Jason Hughes and Natalie Casey will star as the pioneering doctor and his sexually frustrated wife at the centre of Sarah Ruhl’s UK Theatre Award-winning play IN THE NEXT ROOM Or The Vibrator Play when it makes its London premiere next month.
Playing from 13 November to 4 January, the pair will be joined in the provocative 19th century-set tale by previously announced cast members Edward Bennett and Flora Montgomery, who reprise their roles following appearances in Laurence Boswell’s original staging at the Theatre Royal Bath, and fellow newcomers to the play Madeline Appiah and Owen Oakeshott as nurse Elizabeth and Montgomery’s on stage husband Mr Daldry.
Hughes, who is best known for his on screen roles in series including This Life, Midsomer Murders and Design For Living, will play Dr Givings, a doctor attempting to treat hysteria with a brand new electronic device who is surprised to discover his invention might have other benefits when his patients emerge from his sessions glowing and keen to return.
Taking on the roles of the play’s two lonely wives, Casey and Appiah both boast London stage credits to their names. Casey, who became a familiar public face following screen roles in Hollyoaks and Two Pints Of Lager And A Packet Of Crisps, has most recently been seen in West End productions of Abigail’s Party and Legally Blonde The Musical, while Appiah’s credits include Welcome To Thebes at the National Theatre and The Duchess Of Malfi at the Old Vic theatre. Their forthcoming co-star Oakeshott also returns to London for the production following A Day In The Death Of Joe Egg at the Rose Theatre Kingston.
The arrival of IN THE NEXT ROOM Or The Vibrator Play to London has in part been made possible by London theatre charity Stage One, which awarded a Start-Up Fund Award to Peter Huntley, who is producing the show alongside Adam Blanshay and Just for Laughs. Stage One, which aims to support new UK producers and the future of commercial theatre, is supported by the Society of London Theatre, the not-for-profit organisation behind this website.