Will Broadway's Winter Garden Theatre House a Pair of Historical Dramas Next?
(© Johan Persson)
The hit West End repertory productions of Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies might be coming to Broadway this spring, The New York Times reports. Producers Jeffrey Richards and Jerry Frankel are aiming to mount the plays, which are inspired by Hilary Mantel novels, at the Winter Garden Theatre, though no information has yet been confirmed.
Directed by Jeremy Herrin and adapted for the stage by Mike Poulton, the dramas, which originated at the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon, transferred to the West End's Aldwych Theatre in May for a run that concluded on September 6. Set in the 1500s, the plays tell the story of Thomas Cromwell and his rise to power to become the right-hand man of Henry VIII, as well as Cromwell's interactions with Anne Boleyn.
The West End company was led by Ben Miles (The Norman Conquests on Broadway) as Thomas Cromwell, with Lydia Leonard as Anne Boleyn, Nathaniel Parker as Henry VIII, Paul Jesson as Cardinal Wolsey, and Lucy Briers as Katherine of Aragon. Casting for the potential Broadway production is unknown.
Broadway's Winter Garden Theatre has been empty since Rocky closed in August. The last play that it housed was a 1982 revival of Othello starring James Earl Jones, Christopher Plummer, and Dianne Wiest.
