Arcadia

Arcadia photos

Arcadia description

Dazzling direction plus a plot to delight your heart and mind – it's Arcadia.

The Old Vic's critically acclaimed production of Tom Stoppard's masterwork enjoys a well-deserved West End transfer. Arcadia is on stage at the specially-reconfigured Duke of York's Theatre, produced in the round for a wonderfully intimate experience over a strictly limited 12-week run.

The play was a massive success for The Old Vic, performed in the round as part of the venue's artistic director Matthew Warchus' final season. It's written by the multi-award-winning playwright Tom Stoppard, who gave us Leopoldstadt, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, The Invention of Love, the awesome Shakespeare in Love, and Indian Ink.

The play, set in the Coverly family's posh country estate, whisks us backwards and forwards across the centuries, from the early nineteenth century to the present day, to see what happens when science and love clash. We meet the teen prodigy Thomasina Coverly, whose bold explorations into maths, nature and the mysteries of the universe place her well ahead of her time. At the same time, in the 21st century, writer Hannah Jarvis investigates a mysterious slice of poet Lord Byron's life, keen to ignore the romantic myths and discover the truth. As then and now become tangled, both women's questions echo through the decades.

Directed by Carrie Cracknell (The Grapes of Wrath), the play is produced by Sonia Friedman Productions (Paddington The Musical, 1536, The Book of Mormon) along with Winkler & Smalberg. Friedman, who collaborated with Stoppard to create theatre magic across two wonderful decades, is said to be honouring their friendship with this production.

If you only see one Tom Stoppard play, make it this one. Arcadia tickets reveal a vivid story rich in wit, humour, intelligence and humanistic themes, a tour de force from a National Treasure of a playwright whose work has touched millions.

Playing at Duke of York's Theatre

104 St Martin's Lane, London, WC2N 4BG GB (venue info)

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