Charlotte Ritchie has been pictured studying her script ahead of starring in the National Theatre’s staging of Cloud 9. The Call The Midwife, Ghosts and You actress is appearing in the production of Caryl Churchill’s landmark play, which follows a family from Victorian Africa who then turn up a hundred years later in 1970s London.
Cast and creative team
Directed by Dominic Cooke, it will run from November 2 until January 13 at the Lyttleton Theatre. Ritchie is joined on stage by The Crown’s Rebecca Humphries, Edward II’s Eloka Ivo, Richard III actor Tom Mothersdale, Too Much star Ellen Robertson, Three Sisters actor Stuart Thompson and Black Doves’ Sam Troughton.
Ahead of its opening, the stars of the show have been photographed during rehearsals. One shot shows Ritchie sitting alongside Humphries holding their scripts and highlighting certain sections while deep in conversation. Another shows the actress at a distance, standing in the studio posing half in costume – wearing a Victorian-era hoop skirt over a pink cardigan and black trousers.
Rehearsal images revealed
Another of the rehearsal images sees the actress sitting down in a chair, looking to someone out of view of the camera, while four of her co-stars – who appear blurry – sit behind her in a circle formation. Another shot shows Humphries standing holding her script and a pencil while wearing a brown shirt and long ruffled skirt and apron.
Robertson – who has also appeared on screen in Black Mirror and Vladimir – is seen in one of the images wearing a black and white striped long-sleeved shirt holding her hands up to her head while her mouth is gaping open, while another shows her pointing a finger towards Troughton, whose back is towards the camera. He is seen front on in a different shot, sitting on a chair with his hands resting on his legs as he frowns and looks into the distance.
Ivo is also shown sitting on a chair looking shocked while looking to someone out of view of the camera. An image of Thompson shows him in a black corset and beige ruffled skirt with his hands clasped and the props in the background all blurred.
About the play
The National Theatre has billed Cloud 9 as a “modern classic from one of Britain’s most influential playwrights”. The full synopsis teases: “In Victorian Africa, where Clive is a colonial administrator and patriarch, his wife, son and servant struggle to be what’s expected of them.
“When the family turn up a hundred years later in 70s London, what can they make of themselves in a world where empire lingers and freedom calls? With its audacious theatricality and razor-sharp wit, Caryl Churchill’s (Top Girls) landmark work continues to challenge how we think about gender, power and the legacies of empire.”
It added that Cooke’s “bold new production that brings fresh urgency to this daring and satirical classic”. Cooke said: “Caryl Churchill has been an inspiration to me for decades. Her ability to bring complex current ideas to life in groundbreaking theatrical forms is second to none. Of her early plays, Cloud Nine is one of my favourites: by turns hilarious, insightful and astute. Its formally playful exploration of gender and sexuality was decades ahead of its time and still feels as fresh and pertinent as ever.”
Cloud 9 plays at the Lyttelton Theatre at the National Theatre in London, from November 2 to January 13, 2027. Tickets are now on sale.
