London stage regular Sally Dexter will star in the premiere of award-winning playwright James Phillips’ Hidden In The Sand when it opens next month at the Trafalgar Studios 2.
Playing at the bijous venue from 1 to 26 October, Phillips’ dramatic love story centres on Dexter’s character Alexandra, a refugee from the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974 who has spent decades hiding from the ghosts of her past until a chance meeting with an English Classical scholar changes everything.
Set between London and Cyprus, against a backdrop of war and the partition of countries, Hidden In The Sand sees Alexandra embark on a journey of remembrance and overcoming grief when she unexpectedly finds herself the object of someone’s affections.
The play signals a change of pace for Dexter who is best known for her musical roles in West End productions including Viva Forever!, Billy Elliot The Musical, Sister Act and Olivier!, for which she earned an Olivier Award nomination. The actress is no stranger to straight drama however, boasting starring roles for the RSC and in 2012’s The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe at Kensington Gardens.
The actress will be joined in the production by on stage love interest Scott Handy, who boasts similarly impressive credits including Love The Sinner at the National Theatre, Chichester Festival Theatre’s hugely successful production of Macbeth that transferred both into the West End and to Broadway and An Inspector Calls in the West End, as well as numerous credits for the RSC.
Joining the pair are Casualty star Daphne Alexander, who returns to the stage following appearances in City Stories/Lullaby at the St James theatre and Mare Rider at the Arcola, and Yolanda Vazquez, a regular at Shakespeare’s Globe as part of its first all-female company and arguably best known for her film work that includes roles in Children Of Men, Notting Hill and The Air Up There.
The company will be directed by Phillips who, alongside his plays that include the TMA Award-winning The Rubenstein Kiss, previously turned his hand to directing for Touched at the Soho theatre.