Olivier nominee Rupert Everett, briefly seen opposite Tony winner Laurie Metcalf in the now-closed Broadway revival of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, will head the cast of a virtual reading of Willi Richards' Rush, which had been scheduled to open this summer in London.
Directed by Almeida Resident Director Joseph Winters, the script-in-hand reading of the provocative comedy of modern manners will also feature Omari Douglas and Daniel Boyd. The cast will meet for the first time online moments before the reading, and the virtual meeting will be recorded live with an audience of Terrence Higgins Trust supporters.
The play was set to open at Trafalgar Studios 2 during Pride in June but was canceled due to the ongoing pandemic.
Details on how to stream the reading, which will be filmed on Zoom later this month, will be announced at a later date.
Producer Stephen Daldry said, “Willi Richards has written a brilliant and provocative new play about the nature of love. Joseph Winters is among a new wave of young directors who will be changing our landscape when we are over this crisis. Rupert Everett is a theatrical force to be reckoned with. This is a new piece of work to shake us up.”
James Beeby of the Terrence Higgins Trust added, “The coronavirus pandemic and lockdown have changed everything in just a few weeks, but we’re thrilled to be teaming up with the creators of new play Rush for this online reading. The money raised will ensure we can continue to be there for people living with HIV through our new At Home service offering a range of digital services, including free online counseling for people living with HIV.”
