NT Live: Les Liaisons Dangereuses

NT Live: Les Liaisons Dangereuses comes to the Civic Cinema on Wednesday 16 September, bringing a National Theatre production from London to Newcastle. It's a recording of the stage play filmed live, so you're seeing the full performance on screen rather than a filmed adaptation.

The play is Christopher Hampton's adaptation of the classic novel, set among the glittering salons of the super-rich, where a single misstep can mean ruin. At the centre are the Marquise de Merteuil, played by Lesley Manville, and the Vicomte de Valmont, played by Aidan Turner. Merteuil is a master of survival, and together they turn seduction into strategy and weaponise desire, until their alliance collapses into rivalry and threatens to destroy everyone in their path. It's a story of power and betrayal played out in the high-stakes social circles of the French aristocracy, where reputation is everything and a few wrong words can cost you everything.

Manville and Turner lead the cast, and the whole thing is directed by Marianne Elliott, who's known for her work at the National Theatre. Because it was filmed live on stage, you get the energy of the theatre night—the timing, the reactions, and the two leads working off each other in real time—rather than a production shot in pieces and edited together. It's a way to catch a London stage production without having to book a flight to the West End.

It's showing at the Civic Cinema on 16 September, so you'll want to check the session times and get your tickets sorted in advance. If you're into theatre but can't make it to the city, this is a good way to see a National Theatre production right here in Newcastle.