Following a strictly limited run at the Ambassadors Theatre in the West End (6 April – 20 May 2023),Vardy v Rooney: The Wagatha Christie Trial heads to Liverpool Empire.
The verbatim production opened on 15 November 2022 at the Wyndham’s Theatre where it played to packed houses and standing ovations. The trial that gripped the nation has been adapted from seven days of High Court transcripts by Liv Hennessy (finalist in the Paines Plough’s Women’s Prize for Playwriting) and directed by Lisa Spirling (Artistic Director of Theatre503).
Reprising their roles will be Lucy May Barker (Mamma Mia!, West End; Pine Hampstead Theatre) as Rebekah Vardy and Laura Dos Santos (Yes So I Said Yes, Finborough Theatre; My White Best Friend, Liverpool Everyman) as Coleen Rooney, Jonathan Broadbent (The Comedy of Errors, RSC; My Night with Reg, Donmar and West End) as Hugh Tomlinson QC, Tom Turner as David Sherborne and Nathan McMullen (Misfits, E4; Hushabye Mountain, Hope Mill) playing multiple roles including Wayne Rooney and Jamie Vardy. Further casting is to be announced.
From sting operations to sensational headlines, this verbatim production reveals what went on behind closed doors in the case that turned social media sleuthing into high drama. Audiences can see first-hand, and in the words of Rebekah Vardy and Coleen Rooney, how the extraordinary week in court played out.
Vardy v Rooney is a story stranger than fiction, with lurid one-liners and revelations blurring the boundaries of tabloid and court case, social media and soap opera. This unique moment in British media history captivated the country but while public debate raged, only a handful of people witnessed what happened in the trial. Now audiences can watch the intrigue and intricacies of the case live on stage in the West End and beyond.
Vardy v Rooney: The Wagatha Christie Trial is adapted by Liv Hennessy, directed by Lisa Spirling and designed by Polly Sullivan, the composer and sound designer is Richard Hammarton and Lizzie Manwaring is assistant director.
Tickets will go on sale for the Liverpool Empire Theatre on Friday 17 February 2023 at 10am from atgtickets.com/liverpool
