Artistic Director Paul Hart and the team at Newbury’s The Watermill Theatre have announced the first details of the 2021 autumn season, as it reopens its auditorium for the first time in nearly 9 months.
Lone Flyer, a powerful drama about one of Britain’s greatest female pilots, will return to The Watermill, from Friday 10 – Saturday 25 September, with a press night on Monday 13 September. Hannah Edwards and Benedict Salter will reprise their original roles, with Hannah playing ‘Amy Johnson’ and Benedict supporting her playing a series of other male roles.
Since its forced closure at The Watermill in November 2020 due to the autumn lockdown, it played at the Jermyn Street Theatre as part of their Footprints Festival, achieving 5 Off West End Nominations for Best Production, Sound Design, Director, Leading Performance and Supporting Performance. Lone Flyer is co-produced with Hull Truck Theatre and will be playing in Amy Johnson’s home city of Hull from 7 – 31 October.
May 1930. Amy Johnson has a dream, but just how far will her dream take her?
As the first woman to fly solo from England to Australia, Amy’s career reached new heights, but the outbreak of the Second World War changed everything, and she finds herself facing her greatest challenge yet. Driven by the need to escape from one life to another, follow Amy’s journey from humble beginnings to become one of Britain’s most influential female aviators.
For audience members who would feel more comfortable to attend a performance with more space between themselves and other audience members there will be two socially distanced performances each week during the run of Lone Flyer.
Sir David Suchet makes his eagerly awaited return to UK stages in Poirot And More, A Retrospective this autumn, following a successful tour of Australia and New Zealand in early 2020. Launching the tour at The Watermill from Tuesday 5 – Thursday 7 October, David will retrace his steps as a young actor, visiting more than 20 theatres across the UK. Sir David Suchet performed at The Watermill early in his career and is a long-standing supporter and patron of the theatre.
Poirot And More, A Retrospective looks back fondly at David’s illustrious career, sharing some of his most beloved performances in a new and intimate light. Geoffrey Wansell, journalist, broadcaster, biographer and co-author of Poirot and Me, will be joining David as interviewer in this unmistakably unique event.
Poirot And More, A Retrospective is co-created by David Suchet and Liza McLean. The show was originally produced in Australia and New Zealand by Liza McLean and Andrew Kay and is presented in the UK by Liza McLean, Andrew Kay and Jonathan Church Theatre Productions.
Little Women, a brand-new one-woman adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel presented by Jenny Wren Productions, will then come to The Watermill for three performances only, from Friday 8 – Saturday 9 October.
This brand new take on Little Women retains all the charm and spirit of the original novel, with a twist; the four sisters, their family and friends are all played by just one woman.
Holed up in the attic of her Massachusetts home just after the American Civil War, Jo struggles with writer’s block, until the arrival of an old friend helps her to unlock a lifetime of memories. Laugh and cry with Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy in this coming-of-age tale packed with adventure, drama, love and loss.
To help audience members to book with confidence, The Watermill are operating a flexible booking policy. In the event that their booking is affected by Covid-19, audience members will be offered a ticket exchange, account credit or refund.
Further details of the autumn season will be announced in September.
Paul Hart said, “It’s a symbolic moment to be able to welcome audiences back inside our beautiful auditorium after such a long hiatus and another successful outdoor summer season. Our staff have worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic to find inventive ways of creating work for audiences and I’m so thrilled to be reopening with the return of Lone Flyer which audiences were enjoying hugely before the run was cut short last year. We cannot wait to welcome you back.”
Full listings and ticket information can be found here
