The celebrated Sheffield Theatres production of Life of Pi will transfer to London in 2020. Life of Pi – Lolita Chakrabarti’s dazzling adaptation of Yann Martel’s extraordinary, award-winning book – was awarded a string of five-star reviews when it opened in Sheffield earlier this year.
Life of Pi will transfer to the Wyndham’s Theatre, with performances beginning on Monday 22 June 2020. The production is directed by Max Webster.
For the first time ever, the historic Wyndham’s Theatre will be transformed to fully accommodate the magnificent elements of the production that left audiences mesmerised and won unanimous critical acclaim.
Cameron Mackintosh, the owner of the Wyndham’s Theatre, said: “Rarely does a theatrical version of a film eclipse the original, but the brilliant staged adaption of Yann Martel’s “Life Of Pi” is one of those exceptions and I am thrilled that it is coming to the Wyndham’s Theatre after its sensational sell out premiere at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield earlier this year.
The production team’s approach to the material has been mirrored by their innovative reinvention of the Wyndham’s auditorium, rejigging levels and extending the stage over the stalls so that the floor and walls of the theatre become one complete surreal environment, that I think it will be even more intense than before. Audiences are in for a Pi-flying ride into their imagination!”
Simon Friend said: “We are very fortunate to have Cameron Mackintosh’s full support behind our reconfiguration of the Wyndham’s Theatre. This will give audiences the very best experience of our state-of-the-art design and video projection, as well as bringing the majestic Pacific Ocean in to the stalls.”
Rob Hastie, Artistic Director of Sheffield Theatres, said: “We’re delighted to be working with Simon Friend to take Life of Pi onwards from Sheffield Theatres. I’m almost envious of the new audiences who will get to discover the beauty and brilliance of Yann’s novel, Lolita’s play and Max’s production for the first time. Life of Pi demonstrates the commitment we make at Sheffield Theatres to putting adventurous new work on our stages, and is the result of the skills and hard work of an enormous number of people, all putting their talents in the service of great storytelling.”
After a cargo ship sinks in the middle of the vast Pacific Ocean, there are five survivors stranded on a single lifeboat – a hyena, a zebra, an orangutan, a sixteen year-old boy and a 450-pound Royal Bengal tiger. Time is against them, nature is harsh, who will survive?
Based on one of the best-loved works of fiction – winner of the Man Booker Prize, selling over fifteen million copies worldwide – Life of Pi is a breath-taking new theatrical adaptation of an epic journey of endurance and hope.
