Victorian thriller Gaslight follows The Entertainer at the Old Vic, opening on 14 June. Former bond girl Rosamund Pike is to play the psychologically tormented heroine of the piece alongside Kenneth Cranham as the detective who puts a new slant on her husband's actions.
Bella (Pike) stays at home each night while her husband is out on the town. The disappearance of objects, sound of mysterious footsteps and flickering of gaslights lead her to believe that she is losing her mind. At the arrival of Detective Rough (Cranham) her husband's true identity and motives are questioned.
Gaslight is written by Patrick Hamilton, whose other plays include Rope, which was subsequently filmed by Alfred Hitchcock. Gaslight was also filmed. In 1940 Thorold Dickinson directed a British version and in 1944 George Cukor directed a version for MGM, for which Ingrid Bergman won a Best Actress Oscar.
Having shot to fame as Miranda Frost in Bond blockbuster Die Another Day, Pike is becoming a West End regular. Last October she starred in Summer And Smoke at the Apollo, and in 2003 she appeared in Terry Johnson's Hitchcock Blonde, which transferred from the Royal Court to the Lyric. Pike's other celluloid credits include Pride And Prejudice and The Libertine.
Scottish actor Cranham has an extensive list of credits to his name on stage, film and television. He played Pompey Magnus in hit mini-series Rome and has appeared in films including Hot Fuzz, Layer Cake and Chocolat. On stage he was most recently seen in Endgame at the Gate and The UN Inspector at the National.
Gaslight is directed by the hugely experienced Peter Gill, who began his directing career at the Royal Court in the 1960s. Since then he has gone on to direct across the world, including work with the RSC, Almeida and National Theatre, where he directed The Voysey Inheritance last April. Gill is also the founding director of the Riverside Studios and National Theatre Studio.
Gaslight previews from 7 June and is booking to 18 August. Booking opens 16 April.
MA