Samantha Spiro will star in Arnold Wesker’s Chicken Soup With Barley at the Royal Court this summer, directed by the much acclaimed venue’s Artistic Director Dominic Cooke.
The play, which follows forthcoming productions The Heretic and Wastwater in the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, opens on 7 June, following previews from 3 June, and is revived at the venue after more than 50 years.
Chicken Soup With Barley was first performed as part of its original trilogy, alongside Roots and I’m Talking About Jerusalem, at the Royal Court in 1960. Set in East London, Wesker’s play is described by Cooke as “an epic play that spans 20 years in the life of an East End Jewish family”.
The drama centres on Sarah Khan, an East End Jewish mother. Both a feisty political fighter and a staunch communist, Khan battles against the State and her shirking husband as she desperately tries to keep her family together.
Director Cooke said: “Bringing Arnold Wesker’s play back to the Royal Court after 50 years is an exciting prospect. It vividly captures a loss of political idealism, a feeling which chimes with our own confused times. I’m delighted that Samantha Spiro, who I’ve admired for many years, will be playing the pivotal role of the matriarch Sarah Khan.”
Spiro, who won a Laurence Olivier Award for her most recent stage outing in Hello, Dolly! at the Regent’s Park Open Air theatre, last appeared at the Royal Court in The Family Plays. Her other London stage credits include Much Ado About Nothing at the Open Air theatre, Twelfth Night at the Donmar Warehouse and Cleo, Camping, Emmanuelle And Dick at the National theatre. A well known face on television, the actress has appeared in Terry Johnson’s TV adaptation Cor, Blimey!, recent BBC comedy Grandma’s House, Cold Feet and The Bill.
The Royal Court has also announced a new award, the Harold Pinter Playwright’s Award, which is named in tribute to the renowned writer. Cooke stated: “The Harold Pinter Playwright’s Award, presented to us by Harold’s widow Antonia Fraser, is another generous contribution to the Royal Court that will allow us to commission a playwright each year. This long-term investment in new plays and playwrights is essential to our cultural landscape and we’re very proud to be able to continue Harold’s legacy at the Royal Court.”
CM