‘Bristol Old Vic All-Stars’ announced as dream-team cast for Cyrano
17 Jul 2019
Bristol Old Vic today announced the full cast for its major autumn production – Cyrano – directed by Tom Morris, in what amounts to a Bristol All-Stars line-up of the theatre’s most charismatic actors from some of the best-loved productions of recent years, with six of the seven living in the South West.
Bristol acting legend, Tristan Sturrock will play Cyrano, one of theatre’s most heart-breaking characters, marking his return to the Bristol Old Vic stage after six years. A much-loved local actor, Tristan has created some of the theatre’s most memorable characters including Peter Pan (which transferred to the National Theatre and will open at the Troubadour White City Theatre this week), Long John Silver in the outdoor production of Treasure Island, and The Messiah in Tom Morris’ staged version of Handel’s most famous oratorio for Bristol Proms 2013. He has also performed in some of Kneehigh’s iconic productions including the roles of Tristan in Tristan & Yseult, Dr Alex Harvey in the Broadway production of Brief Encounter and Maxim de Winter in Rebecca. Tristan has also played Zacky Martin in all five series of Poldark.
Tristan is joined by a host of Bristol-based actors. The role of the arrogant aristocrat De Guiche is played by Felix Hayes. He enchanted audiences in 2018 both with his poignant and heartfelt role as Dad in the Olivier Award-winning production A Monster Calls and then as a definitive Scrooge in Tom Morris’ adaptation of A Christmas Carol. He also will be remembered for his electrifying role as Rochester in Sally Cookson’s Jane Eyre, which began at Bristol Old Vic, before transferring to the National Theatre and Hong Kong Arts Festival.
Miltos Yerolemou returns as the beloved yet bumbling pastry-cook Raguneau. Miltos made for an unforgettable Bottom in the 2013 production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, which reunited Tom Morris and puppetry legends Handspring for the first time since War Horse. Miltos is also a familiar face from his role as Game of Thrones’ sword-master ‘Syrio Forel’ and will be lending his considerable skills in swordplay to this production. He has also appeared in blockbuster films including Kenneth Branagh’s Murder on the Orient Express, Star Wars: the Force Awakens and The Danish Girl.
The poetically-challenged but handsome Christian will be played by Patrycja Kujawska, who is currently performing in the Kneehigh tour of Dead Dog in a Suitcase(which toured to Bristol Old Vic in early July). She also played Queen Angelica in the trailblazing musical The Grinning Man, which premiered at Bristol Old Vic in 2016 and has also recently been seen on the Bristol Old Vic stage as Lady Atalanta in Emma Rice’s Wise Children. Le Bret is played by Guy Hughes, recently the saxophone-wielding Andrew Aguecheek in Bristol Old Vic’s co-production of Twelfth Night, with the Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh and also delighted Christmas audiences in The Little Matchgirl in 2017. Guy is also Musical Director for the production.
The Bristol All-Stars are joined by Cornish comedy genius Giles King, who is well-known to Bristol Old Vic crowds from Kneehigh productions such as Dead Dog in a Suitcase, Tristan and Yseult and the Kneehigh/Bristol Old Vic co-production Hansel & Gretel. We are also delighted to welcome back Sara Powell, in the role of the beautiful and beguiling Roxane, returning for the first time since playing Tituba in Morris’ powerful production of The Crucible.
Producer Catherine Morgenstern said: “We are thrilled to be able to draw together a dream-team of actors who have worked in this incredibly intimate theatre – people who really know how to play that space. Each one has made a lasting impression on our audiences with their creative flair and unique, charismatic performances. To be able to harness all this energy for our most absurdly romantic production of the autumn – well, we can’t wait to see the sparks fly.”
Tom Morris is Artistic Director of Bristol Old Vic. He has directed the award-winning musical The Grinning Man (including West End run), Swallows and Amazons (also National Theatre and West End), King Lear (starring Tim West), The Crucible, Messiah, Juliet and Her Romeo (with Sian Phillips and Michael Byrne) and conceived and directed two major festivals; Bristol Jam (Festival of improvisation) and Bristol Proms. His most recent Bristol Old Vic production Touching the Void received huge critical acclaim, touring the UK, Hong Kong Arts Festival and is to open in the West End this November. Tom is currently directing Scottish Opera’s Breaking the Waves(21– 24 Aug) and has written the lyrics for ENO's Orpheus in the Underworld (5 Oct – 28 Nov), He also adapted Bristol Old Vic’s record-breaking production A Christmas Carol, which returns to Bristol Old Vic this Christmas due to huge demand (28 Nov – 12 Jan).
Cyrano has been translated from Edmond Rostand’s original into a dazzling new verse adaptation by Peter Oswald, (Mary Stuart for The Donmar, which achieved 7 Tony Award nominations; The Ramayana - Birmingham Rep/National Theatre and former playwright in residence at Shakespeare’s Globe). Set and costume design is by Ti Green who has designed for the National Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company and major producing venues across the UK, including Bristol Old Vic’s Paradise Lost and the recent production Touching the Void. Lighting is by award-winning lighting designer Richard Howell (Fanny Hill, The Crucible, both for Bristol Old Vic; Breaking the Waves, Scottish Opera; All My Sons, The Old Vic). They are joined by composer Adrian Sutton whose scores for the National Theatre's hits War Horse, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Angels in America and Coram Boy have played to audiences the world over, and have earned him Olivier Award/Nominations and a Tony Nomination, and BAFTA and Ivor Novello award-winning sound designer Dan Jones (On Chesil Beach; Any Human Heart).
Cyrano opens at Bristol Old Vic on 12 October and runs until 16 November 2019.
Press Night Fri 18 October at 7pm
Bristol Old Vic is the longest continuously running theatre in the UK, and celebrated its 250th anniversary in 2016. The historic playhouse aims to inspire audiences with its own original productions, both at home and on tour, whilst nurturing the next generation of artists, whether that be through their 350-strong Young Company, their many outreach and education projects or their trailblazing artist development programme, Bristol Ferment.
They use their funding to support experiment and innovation, to allow access to their programme for people who would not otherwise encounter it, or be able to afford it, and to keep their extraordinary heritage alive and animated.
On 24 Sep 2018, Bristol Old Vic completed its 2-year multi-million pound redevelopment project, which transformed its front of house space into a warm and welcoming public building for all of Bristol to enjoy, created a new studio theatre and opened up its unique theatrical heritage to the public for the first time.