FULL CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR 25th ANNIVERSARY REVIVAL OF PATRICK MARBER’S OLIVIER-AWARD WINNING CLOSER

Full casting is announced today for Closer, the Olivier-Award winning cult play of the Hollywood hit film of the same name, written by Patrick Marber and directed by award-winning director Clare Lizzimore. In a radical new staging by Lizzimore, this uncompromising modern classic explores passion with surgical precision and the cost of risking it all for intimacy. Twenty-five years after its debut, in a city out of lockdown, the play is as searing today as it ever was in its exploration of love, sex, and the fragility of the human heart. This 25th anniversary revival of Closer runs at the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre from 14 July to 13 August, with opening night for press on 20 July.

Closer brings together a captivating cast with Jack Farthing, most recently seen as Prince Charles in Pablo Larraín’s critically-acclaimed film Spencer (Shoebox Films), playing Dan; Scottish BAFTA nominee and Dickinson’s (Apple TV+) rising star Ella Hunt in her stage debut, playing Alice; Nina Toussaint-White, best known for her role in the Emmy-nominated BBC series The Bodyguard, playing Anna; and Sam Troughton, who has performed extensively on stage and the screen including David Fincher’s recent biographical drama Mank (Netflix) and the hit HBO/Sky Atlantic miniseries Chernobyl, playing Larry.

The production also features a chorus, including Kane Feagan, Georgia-Rose Oliver, Sam Purkis and Wilf Walsworth who are part of SPRINGBOARD, a ground-breaking, free two year-training programme, launched in 2022 by the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre with the aim to nurture the next generation of performers with unrivalled theatre-based training for those currently underrepresented in theatre.

Patrick Marber, Writer, said: “For this 25th anniversary production of Closer, I’m most looking forward to Clare Lizzimore, a great director taking the play by the scruff of the neck and making it resonate for her generation. I’m also really looking forward to seeing these four brilliant actors make this play their own. The story has amassed a cult following for the play and the film and I believe it struck a chord amongst so many audiences because Closer is at heart, a love story.”

Clare Lizzimore, Director, said: “Closer is a play that is both ferocious and tender – because so is love; and love is what it so bravely investigates. So what a feat, to be offered the chance to work on something so exquisitely premiered by its author (who was also its director) that is both heart-breaking, and breathtakingly funny.

I’m also very lucky to be joined by some of Britain’s most creative artists, and truly phenomenal actors – one couldn’t attempt to do this play justice without such a stellar team. I’m thrilled beyond words that together we are going to try and bring this amazing play to life for a modern audience.”

Rachel O’Riordan, Artistic Director of the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre, said:
“I am delighted to be sharing Clare Lizzimore’s bold reimagining of Patrick Marber’s Closer with our audiences. The play captures the sensibilities of the 1990s, and allows us to ask how far we have come and what might we learn? I am thrilled that this production includes SPRINGBOARD trainees. SPRINGBOARD is the Lyric’s unique, immersive training for actors for whom the traditional drama school route to employment is less available or accessible. We are so proud of these young people who have the opportunity to work with an exceptional director and take their place on the professional stage. We are proud to be changing the game and elevating young talent.”

‘What do you want?’
‘To be loved.’
‘That simple?’
‘It’s a big want.’

In the chaos of London; four strangers meet, fall in love and fall apart. To mark the 25th Anniversary of the play’s premiere, award-winning director, Clare Lizzimore, stages a radical new production of Patrick Marber’s cult-classic about longing, lust, sex, and desire. Would you risk it all for a moment of passion?

Closer is written by Patrick Marber, directed by Clare Lizzimore, set and costume design by Soutra Gilmour, lighting design by Richard Howell, composition, musical direction and live performance by Arun Ghosh, movement direction by Malik Nashad Sharpe, and casting by Lotte Hines.