Cast and creative team announced for THE ANIMALS COME TO THE TABLE at Shakespeare’s Globe

Shakespeare’s Globe has announced the cast and creative team of The Animals Come to the Table in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, which runs from 11 December - 24 January, written by Timberlake Wertenbaker, and directed by Anthony Lau.

Originally conceived as part of Burnt at the Stake, or the Whole of the Truth (2023) where playwrights were invited to  share new work anonymously, The Animals Come to the Table marks the latest in a new writing lineage at Shakespeare’s Globe. By the candlelight of the Playhouse, animals summon humanity to the negotiating table. Waiting for them are an army of voices from the natural world demanding an end to exploitation and ecological destruction 

The cast will comprise Annette Badland (Escaped Alone / What If If  Only, Royal Exchange Theatre) as Bea, Rosalind Ford (The Pianist, Park Theatre/Mayflower Studios) as Ensemble/Cover, Olivier Huband (A Doll’s House, Almeida Theatre) as Pan, Lydia Larson (Keith, Kiln Theatre) as Maude, Finbar Lynch (The Deep Blue Sea, West End) as Percy, Simon Manyonda (Black Comedy, Orange Tree Theatre) as Tony, Tobias Martin-Clarke (professional stage debut) as Ensemble/Cover,  and Alex Young (Fun Home, Royal Exchange Theatre) as Anna.  

Director Antony Lau said: “Timberlake is one of the foremost dramatists of contemporary theatre and has written a  searing call to arms that examines our human relationship with the natural world. The Sam Wanamaker Playhouse  walks the line between past and present, and there could be no more fitting an area in which to wrestle with what the  future holds for us all. Funny, unnerving, and an exercise of the imaginative near future brought to life, it is a real thrill  to collaborate with Timberlake on her new play. It is with real excitement that this play is part of Shakespeare's  Globe’s winter season, and it is testament to both the building and Timberlake’s commitment to incendiary drama that  entertains and provokes in equal measure."

The Animals Come to the Table has candlelight design by Elliot Griggs, composition by Asaf  Zohar, design by Georgia Lowe, movement direction by Aline David, voice coaching by Adam  Wallis, and casting by Becky Paris CDG.

To book tickets for The Animals Come to the Table, please click here.