Heartstopper heartthrob Joe Locke will follow up his 2024 Broadway debut in Sweeney Todd with a West End debut. He will lead the U.K. premiere of Samuel D. Hunter's Clarkston in London this fall, with dates and a theatre to be announced. Jack Serio (Grangeville, Uncle Vanya) will direct.
Co-starring will be Ruaridh Mollica (Sebastian: The Franchise) and Sophie Melville (The Way).
The story follows Jake, who flees Connecticut for the West Coast in search of escape after receiving a fatal diagnosis. Working at a Costco in rural Clarkston, Washington, he meets Chris, who might just be a kindred soul.
The work premiered at Dallas Theater Center in 2015, and, paired with Hunter's Lewiston, played an Off-Broadway run in 2018 via Rattlestick Playwrights Theater. As can be inferred from those titles, both plays draw inspiration from early North American explorers Lewis and Clark.
“I’m thrilled to be making my West End debut in Clarkston," says Locke in a statement. "Samuel D. Hunter’s writing is so deeply human and honest that I immediately connected with the play when I read it. I can’t wait to bring this beautiful story to life and share it with audiences in London.”
"I couldn't be more excited to bring Clarkston to London audiences, especially with this phenomenal cast and creative team," adds Hunter. "I've always adored the U.K.’s theatre scene, so being able to share this play with audiences in the West End is truly a dream come true. This play draws from themes of the vast and isolated American West and the colonial past of the United States, but it's fundamentally a story about love and friendship in the midst of an unknown future, which is a pretty universal story these days."
Playwright Hunter's star is on the rise. His 2012 play The Whale made the jump to the big screen in 2022, with star Brendan Fraser winning Best Actor at the 2023 Academy Awards for his performance. He's poised to make his Broadway debut this season with Little Bear Ridge Road, and his other works include Grangeville, A Case for the Existence of God, and Greater Clements.
Visit ClarkstonPlay.co.uk.
