NT Live: King Lear
- by William Shakespeare
- 220 mins
- Dir: Jonathan Munby
- Cast includes: Ian McKellen
Broadcast live from London’s West End, see Ian McKellen’s ‘extraordinarily moving portrayal’ (Independent) of King Lear in cinemas.
Chichester Festival Theatre’s production received five-star reviews for its sell-out run, and transfers to the West End for a limited season. Jonathan Munby directs this ‘nuanced and powerful’ (The Times) contemporary retelling of Shakespeare’s tender, violent, moving and shocking play.
Considered by many to be the greatest tragedy ever written, King Lear sees two ageing fathers – one a King, one his courtier – reject the children who truly love them. Their blindness unleashes a tornado of pitiless ambition and treachery, as family and state are plunged into a violent power struggle with bitter ends.
Broadcast live on Thursday 27 September, 7pm
‘Ian McKellen reigns supreme in this triumphant production’
‘McKellen adds to the roster of his greatest achievements with this extraordinarily moving portrayal’
‘Ian McKellen’s detailed, intelligent performance is a triumph’