Playing Burton

Following a sold-out, critically acclaimed 2025 Welsh National Theatre production across Wales and London, Emmy^® winner Matthew Rhys (“The Americans,” “Widow’s Bay,” “The Beast in Me”) makes his Lincoln Center Theater debut with a “stunning” (Times of London) portrayal of an acting legend.

When Michael Sheen co-founded Welsh National Theatre last year and invited Rhys to collaborate, it was the perfect opportunity to finally bring Burton to life on stage in his home country of Wales. He said: “I have to admit, there’s never been an alignment of planets stronger than this one.” And the planets align once again to bring this outstanding production to the Lincoln Center.

On the night of his death, iconic stage and screen star Richard Burton offers his final performance: a passionate, poetic reflection on his own legacy. With tenderness, wry humor, and Shakespearean grandeur, Burton recalls a life shaped by love, tragedy, scandal – including his two explosive marriages to Elizabeth Taylor – and his own undeniable gifts.