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The National Theatre of Wales has announced the lineup of shows that will be part of its inaugural season, which will culminate with a new staging of The Passion Play staged by award-winning actor Michael Sheen, to run April 22-24.

From March 2010 to April 2011, one new show will be presented each month in a different part of Wales. Highlights include: a new play about coal mining communities, based on interviews with locals and tours of workmen's halls and mining institutes in the Welsh Valleys; the premiere of John Osborne's recently rediscovered first play, The Devil Inside Him; a theatrical game staged on a summertime beach; a new version of Aesychylus' The Persians mounted at the Ministry of Defence; a stage adaptation of the stories of renowned Welsh chronicler Gwyn Thomas; and the first-ever UK production from the Berlin-based "reality trend"-setters Rimini Protokill.

Sheen's staging of The Passion Play will take place in his hometown of Port Talbot. The actor -- who starred in the West End and Broadway productions of Frost/Nixon -- will be the show's creative director, collaborating with the town's residents and author Owen Sheers on the new version of the classic piece.

For further information, visit www.whatsonstage.com.