12 – 15 April Read our review April 13
Fascinating wartime drama FARM HALL visits Bath’s Theatre Royal exclusively, direct from its acclaimed London premier.
The world premiere production of Farm Hall tours to Bath exclusively, appearing at the Theatre Royal from Wednesday 12th to Saturday 15th April, following its London opening. Katherine Moar’s debut play, set in the house where some of Germany’s finest scientific minds were held captive during the final days of World War Two, garnered outstanding reviews when it opened at Jermyn Street Theatre last month, directed by Stephen Unwin.
Inspired by true events, Farm Hall dramatises the thrilling story of Operation Epsilon: one of the most fascinating and unexplored episodes of World War Two. It is Summer 1945: Hitler is dead, but war in the Pacific rages on. The British government has detained six of Germany’s most gifted nuclear scientists – including three Nobel Prize winners – at Farm Hall, a stately home in Cambridgeshire. They entertain themselves with some redacted newspapers, a broken piano and a copy of Noël Coward’s Blithe Spirit. But their tranquil summer is shattered by the news that the Americans have succeeded where the Germans failed. The United States has not only built an atom bomb, it has used one against Japan. Every reaction to the unfolding events was captured thanks to the British clandestine surveillance of their “guests”. Unbeknownst to the scientists, every inch of Farm Hall was bugged during their stay.
Playwright Katherine Moar says, “I first heard about Farm Hall in Professor Kathryn Olesko’s brilliant class on nuclear scientists and dissent at Georgetown University. I read the transcripts from the British recordings all in one evening – I was hooked. These extremely intelligent, bored, funny, morally compromised men were plucked out of history at a pivotal moment and locked away for seven months. Their conversations ranged from the totally inane to the staggeringly significant. The first thing that struck me was that this could make a great play.”
The superb ensemble cast bringing this extraordinary true story to life include Bath favourite David Yelland (The Crown, Chariots of Fire, Poirot), who plays the role of Max Von Laue. This will be David’s 15th production at the Theatre Royal Bath, having last visited in Henry IV Parts 1 & 2, as part of The Peter Hall Company season in 2011. Alan Cox (Say My Name, Mrs Dalloway, Housewife, 49) plays the role of Werner Heisenberg. His previous credits at the Theatre Royal include The Winter’s Tale in 1993, Wild Oats in 1995 and The Creeper in 2005.
Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker is played by Daniel Boyd (On Chesil Beach, Tiger House), who returns to Bath after starring in Private Peaceful at the Theatre Royal last year. Forbes Masson (EastEnders, Catastrophe), who plays the role of Otto Hahn, was last seen at Theatre Royal in A Midsummer Night’s Dream in 2016. Julius D’Silva (The Crown, The Ten Commandments), who plays the role of Kurt Diebner, has previously performed at the Theatre Royal in Anne Boleyn in 2012. Archie Backhouse appears as Erich Bagge. An associate artist with Complicité, Archie’s recent stage credits include Hunger at the Arcola and The Wonderful World of Dissocia at Stratford East.
Farm Hall received its first rehearsed reading at the Ustinov Studio, Bath on 21st September 2019. The world premiere production was staged at the Jermyn Street Theatre, London from 9th March to 8th April 2023 before touring to Bath.
Playwright Katherine Moar studied history at the University of Edinburgh and Darwin College, Cambridge. She is currently studying for a PhD at King’s College London. Farm Hall is her first play.
Stephen Unwin is an award-winning British theatre and opera director. He has directed almost 100 professional productions and worked with many well-established actors and singers, as well as developing the careers of many younger ones. In 1993, he founded English Touring Theatre, for whom he directed more than 30 productions, many of which transferred to London. He was Artistic Director of the new Rose Theatre in Kingston from 2008 to January 2014. Stephen has taught in conservatoires and universities in Britain and America. He has written 10 books on theatre and drama, 5 original plays and many translations. This is the 14th play he has directed at Bath’s Theatre Royal; the most recent being A Song At Twilight in 2019.
Farm Hall appears at the Theatre Royal Bath from Wednesday 12th to Saturday 15th April. Tickets are on sale at the Theatre Royal Box Office on 01225 448844 and online at www.theatreroyal.org.uk
Photo credit: Alex Brenner
