Rupert Everett, Henry Goodman, Michael Pennington, Patrick Stewart Set for Chichester’s 2010 Season

The new 2010 season at Chichester Festival Theatre has been announced and will open with a revival of Edward Bond’s Bingo, starring Patrick Stewart as William Shakespeare. Angus Jackson will direct the production, which will run directed April 15 – May 22. The theater will also produce the premiere of Howard Goodall and Stephen Clark’s musical version of Erich Segal’s Love Story (May 29 – June 26), to be directed by Rachel Kavanaugh.

These two productions will be seen on the Minerva stage where the theater will also present a double bill of Richard Brinsley Sheridan’s The Critic and Tom Stoppard’s The Real Inspector Hound (July 2- August 28), as well as Howard Brenton’s new adaptation of Robert Tressell’s The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists (July 15 – August 26) and a new version of Henrik Ibsen’s The Master Builder (September 9 – October 9), starring Michael Pennington.

In Chichester’s larger Festival Theatre, the season will begin with the world premiere stage adaptation of the sitcom Yes, Prime Minister (May 13 – June 5), which has been written by the television show’s original writers, Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn. The company will feature Henry Goodman and David Haig. Also scheduled for this space are a revival of 42nd Street (June 21 – August 28), directed by Paul Kerryson; a revival of George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion (July 9 – August 27), starring Rupert Everett and directed by Philip Prowse; and a revival of Brian Friel’s adaptation of Turgenev’s A Month in the Country (September 24 – October 16), directed by Jonathan Kent. The theater will also be home to a return engagement of Lucy Prebble’s Enron, which will run September 10-18.

The Chichester Festival’s season will also include Stephen Russell’s adaptation of Philip Pullman’s The Firework-Maker’s Daughter. Presented by the Chichester Festival Youth Theatre, this production will be offered at the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum.

For further information, visit: www.cft.org.uk and www.whatsonstage.com.