Chichester's first ever production of Shakespeare's Hamlet
Published 12:41 on 1 Jul 2025
Full company announced to join Giles Terera in
HAMLET
By William Shakespeare Directed by Justin Audibert
6 September 4 October, Minerva Theatre, Chichester
The full company has been announced to join Giles Terera in Justin Audibert's production of Hamlet, running at Chichesters Minerva Theatre
Ariyon Bakare, winner of the 2025 BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor for Mr Loverman, plays Claudius; Keir Charles(Quiz, South Pacific CFT) plays Polonius; Ryan Hutton (Only Fools and Horses West End, A Midsummer Nights Dream RSC) is Laertes; Eve Ponsonby (The Stepmother CFT, Miss Austen) is Ophelia; Sara Powell (The Seagull West End, Damned) plays Gertrude; Tim Preston (First Light CFT, The Seven Dials Mystery) is Rosencrantz; Jay Saighal (Imperium RSC, Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning) is Guildenstern; and Sam Swann (The Comedy of Errors Shakespeares Globe, One Day) plays Horatio; alongside Ozzy Aigbomian (making his professional stage debut) as Fortinbras; David Angland (The Homecoming Young Vic, The Pillowman Duke of Yorks) as Osric; Geoff Aymer (The Taxidermists Daughter CFT, The Crucible Sheffield) as Old Hamlet/Player King; Nana Amoo-Gottfried (The Box of Delights RSC, MacbethShakespeares Globe) as Marcellus; Simon Darwen (The Agency, Years and Years) as Barnardo; Beatie Edney (Poldark, Am I Being Unreasonable?) as Baptista/Gravedigger One; and Nick Howard-Brown (Hey! Christmas Tree CFT, D-Day: The Unheard Tapes) as Voltemand.
Giles Terera, winner of an Olivier Award for Hamilton (West End), and Critic's Circle Best Actor Award for Blues for an Alabama Sky and the title role in Othello at the National Theatre, plays Hamlet.
The death of his father, the king, turns Hamlet's world upside down. Stunned by the horrifying secrets revealed, he loses all trust in the people closest to him.
Amidst a maelstrom of grief, suspicion and doubt, he embarks on a profound journey of self-discovery in which the betrayal of friends and family and the decay at the heart of the state are laid bare.
Hamlet will be designed by Lily Arnold, with lighting design by Ryan Day, sound design by Ed Clarke, movement direction by Lucy Cullingford, fight direction by Cristian Cardenas and casting director Matilda James CDG.
Image: by Sean Hamus of Giles Terera as Hamlet