'People like us are unhappy in this world and in the next: if we made it to heaven, we'd have to help make it thunder.'
The multi-award-winning Jack Thorne, the playwright behind Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, breathes new life into Georg Büchner's Woyzeck, one of the most extraordinary plays ever written.
It's 1980s Berlin. The Cold War rages and the world sits at a crossroads between Capitalism and Communism. On the border between East and West, a young soldier and the love of his life are desperately trying to build a better future for their child.
But the cost of escaping poverty is high, and its tragic consequences unfold in this searing tale of the people society leaves behind.
Jack Thorne's new version of Woyzeck premieres at the Old Vic Theatre, London, in May 2017, in a production starring John Boyega in the title role.
Circa l’autore
Jack Thorne’s plays for the stage include Junkyard (Headlong/ Bristol Old Vic/Rose Theatre Kingston/Theatr Clwyd); Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Palace Theatre, London, 2016); The Solid Life of Sugar Water (Graeae Theatre Company); Hope (Royal Court Theatre, London, 2014); adaptations of Let the Right One In (National Theatre of Scotland at Dundee Rep, the Royal Court and the Apollo Theatre, London, 2013/14) and Stuart: A Life Backwards (Underbelly, Edinburgh, and tour, 2013); Mydidae (Soho, 2012; Trafalgar Studios, 2013); an adaptation of Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s The Physicists (Donmar Warehouse, 2012); Bunny (Underbelly, Edinburgh, 2010; Soho, 2011); 2nd May 1997 (Bush, 2009); Burying Your Brother in the Pavement (National Theatre Connections, 2008); When You Cure Me (Bush, 2005; Radio 3’s Drama on Three, 2006); Fanny and Faggot (Pleasance, Edinburgh, 2004 and 2007; Finborough, 2007; English Theatre of Bruges, 2007; Trafalgar Studios, 2007); and Stacy (Tron, 2006; Arcola, 2007; Trafalgar Studios, 2007). His radio plays include Left at the Angel (Radio 4, 2007), an adaptation of The Hunchback of Notre Dame (2009) and an original play People Snogging in Public Places (Radio 3’s Wire slot, 2009). He was a core writer in all three series of Skins (E4, Channel 4, BBC America), writing five episodes. His other TV writing includes National Treasure, The Last Panthers, Glue, The Fades (2012 BAFTA for Best Drama Series), Shameless, Cast-Offs, This is England ’86 (2011 Royal Television Society Award for Best Writer – Drama), This is England ’88, This is England ’90 and the thirty-minute drama The Spastic King. His work for film includes the features War Book, A Long Way Down, adapted from Nick Hornby’s novel, and The Scouting Book for Boys, which won him the Star of London Best Newcomer Award at the London Film Festival 2009.