9 – 13 July

SUITE IN THREE KEYS starring TARA FITZGERALD, STEPHEN BOXER and EMMA FIELDING tours exclusively to Bath providing a rare opportunity to watch Noël Coward’s trilogy

A rediscovery of Noël Coward’s trilogy Suite in Three Keys starring Tara Fitzgerald (Game of Thrones, Brassed Off, Sirens), Stephen Boxer (The Crown, Doctors, Poldark) and Emma Fielding (Sanditon, Cranford, Van der Valk) visits the Theatre Royal Bath from Tuesday 9^th to Saturday 13^th July. Touring to the West Country exclusively from London’s Orange Tree Theatre, the plays will be performed in repertory across one week. Audiences can book to watch the full-length play A Song at Twilight, a double-bill of Shadows of the Evening and Come into the Garden, Maud, or see all three plays in a single day.

Set in 1965, in a private suite of the Hotel Beau Rivage, Switzerland, on the shore of Lake Geneva, three separate stories unfold. In A Song at Twilight, a famous, elderly writer faces blackmail at the hands of an ex-lover threatening to expose his secret past. Forming a double-bill and set in the same hotel suite, Shadows of the Evening explores the intricacies of a late-life love triangle, and Come into the Garden, Maud is a fizzing comedy about Americans abroad. 

Marking the 50^th anniversary of Noël Coward’s death and the 125^th of his birth, this is the first complete revival of Suite in Three Keys for a generation. Directed by Orange Tree Artistic Director Tom Littler, this production tours to Bath after opening in Richmond, London.

Director Tom Littler said: “Suite in Three Keys is an exquisite trio of plays representing Noël Coward’s final work for the theatre. Dating from the mid-1960s, these plays have all of Coward’s trademark wit and verbal invention whilst confronting themes of mortality, sexuality and honesty with remarkable daring.”

Tara Fitzgerald plays Carlotta Gray in A Song at Twilight, Linda Savignac in Shadows of the Evening and Maud Caragnani in Come into the Garden, Maud. Tara made her theatrical debut at the Theatre Royal Bath in 1992 in the world premiere of Keith Waterhouse’s Our Song with Peter O’Toole. Her many theatre credits include an award-winning performance as Ophelia in Hamlet with Ralph Fiennes at the Almeida Theatre and on Broadway. Her previous performances at the Theatre Royal Bath also include A Doll’s House in 2004 and In Praise of Love at the Ustinov Studio in 2018. Recently seen on screen in The Undertaker, Belgravia and The Runaways, her numerous credits also include Game of Thrones, Brassed Off, Hear My Song, Sirens, The Englishman Who Went Up A Hill But Came Down A Mountain, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, Rancid Aluminium, A Man of No Importance and The Camomile Lawn.

Stephen Boxer plays Hugo Latymer in A Song at Twilight, George Hilgay in Shadows of the Evening and Verner Conklin in Come into the Garden, Maud. On stage, he has performed in a host of productions for the Royal Shakespeare Company, and starred in many plays in London and on tour. His screen roles include playing Denis Thatcher in The Crown, the Chief Inspector in Small Axe, David Elster in Humans and Judge Wentworth Lister in Poldark. Stephen played Dr Joe Fenton in more than 350 episodes of Doctors between 2006 and 2010. His many television credits also include playing DCI Thorndyke in three series of Prime Suspect, and guest roles in Humans, Toast of London, Luther, Poirot and The Quatermass Experiment. This is the seventh production Stephen has performed in at Bath’s Theatre Royal since 1986, with previous credits including God and Stephen Hawking in 2000, Love & Marriage in 2003 and A Splinter of Ice in 2021.

Emma Fielding plays Hilde Latymer in A Song at Twilight, Anne Hilgay in Shadows of the Evening and Anna-Mary Conklin in Come into the Garden, Maud. On television, Emma is well known for her roles in the series Sanditon, Cranford, Van der Valk, The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher and The Ghost Squad. On stage, she has appeared in numerous productions for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Theatre and in the West End. Emma has been twice nominated for Olivier Awards, including in 2002 for her performance in Private Lives, which transferred to Broadway where she won a Theatre World Award. She has appeared at the Theatre Royal Bath before in Arcadia in 1993, after originating the role of Thomasina Coverly in the world premiere production at the National Theatre in April 1993. She also performed at the Theatre Royal in 2012, playing Queen Elizabeth in The King’s Speech.

Across all three plays, Steffan Rizzi (Almeida, National Theatre, Wardrobe Theatre) plays the role of Felix, a waiter.

Tom Littler, Artistic Director of Orange Tree (OT), recently directed The Circle which toured to Bath in January 2024 after opening at the OT. He has also directed many productions for London’s Jermyn Street Theatre, where he was Artistic Director from 2017 to 2022; as well as Good Grief for Theatre Royal Bath, A Little Night Music in Budapest, Dances of Death at Gate Theatre and Hamlet for Guildford Shakespeare Company.

The creative team for Suite in Three Keys also includes designer Louie Whitemore, lighting designer Chris McDonnell, sound designer Tom Attwood and associate designer Jessica Statton. This production of Suite in Three Keys appears at the Orange Tree Theatre in London from 24^th May to 6^th July before touring exclusively to Bath.

Nicknamed “The Master”, Noël Coward (1899 – 1973) was a playwright, actor, lyricist, director, composer, singer, producer and one of the premiere entertainers of the 20^th Century. He was knighted in 1970. Coward had written over fifteen plays by the time he was in his mid-thirties and, despite his comparative youth, the first of many biographies had already been written about him. His many plays include Relative Values, Present Laughter, Hay Fever, Private Lives, Fallen Angels, A Design for Living and Tonight at 8:30. With the onset of World War Two, Noël Coward redefined the spirit of the country in film adaptations of his popular plays This Happy Breed and Blithe Spirit, and in his screenplays for Brief Encounter and the patriotic In Which We Serve. The trilogy Suite in Three Keys was written in 1965 and received its premiere in 1966.

For the Bath run, A Song at Twilight will be performed on Tuesday 9^th, Wednesday 10^th and Friday 12^th July at 7.30pm, and on Saturday 13^th July at 2.30pm. Shadows of the Evening and Come into the Garden, Maud will be performed as a double-bill on Wednesday 10^th at 2.30pm and Thursday 11^th and Saturday 13^th July at 7.30pm.

To book tickets contact the Theatre Royal Bath Box Office on 01225 448844 or visit theatreroyal.org.uk

Photo credit:  Rebecca Need-Meneer, Steve Gregson