Game of Thrones Prequel Stage Play The Mad King Will Make London Debut in 2027
U.K. Game of Thrones prequel stage play The Mad King will make its London debut in 2027, with venue and dates to be announced. The work, written by Duncan Macmillan (Every Brilliant Thing) and inspired by the world of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire book series, is making its world premiere at Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon through September 5. See what critics had to say about the premiere bow here.
“I had an absolutely splendid time in Stratford-upon-Avon for the premiere and am thrilled the production will be moving to London to share the experience with a wider audience,” says Martin, an executive producer of the stage project, in a statement. “It promises to be an exhilarating journey.”
Casting for the London bow is to be announced.
Game of Thrones: The Mad King follows the events that inspired Robert’s Rebellion: the Tourney at Harrenhal, with all of the noble houses of Westeros in attendance. At the jousting tournament, the married Prince Rhaegar Targaryen, son of the Mad King Aerys, falls in love with Lyanna Stark. Subsequently, Rhaegar and Lyanna run off together. This leads to Robert’s Rebellion, led by Robert Baratheon, who is engaged to Lyanna. The Rebellion successfully deposes the Mad King, leads to the downfall of House Targaryen, and directly ties into the events in Game of Thrones. The play features popular Thrones characters Ned Stark and Jaime Lannister.
The creative team for the world premiere includes puppetry and movement gurus Nick Barnes and Finn Caldwell (of Lume), set designer Chloe Lamford, costume designer Georgia McGuinness, lighting designer Jon Clark, composer Will Stuart, sound designer Tom Gibbons, fight director Bethan Clark, intimacy director Ingrid Mackinnon, voice and text coach Jeannette Nelson, and dialect coach Hazel Holder. Ti Mikkel serves as a creative consultant, with Francesca Roche as period dance consultant and Lenore Gallegos as the director’s consultant.
Game of Thrones: The Mad King is co-produced with Simon Painter, Tim Lawson, Mark Manuel, Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures, HBO, and Leonard Blavatnik and Danny Cohen for Access Entertainment.
The Mad King is one of multiple projects inspired by Martin’s books, which all take place in a fictional land called Westeros that contains dragons and magic. Martin has previously said his work was inspired by the War of the Roses, in particular Shakespeare’s dramatizations of them. Martin has written several prequel novels, which inspired the two television prequels currently airing on HBO: House of the Dragon and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Meanwhile, Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire book series remains unfinished; Martin has been working on the sixth novel in the series, The Winds of Winter, since 2012.
Visit RSC.org.uk.