NT Live cinema screening of Sam Mendes' play 'The Motive and the Cue', with Mark Gatiss, Johnny Flynn and Tuppence Middleton.
MK Gallery is bringing The Motive and the Cue to Milton Keynes as an NT Live screening, with the first showing on Saturday 20 February. It's a filmed version of the play that ran in London in 2023, so you're seeing the stage production on screen rather than a live cast in the room.
Written by Jack Thorne and directed by Sam Mendes, the story is set in 1964. It follows Richard Burton, newly married to Elizabeth Taylor, as he prepares to play the title role in an experimental new Broadway production of Hamlet under the exacting direction of Sir John Gielgud. The play tracks the rehearsals as they progress and the collaboration between actor and director threatens to unravel. It's a look at two very different theatrical giants clashing over a single role, with the tension building as the opening night gets closer.
The cast is one of the main draws here. Mark Gatiss plays Gielgud, a performance that won him an Olivier Award, and he's joined by Johnny Flynn as Burton and Tuppence Middleton as Taylor. It's a five-star play, and the whole thing was filmed live during its sold-out London run, so you get the full stage production as it was performed. The screening is in English, with a runtime of around 180 minutes, though that's still to be confirmed.
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There are four screenings in total, so you can pick the one that fits your schedule: Saturday 20 February at 7.00pm, Wednesday 24 February at 2.00pm, Sunday 14 March at 2.00pm, and Tuesday 16 March at 10.30am. Tickets range from free to £19, and you can find them all over at mkgallery.org.
