Branagh directs and stars

Multi-award winning actor, director and Shakespeare expert & devotee Kenneth Branagh is set to direct and play the titular role in King Lear this autumn at Wyndham's Theatre. With the actor himself describing it as especially poignant in our current political climate, the Academy Award, BAFTA, Emmy, Golden Globe and Olivier Award winner brings his celebrated excellence to the role and production which will be one of the essential pieces of theatre this year.

When the aging Lear finally decides to retire from rule and divide his kingdom among his three daughters, what he imagined to be a straightforward process is thrown into complete anarchy, as his grasping family all conspire to drive him out of his mind. Consumed by the fierce storm of treachery, Lear finds that his life hangs in the balance and embarks on a perilous journey to save his soul from damnation. What is a king to do as the vultures circle?