The crown meets the criminals. Welcome to England.
Hal wasn't born to be king. Only now, it seems, he will be. His father longs for him to leave behind his friends in the taverns of Eastcheap, most notably the infamous John Falstaff. War is on the horizon. But will Hal ever come good?
Adapted by award-winning writer and director Robert Icke, Player Kings brings together two of Shakespeare's great history plays, Henry IV Parts 1 & 2, in a visionary new version.
It opened at the Noël Coward Theatre, London, in 2024, before embarking on a UK tour. It was directed by Robert Icke, with a cast including Toheeb Jimoh, Richard Coyle and Ian Mc Kellen as Falstaff.
'Robert Icke has an uncanny ability to get to the psychological heart of a classic text. [This is] a terrific take on one of the greatest plays ever written' – Time Out
'A national epic of power-play, racing from tavern to court and field of conflict. It's as propulsive as The Crown… heart-stopping… a must-witness' – Telegraph
'Robert Icke, the neon-intellect, rapid-action director, has spliced together the two separate plays of Henry IV to make an epic portrait… striking and unsentimental… devastating' – Observer
'Unforgettable… brings out the subtleties and violence of Shakespeare's plays' – Financial Times
'An incisive and intelligent adaptation… This rich, vivid and visceral version of Shakespeare's Henry IV is at once a skewering of the mythology of Englishness and patriotism, a shrewd overview of the current state of the nation and a piece of premium classical theatre… all conveyed with pin-sharp clarity and an arresting immediacy… Icke delineates the oppositions that Shakespeare set up without labouring the point or simplifying the characters’ complex humanity' – The Stage
'Richly complex and thrilling' – Guardian
About the author
Robert Icke is a writer and director. His recent productions include Judas, Children of Nora and Oedipus at Internationaal Theater Amsterdam; Player Kings (West End and UK tour); Enemy of the People (Park Avenue Armory); Animal Farm (UK tour); Ivanov (Schauspiel Stuttgart); and The Doctor (Park Avenue Armory, Adelaide Festival, Almeida, West End and Burgtheater, Vienna).
His work while Associate Director at the Almeida (2013-19) included adapting and directing The Wild Duck, Mary Stuart (also West End and UK tour), Uncle Vanya, Oresteia (also West End and Park Avenue Armory) and 1984 (co-created with Duncan Macmillan, also Broadway, West End, UK and international tours). As a director, his productions included Hamlet (also West End, BBC2 and Park Avenue Armory), The Fever and Mr Burns.
His awards include two Evening Standard Awards for Best Director, the Critics' Circle Award, the Kurt Hübner Award for his debut production in Germany, and the Olivier Award for Best Director for Oresteia, of which he is the youngest-ever winner. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.
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