Kinnear, Osipova Lead Graham's Keynes Play at Haymarket
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- Rory Kinnear will play economist John Maynard Keynes in the world premiere of James Graham's "The Standard of Living," directed by Nicholas Hytner at the Theatre Royal Haymarket, producers Brian and Dayna Lee announced.
- Natalia Osipova, a Royal Ballet principal, makes her West End debut as Lydia Lopokova, a soloist with Diaghilev's Ballets Russes who became Keynes' wife and a celebrated figure in British ballet.
- The production runs for 12 weeks, with previews beginning Sept. 21, opening night on Sept. 29, and a final performance on Dec. 12.
- Graham's play traces Keynes through government corridors and the Bloomsbury circle, including his relationship with painter Duncan Grant, his friendship with Virginia Woolf, and his romance with Lopokova as markets crash around him.
- The creative team includes Olivier-winning set designer Bob Crowley, with the production co-presented by Len Blavatnik and Danny Cohen for Access Entertainment and Mark Rubinstein as executive producer.
- The staging reunites Hytner with Graham, whose breakout hit "This House" Hytner commissioned at the National Theatre in 2012; Kinnear won the Olivier Award for Best Actor for "Othello" at the National Theatre in 2014.
Why it matters: The production is a full-circle collaboration: Hytner launched Graham's career with "This House" in 2012 and now brings another of his political-historical dramas — this time about the man who, as producer Brian Lee puts it, "made it possible for theater and art of all kinds to flourish in this country" — directly to the West End for a 12-week run, bypassing the usual tryout circuit.
