Full casting has been announced for the Donmar Warehouse’s forthcoming triptych Making Noise Quietly, with previous Donmar performers Susan Brown and Sara Kestleman joined by John Hollingworth, Matthew Tennyson, Jordan Dawes and Ben Batt.
Directed by legendary theatre maker and playwright Peter Gill, Making Noise Quietly is comprised of three short, poetic plays; Being Friends, Lost and Making Noise Quietly. Each examines the devastating effects of war and looks at the bonds of suffering shared by us all.
Being Friends will star Flare Path’s Tennyson and Dawes – who makes his professional debut in the piece – as a conscientious objector and a roaming artist. The pair find tenderness as the carnage of World War II unfolds across the Channel and doodlebugs explode in the meadow.
In Lost, a bereaved mother struggles with bitterness and love in recollecting her estranged son who is lost in the Falklands. Brown, who appeared in The Wild Duck at the much-lauded venue, will star alongside Hollingworth. The actress’s other theatre credits include Saved at the Lyric Hammersmith, The Contingency Plan at the Bush theatre and The Hour We Knew Nothing Of Each Other at the National Theatre. Hollingworth has also worked at the NT appearing in Earthquakes In London and The Power Of Yes.
The production culminates with the title play, Making Noise Quietly. Deep in the Black Forest, an ageing Holocaust survivor seeks to bring peace to a disturbed young boy and his equally wild step-father.
Shameless star Batt makes his Donmar Warehouse debut in the play. He will star opposite Oliver Award-winning actress Kestleman, who earned the accolade for her performance in the venue’s 1993 production of Cabaret. The actress has also worked extensively for the NT, appearing in Hamlet, Copenhagen, Love For Love, As You Like It and The Double Dealer.
Making Noise Quietly will be the second production to open in Josie Rourke’s inaugural season as Artistic Director of the multi-award winning venue. The director’s production of The Recruiting Officer opens on 14 February.
CM