Jessie Buckley and Tobias Menzies are among the stars set to appear at the Royal Court Theatre, as the venue announced the first part of its 2027 slate and teased its 2028 plans.
The London theatre revealed its upcoming plans include staging a Broadway transfer of Branden Jacobs-Jenkins's play Purpose, along with six world premieres.
Buckley to star in Afterbirth
Oscar-winning actress Buckley will star in Nina Segal's play Afterbirth, which has been described as a "funny, furious and unflinching" portrayal of life after birth and parenthood.
The production, directed by Maria Aberg, will have its world debut on January 15 2028 and will run until February 26 that year.
Menzies in The Apology
Menzies, best known for portraying the late Prince Philip in The Crown, is also among the famous faces performing at the venue.
The Emmy-winner will star alongside V, formerly known as Eve Ensler, in the world premiere of The Apology next spring.
The play sees V summon her dead father to confront the abuse he inflicted on her as a child in a theatrical exploration of sexual violence, justice and atonement.
It will run at the Royal Court Theatre from March 19 to April 24 next year.
Purpose and other premieres
The theatre will also host the European premiere of Purpose, which follows the fictional Jasper family – a prominent African-American political dynasty whose reputation is threatened when family secrets emerge.
Written by Jacobs-Jenkins, the show won a Tony Award for best play and the Pulitzer Prize for drama.
It will run at the Royal Court from January 16 to February 27 next year.
Olivier Award-winning actress Juliet Stevenson will star in The Briar Patch, a domestic thriller by Ciara Elizabeth Smyth about a woman named Dara who begins questioning those closest to her after a scandal rocks her community and a family friend is arrested.
Directed by Royal Court artistic director David Byrne, the play will run from May 14 to June 26 next year.
Other productions planned for 2027 include War Face, a new play by Stage Debut Award-winner Georgie Dettmer, created with serving and retired soldiers in collaboration with the Chelsea Pensioners.
The production will explore the lives of British Army veterans and will be directed by Jess Edwards.
It will run from April 22 to May 1.
Working Men is a new play by Benjamin Kuffour which follows a quantity surveyor, a building contractor and a project manager whose routine visit to a council estate "could become the day that defines the rest of their lives".
The play will receive its world premiere during its run from June 4 to July 10 next year.
Elsewhere, the comedy eco-thriller We're Gonna Kill Billy follows four teenage girls who plan to kidnap a billionaire's grandson in an attempt to stop a marina development that threatens local wildlife.
The production is playwright Alex Medland's professional debut and will be directed by Royal Court associate director Aneesha Srinivasan.
It will run from February 18 to March 27 2027.
Festivals and upcoming season
The 2027 season will also feature the fourth edition of the Royal Court's week-long open submission festival, which showcases work by emerging playwrights selected from the more than 3,000 new plays read by the theatre each year.
The young playwrights award festival will also return for its third year, running from July 8 to 10 and showcasing plays by writers aged 13 to 18 from across the UK.
Royal Court artistic director Mr Byrne said: "Three years since I became artistic director of the Royal Court, and coming out of our 70th anniversary year, this is the most thrilling season we could imagine bringing together.
"I almost can't believe it's ours – but of course it is, because this extraordinary set of knotty, original, adventurous new plays couldn't be truly at home anywhere else."
