'She’s like no one I’ve ever met... She’s like fire and water all at once.'
The Royal Shakespeare Company’s hotly-anticipated new production of HAMNET is now playing at London’s Garrick Theatre for a limited season until 17 February 2024.
Warwickshire, 1582. Agnes Hathaway, a natural healer, meets the Latin tutor, William Shakespeare. Drawn together by powerful but hidden impulses, they create a life together and make a family. When the plague steals 11-year-old Hamnet from his loving parents, they must each confront their loss alone. And yet, out of the greatest suffering, something of extraordinary wonder is born.
Based on Maggie O’Farrell’s best-selling book and adapted by award-winning playwright Lolita Chakrabarti (Life of Pi, Red Velvet, Hymn), Hamnet pulls back a curtain on the story of the greatest writer in the English language and the woman who was the constant presence and purpose of his life.
Directed by Erica Whyman, with Set Design by Tom Piper, Lighting by Prema Mehta, Sound by Simon Baker, Music by Oğuz Kaplangi, Movement by Ayse Tashkiran, Fights by Kate Waters and Casting by Amy Ball CDG, Hamnet is a love letter to passion, birth, grief and the magic of nature.
Prices include a £1.50 restoration levy.
Content warnings
Scenes of domestic violence
Child loss and grief
Scenes of childbirth
Depictions of sexual activity
Loud voices and shouting
We understand that some of our patrons benefit from having an increased understanding of the sensory elements used in our shows. The RSC have created a Sonic Story for Hamnet, which highlights the audio journey of the play including loud and quiet moments. You can view the Sonic Story here
'Elegant and beguiling'
'Madeleine Mantock shines with an otherworldly brightness'
'Chakrabarti’s tender stage adaptation of O'Farrell's heartbreaking novel'
'pure theatre gold'
'Evocative and beautifully acted'
'the evening soars, and sears'
‘Unbearably moving’