announced the full cast for The Unbelievers, a powerful new play by Nick Payne exploring family, memory and hope.
Directed by Marianne Elliott and designed by Bunny Christie, The Unbelievers stars Nicola Walker as a mother grappling with the disappearance of her teenage son.
Joining Walker on stage are Esh Alladi, Alby Baldwin, Paul Higgins, Ella Lily Hyland, Harry Kershaw, Martin Marquez, Lucy Thackeray, and Isabel Adomakoh Young.
Ella Lily Hyland is known for her roles in Netflix’s Black Doves and the BBC’s Towards Zero, while Paul Higgins is widely recognised for The Thick of It, Line of Duty, and Slow Horses.
The production runs at the Royal Court’s Jerwood Theatre Downstairs from Friday 10 October to Saturday 29 November 2025, with a press night on Monday 20 October.
“I love my son. My son is alive.”
A teenager disappears. Time fractures. His mother will never give up hope.
The Unbelievers is a new play about the moments that shatter our world, and the ones that help us piece it back together.
Playwright Nick Payne (Constellations, We Live in Time) returns to the Royal Court with a startling portrait of motherhood, faith, family – and the lengths we go to for those we refuse to forget.
The creative team includes lighting design by Jack Knowles, composition and sound design by Nicola T. Chang, movement direction by Etta Murfitt, and casting by Charlotte Sutton CDG.
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
