The third and final stage adaption of the Wolf Hall trilogy novel series, The Mirror and the Light (which opened on 23 September 2021) has announced it will close two months earlier than planned at the Gielgud Theatre on 28 November 2021. This is due to uncertainties around the pandemic. 2:22 – A Ghost Story, which recently had a successful run at the Noel Coward Theatre starring Lily Allen, will transfer to the Gielgud from 4 December 2021 until 12 February 2022.
The play will be the concluding chapter of Dame Hilary Mantel’s multi award-winning novels about the rise and fall of Thomas Cromwell. The Mirror and the Light has been adapted for stage by Mantel herself alongside Ben Miles, who will return to his role as Cromwell to complete the trilogy. Nathaniel Parker joins him, resuming his Olivier Award-winning and Tony Award nominated role as Henry VIII.
The full cast of 23 will be the biggest yet in the series, with 13 actors, five of whom – Ben Miles (Cromwell), Nathaniel Parker (Henry VIII), Nicholas Boulton (Duke of Suffolk), Matt Pidgeon (Stephen Gardiner) and Giles Taylor (Archbishop Cranmer) – return to their roles in the earlier plays.
Actors joining the production for the first time include Rosanna Adams (Anna of Cleves), Paul Adeyefa (Christophe), Aurora Burghart (Elizabeth Seymour), Terique Jarrett (Gregory Cromwell), Jordan Kouamé (Rafe Sadler), Geoffrey Lumb (Thomas Wriothesley), Olivia Marcus (Jane Seymour) Tony Turner (Kingston), Leo Wan (Richard Riche) and Nicholas Woodeson (Duke of Norfolk). Rosanna Adams, Aurora Burghart and Jordan Kouamé are making their professional debuts.
New names added to the cast are: Melissa Allan (Princess Mary), Samuel Awoyo (Ensemble), Ian Drysdale (French Ambassador), Jo Herbert (Lady Rochford), Andrew Hodges (Ensemble), Niamh James (Ensemble), Umi Myers (Helen Sadler / Dorothea Wolsey), Liam Smith (Walter Cromwell) and Nicholas Tizzard (Ensemble).
The trilogy charts the riveting rise and fall of Thomas Cromwell in the ruthless court of Henry VIII.
England, 1536. Anne Boleyn’s fate has been sealed by the executioner. Jane Seymour must deliver King Henry a healthy heir. And to the disgust of Henry’s nobles, Thomas Cromwell continues his ruthless ascent from the gutters of Putney to the highest rank beside his master. But with the threat of invasion and the King’s legacy tottering, Cromwell is vulnerable and his enemies are poised to strike.
The further you climb, the harder you fall.
