Belfast actor Ciarán Hinds has been added to cast of A Whistle in the Dark in the Abbey Theatre.
The play, written by acclaimed Irish playwright Tom Murphy, will show on the Abbey Stage from Wednesday, 13 October to Saturday, 30 October 2027 as part of Dublin Theatre Festival.
Hinds is known for his performances in the Royal Shakespeare Company. He has starred in major films such as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 and Belfast, for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
He has also featured in Game of Thrones and The Terror.
He joins, as previously announced, Paul Mescal (A Streetcar Named Desire – Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor 2023), who will be making his debut at the National Theatre of Great Britain in this production.
Other cast members include Peter Corboy (The Brightening Air), Eimhin Fitzgerald Doherty (The Brightening Air), Ryan Donaldson (Do You Come From Gomorrah?), Ciarán Hinds (Our Few and Evil Days), Aisling Loftus (Till the Stars Come Down – West End) and Julian Moore-Cook (Translations).
The cast will deliver performances in Dublin following its London run at the National Theatre’s Lyttelton theatre in London.
Tickets for the Abbey Theatre will go on sale in 2027, with further announcements to follow.
This is the first time that Tom Murphy’s work will be staged by the National Theatre.
Commenting on the announcement, Abbey Theatre Artistic Director Caitríona McLaughlin said:“I cannot wait to be in a room with this company of curious, intelligent, sensitive and playful actors.
“I cannot believe my luck – the chance to tackle Tom Murphy both at home, in Ireland’s Abbey Theatre, and abroad, in the UK’s National Theatre.
“When I read some of Tom Murphy’s early descriptions of the eight characters in his play: ‘obsessed by violence, though a coward; the wronged genius; filled with an inferiority complex; stupid!; strong and silent; a good woman with no affectation; small, light and dressed conservatively,’ I thought to myself – if I am going to spend months in a room with these people, there is going to need to be a lot of laughing!”