Simon Bent’s new play Prick Up Your Ears, which received its West End premiere at the Comedy theatre on 30 September, is to end its run earlier than planned, on 15 November. It had initially been booking to 6 December.
The play, which charts the doomed relationship between 60s playwright Joe Orton and his lover Kenneth Halliwell, suffered from the departure of its star, Matt Lucas, who withdrew from the production just days after press night due to the tragic death of his former civil partner. His understudy Michael Chadwick played the role of Halliwell opposite Chris New and Gwen Taylor until Con O’Neill was drafted in at short notice to play Halliwell, which he has been doing since 22 October.
A statement issued today said: “Despite very good feedback and notices for Con O’Neill’s performance, the box office sales have not been sufficient to keep the show going, and so the producers have taken the difficult decision to close the show three weeks prior to its scheduled end date.”
The next show scheduled for the Comedy theatre is Martin Crimp’s modern adaptation of Moliere’s The Misanthrope, which stars Keira Knightley in her West End debut alongside Damian Lewis, Tara Fitzgerald, Dominic Rowan and Kelly Price. The Misanthrope is due to open on 17 December after previews from 7 December.
CB