The tiny theatre where the Oscar-vanquishing film The King’s Speech was spotted as a potential film project is working on a new script with the play’s author, and the film’s Oscar-winning scriptwriter, David Seidler.
Last night at the Oscars, The King’s Speech director, Tom Hooper, taking his own Oscar for best director, told how his mother was at the 54-seat Pleasance theatre, Islington, North London (pictured below), in 2007 listening to a readthrough of the play. She rang her son and told him she thought she had found his next film project.
David Seidler, the playwright, had waited 30 years to put his play on stage after promising the Queen Mother he would not do it in her lifetime. As a stutterer himself, he empathised with King George VI and was fascinated by his successful treatment.
Now The Pleasance’s director Anthony Alderson says Seidler and the Pleasance will collaborate on his new theatre play.
“We’re utterly thrilled that The Pleasance was the launch pad for The King’s Speech – from being read on stage at The Pleasance to Oscar glory is just wonderful and the stuff theatre dreams are made of.
“It’s rare to get such a delicate and beautifully written script such as The King’s Speech. Having read the script we knew had to do the reading and help the project grow and take shape. The King’s Speech is exactly what The Pleasance is all about, providing space to develop ideas, connect people and experiment with new work.”
The Pleasance is a charity theatre supporting and nurturing new plays through readings and early run-throughs. It has theatres in Islington and a famous Edinburgh Festival venue.
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