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A stage adaptation of Hamnet is to tour the UK for the first time, with performances beginning in September 2027.
The Royal Shakespeare Company and Neal Street production will travel to venues across the UK, opening at the Lowry in Salford on September 25.
From Salford it will move on to stages in Newcastle, Cornwall, Norwich, Nottingham, Canterbury, Birmingham, Glasgow and Bath.
Meanwhile, Belfast’s Grand Opera House will host the production in January 2028, with shows also scheduled in York, London and Southampton. Further dates and locations are still to be announced.
The play is adapted from Maggie O’Farrell’s best-selling novel, which was also the basis for the Oscar-award-winning film starring Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal.
Its story is set in Warwickshire in 1582 and follows William Shakespeare and his wife Agnes Hathaway, also known as Anne, as they cope with the death of their 11-year-old son, Hamnet.
Playwright Lolita Chakrabarti, whose credits include Life Of Pi and Red Velvet, adapted the novel for the stage.
The production premiered at the Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in 2023 before moving to the West End.
O’Farrell said: “It’s wonderful to know that the RSC/Neal Street production of Hamnet is embarking on a tour of the UK.
“The production goes from strength to strength and it’s lovely that more people will get to see it.”
Chakrabarti said: “I am so thrilled that Hamnet is returning to the stage here in Britain. I was very aware of the enormous responsibility of making these historical figures relatable and to make them live again.
“William Shakespeare’s reach is beyond compare and everyone without exception has some knowledge of his life, his works, his stories and his language.
“To try and humanise a man of such reach is a humbling thing. But in the end, this is a story about family – an 11-year-old boy and the people around him.
“It has been an absolute privilege to imagine Shakespeare himself, his wife, mother, father, sister, daughters and his only son. I am very excited to bring this tale of love, loss and rebirth to so many cities in the UK.”
