A Game Of Thrones prequel play is coming to Stratford-upon-Avon this summer, the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) has revealed.
READ MORE: Every ‘Game Of Thrones’ spinoff in the works
Game Of Thrones: The Mad King is set a decade before the events of George R.R. Martin’s original A Song Of Ice And Fire books and the Game Of Thrones TV show.
The play is set to tell an original story that’s based on new material from author and executive producer Martin, and it’s made in association with HBO. It’s adapted by Duncan Macmillan and directed by Dominic Cooke.
It’s slated to feature the Targaryens, Starks, Lannisters, Baratheons and Martells, with the official synopsis reading: “A long winter thaws in Harrenhal, and spring is promised. At a lavish banquet on the eve of a jousting tournament, lovers meet and revellers speculate about who will contend.
“But in the shadows, amid growing unease at the blood-thirsty actions of the realm’s merciless Mad King, dissenters from his inner circle anxiously advance a treasonous plot. Far away, the drums of battle sound.”
Martin, meanwhile, described the RSC as the “obvious choice” and described the Bard himself as a “constant source of inspiration” for his own writing. “It will be thrilling to watch the events of this new play unfold in a live environment,” he continued, “Duncan’s masterful script honours the world completely, and I am so excited for both fans of the series, and perhaps people who have never picked up one of my books, to experience this new story in a theatre.”
Duncan Macmillan, George R.R. Martin and Dominic Cooke. CREDIT: Royal Shakespeare Company
Priority tickets for RSC members will go on sale on April 14, with public booking announced sometime that month. The play will premiere at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in the summer. The opening date is as yet unknown, and none of the cast has been revealed – more information is available on the RSC’s website.
The news comes as the action-packed trailer for season three of the prequel series House Of The Dragon was released ahead of its June premiere.
Another Game Of Thrones prequel series, A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms, is set to air the final episode of its first season on Sunday (February 22). The show, which is based on the Tales Of Dunk And Egg series of novellas concerning hedge knight Dunk and his squire, Egg, has already been renewed for a second season.
NME gave the first season a three-star review, writing: “A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms is a relatively slight affair. Even though the six episodes clock in at around 30 minutes each, it still takes a while to find its feet. The second half of the season is stronger than the first but even then, there are wobbles.
“The dramatic penultimate episode is padded with an exposition-heavy flashback that really saps its momentum. Fortunately, the show’s two lead characters have real potential.”
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