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What's it all about?
Across an 80 year divide, two men translate the word of God into the English tongue. For one, it means death at the stake. For the other, it could mean an archbishop's mitre.
After almost a century of unrest, the King James Bible was intended to end the violent upheavals of the English reformation. But deep-seated conflicts force a leading translator to confront the betrayal of his youthful religious ideals, for the sake of social peace.
Written by David Edgar, whose extensive work for the Company includes Destiny, Pentecost and Nicholas Nickleby, and marking the 400th anniversary of the publication of the King James Bible, Written on the Heart is directed by Chief Associate Director Gregory Doran following his production of Cardenio, Shakespeare's 'lost play' re-imagined.
Who's in it?
Oliver Ford Davies is Lancelot Andrewes here, perhaps best known by Star Wars fans as Sio Bibble in the three prequel films. But he is also an accomplished stage actor that has appeared in RSC productions before as well as with the National Theatre.
He chiefly plays opposite Stephen Boxer (Dr. Joe Fenton in Doctors), a fellow RSC cast member.
Who is Written on the Heart suitable for?
For anyone who's ever wondered about the legitimacy of quoting the Bible in English and whether anything was lost in translation, this is your chance to see a story about where it all began while the play asks its own questions along the way. But it is also a fantastic dramatic piece which has earned itself universally excellent reviews during its term in Stratford.
Did You Know?
The title of the play is a quote from Jeremiah 31:33 - "But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people" (that's from the King James version like in the play).
