The actress, who has also starred in Twisters and Where The Crawdads Sing, will appear in the show's eight-week run from 10 December.
She will appear opposite Lennie James, best known for Line of Duty and The Walking Dead, and Kingsley Ben-Adir, who was seen in Barbie and played Bob Marley in the biopic One Love.
Other productions announced by the Almeida on Friday will star Luther's Ruth Wilson and US actor Michael Shannon.
However, she was one of a large number of actors who took part in the recent production of Red Rabbit White Rabbit, which saw a different star lead the show every night throughout its run at Soho Place.
Written by Tennessee Williams in 1955, Cat On A Hot Tin Roof tells the story of a family who have come together to celebrate the birthday of the patriarch, Big Daddy.
But behind the scenes, the family is in crisis. The Pulitzer-winning play explores themes of dishonesty, desire and the struggle for power and control.
Edgar-Jones previously appeared in Mike Bartlett's play Albion, which also ran at the Almeida theatre, in 2020, shortly before the Covid lockdown halted theatre productions.
The actress subsequently shot to fame during the pandemic when she appeared alongside Paul Mescal in Normal People, the TV adaptation of Sally Rooney's hugely popular novel.
Other productions announced for the Almeida's new season on Friday include A Moon for the Misbegotten. It will star Ruth Wilson, who has appeared in Luther and The Affair, and recently portrayed Emily Maitlis in A Very Royal Scandal.
She will co-star with US actor Michael Shannon, whose credits include Revolutionary Road, Groundhog Day, Pearl Harbour, Knives Out and Bullet Train.
The Almeida will also stage Otherland, a new play by Chris Bush about a couple trying to untangle themselves from each other as they go through a break-up.
Other productions announced include 1536, set in Tudor England, and Rhinoceros, about a new disease which threatens humanity.
It’s a big one for the theatre’s associate director Rebecca Frecknall, best known for her West End production of Cabaret and her smash hit Tennessee Williams obscurity Summer and Smoke. She’ll return to Williams to direct the Almeida’s Christmas show – a revival of all-time classic Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Dec 10-Feb 1 2025, pictured) that’ll feature recent Time Out cover star Kingsley Ben-Adir plus Daisy Edgar-Jones and Lennie James.
That’ll be followed next year by a new play Otherland (Feb 11-Mar 15 2025) by playwright Chris Bush about a separating couple facing up to the terror of change, following which brainbox director Omar Elerian will tackle Eugene Ionesco’s surrealist satire Rhinoceros (Mar 25-Apr 26 2025). That’s folowed by big name director Lyndsey Turner tackling Ava Pickett’s new play 1536 (May 6-Jun 7 2025), about a group of ordinary Essex women who find the drama around the trial and execution of Anne Boleyn uncomfortably close to home.
Finally we go to Frecknall again, who’ll direct Ruth Wilson and US star Michael Shannon in A Moon for the Misbegotten (Jun 17-Aug 16 2025), the great American playwright Eugene O’Neill’s darkly intimate sequel to his masterpiece ‘Long Day’s Journey Into Night’”.
It’s a hard hitting season, with the two Frecknall-directed plays sure to sell out at a rate of knots: Cat On a Hot Tin Roof will go on sale Friday September 27 and you’d better get in there quick; the rest will go on sale at a later date.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof will play at the Almeida Theatre from 10 December 2024 to 1 February 2025.
Rebecca Frecknall (Cabaret) will return to the Almeida to direct A Cat on a Hot Tin Roof following her acclaimed, multi award-winning productions ofTennessee Williams’ Summer and Smoke and A Streetcar Named Desire.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof will star Kingsley Ben-Adir (Bob Marley: One Love; Barbie), Golden Globe nominee Daisy Edgar-Jones (Normal People; Twisters) and Lennie James (Snatch, Bladerunner 2049).
The full cast also includes Guy Burgess, Clare Burt, Seb Carrington, Derek Hagen, Ukweli Roach and Ria Zmitrowicz.
Joining director Rebecca Frecknall in the creative team for Cat on a Hot Tun Roof will be Set Designer Chloe Lamford, Costume Designer Moi Tran, Lighting Designer Lee Curran, Sound Designer Carolyn Downing, Composer Angus MacRae, Casting Director Julia Horan CDG, Children’s Casting Director Amy Beadel, and Associate Director Justina Kehinde.
Almeida Artistic Director Rupert Goold said in a statement: “Rebecca made her name with Summer and Smoke, cemented her reputation with A Streetcar Named Desire, and now directs a third great Tennessee Williams play, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, with an exceptional cast led by the magnetic pair of Kingsley Ben-Adir and Daisy Edgar-Jones, who returns to the Almeida after making her professional stage debut in Albion.”
The play is presented in association with Chris Harper Productions (Company, The Roommate), so expect a West End – and maybe Broadway run for the production.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is running at at the Almeida Theatre from 10 December 2024 to 1 February 2025.
The Almeida Theatre has announced five new productions for its upcoming season, featuring a mix of American classics, new plays, and an Ionesco revival.
The season will open with Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams, directed by Rebecca Frecknall (Cabaret, Romeo and Juliet). This production stars Kingsley Ben-Adir, Daisy Edgar-Jones, and Lennie James. You can find out more about the production, including dates and complete casting, here.
The world premiere of Otherland by Chris Bush follows from 11 February to 15 March 2025. Directed by Ann Yee (Next to Normal), the play focuses on a couple navigating significant personal changes after a break-up. Bush previously worked with the Almeida on Nine Lessons and Carols.
Omar Elerian returns to the Almeida to direct and translate Eugène Ionesco’s absurdist satire Rhinoceros, running from 25 March to 26 April 2025. This marks Elerian’s second Ionesco production for the Almeida, following his 2022 staging of The Chairs. Casting and creatives are to be revealed.
The season continues with another world premiere: 1536 by Ava Pickett, which runs from 6 May to 7 June 2025. Directed by Lyndsey Turner, the play is set in Tudor England and won the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Set in rural England on the eve of a major Royal scandal, it was developed as part of the Genesis Almeida New Playwrights, Big Plays Programme. Casting and creatives are to be revealed.
Finally, Frecknall will direct A Moon for the Misbegotten by Eugene O’Neill, from 17 June to 16 August 2025. The production features Ruth Wilson and Michael Shannon, who will portray two characters confronting their pasts in a single night.
The north London venue has mapped out a starry first half of 2025
The Almeida Theatre has announced five new productions for its upcoming season, featuring a mix of American classics, new plays, and an Ionesco revival.
The season will open with Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams, directed by Rebecca Frecknall (Cabaret, Romeo and Juliet). This production stars Kingsley Ben-Adir, Daisy Edgar-Jones, and Lennie James. You can find out more about the production, including dates and complete casting, here.
The world premiere of Otherland by Chris Bush follows from 11 February to 15 March 2025. Directed by Ann Yee (Next to Normal), the play focuses on a couple navigating significant personal changes after a break-up. Bush previously worked with the Almeida on Nine Lessons and Carols.
Omar Elerian returns to the Almeida to direct and translate Eugène Ionesco’s absurdist satire Rhinoceros, running from 25 March to 26 April 2025. This marks Elerian’s second Ionesco production for the Almeida, following his 2022 staging of The Chairs. Casting and creatives are to be revealed.
The season continues with another world premiere: 1536 by Ava Pickett, which runs from 6 May to 7 June 2025. Directed by Lyndsey Turner, the play is set in Tudor England and won the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Set in rural England on the eve of a major Royal scandal, it was developed as part of the Genesis Almeida New Playwrights, Big Plays Programme. Casting and creatives are to be revealed.
Finally, Frecknall will direct A Moon for the Misbegotten by Eugene O’Neill, from 17 June to 16 August 2025. The production features Ruth Wilson and Michael Shannon, who will portray two characters confronting their pasts in a single night.
The world premiere of Otherland, a new play by Chris Bush, directed by Ann Yee.
Eugène Ionesco’s absurdist satire Rhinoceros, translated and directed by Omar Elerian.
The world premiere of Ava Pickett’s Susan Smith Blackburn Prize-winning 1536, directed by Lyndsey Turner.
A new production of Eugene O’Neill’s A Moon for the Misbegotten, with Michael Shannon and Ruth Wilson, directed by Rebecca Frecknall.
Almeida Artistic Director Rupert Goold said, “Today we announce a new season of work, featuring two revivals of beloved canonical texts, an innovative Ionesco adaptation and the world premiere of two new plays.
“The season is bookended by two timeless American classics directed by our Associate Director Rebecca Frecknall. Rebecca made her name with Summer and Smoke, cemented her reputation with A Streetcar Named Desire, and now directs a third great Tennessee Williams play, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, with an exceptional cast led by the magnetic pair of Kingsley Ben-Adir and Daisy Edgar-Jones, who returns to the Almeida after making her professional stage debut in Albion. Then next summer, Rebecca turns her focus to Eugene O’Neill’s A Moon for the Misbegotten, with two heavyweight stars of stage and screen Michael Shannon and Ruth Wilson.
“Before then, I am so excited to welcome back Omar Elerian with his take on Eugène Ionesco’s absurdist satire, Rhinoceros. Following the success of Omar’s celebrated 2022 production of The Chairs, we eagerly anticipate his next visionary interpretation of Ionesco’s work.
“Alongside these revivals, we are also producing two new plays: first up we are delighted to welcome back Chris Bush, whose previous work for us, Nine Lessons and Carols, was impacted by Covid lockdown, with Otherland, an ambitious and necessary new play, directed by Ann Yee.
“And then it’s the premiere of Ava Pickett’s 1536, a play that has made waves winning the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, directed by Lyndsey Turner who returns to the Almeida following acclaimed productions of Chimerica and The Treatment. Ava wrote it for us as part of the Genesis Almeida New Playwrights, Big Plays Programme and we continue to be very grateful to the Genesis Foundation for their ongoing support of the next generation of new artists.”
Listings and ticket information can be found here
