Rosalie Craig replaces Andrea Riseborough in As You Like It at the National Theatre

The Daily Mail's Baz Bamigboye has revealed casting for the National Theatre's revival of As You Like It which opens in November.

Rosalie Craig (The Light Princess/City Of Angels) will star as Rosalind, replacing the previously announced Andrea Riseborough who has withdrawn for personal reasons. As previously confirmed, Craig will star in woner.land in Manchester; however, she won't transfer with the musical which it transfers to the National.

Review: As You Like It at the Southwark Playhouse

As You Like It

Southwark Playhouse

Reviewed on Saturday 20th September 2014
★★★

I'm not as familiar with As You Like It as I am with some of Shakespeare's other work. The comedy begins with a more serious tone with Rosalind fleeing from her uncle with her cousin Celia, but before you know it the action moves to the woods with girls dressed as boys, mistaken identity and people falling in love with sheep. As You Like It is certainly one of Shakespeare's silliest plays; it is good fun, providing some superbly comical moments. 

Big Interview: Simon Lipkin

Simon Lipkin is currently playing Touchstone in Derek Bond’s production of Shakespeare’s As You Like It at the Southwark Playhouse. 

From November he will be starring as The Proprietor in Jamie Lloyd’s production of Assassins by Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman at the Menier Chocolate Factory.

Simon recently finished playing Barlow the Dog in I Can’t Sing at the London Palladium. His other West End credits include: Lonny in Rock Of Ages, Nicky and Trekkie Monster in Avenue Q, A Christmas Carol and Pharaoh in Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Simon’s theatre credits also include: Galahad in Spamalot (UK/International Tour), The Wedding Singer (original UK cast), Willard in Footloose (UK Tour).

I recently spoke to Simon about taking on his first Shakespeare play, why he’s so excited to be working with Jamie Lloyd on Assassins, the closure of I Can’t Sing and what it was like to recently return to Rock Of Ages as a last minute emergency cover for two nights only…

Obviously it was extremely sad when I Can’t Sing closed, but all of a sudden things have gone crazy for you! You’re busy working on As You Like It and Assassins, it must all be a bit mad?!

[laughs] Yes it’s all a little bit crazy. We finished I Can’t Sing in May and it was really sad. We had been workshopping the show for about a year and a half and I had been with it from the start. It was such an amazing show to be a part of, the cast were incredible and there were so many creative people. Harry Hill, Steve Brown and Sean Foley were all really brilliant people to work with, but I guess that’s the struggle of a new musical – you can never guess what is going to happen. We did it and we had an amazing time! It was actually nice to have a little break afterwards; I had a couple of months off. I deliberately thought, ‘Do you know what? It’s been a long time since I’ve had time off’ because I was in Rock Of Ages for a couple of years before I Can’t Sing and Spamalot directly before that. I decided to have a little rest because my brain needed to sleep [laughs]. 

Casting announced for As You Like It at the Southwark Playhouse

Casting has been announced for Derek Bond's production of Shakespeare's As You Like It. The show runs at the Southwark Playhouse between Thursday 18th September and Saturday 18th October 2014. The play is described as a "brilliant comedy about love, wrestling and sheep". 

The full cast includes: Sally Scott (Rosalind), Harry Livingstone (Orlando de Bois), Kaisa Hammarlund (Celia), Steven Crossley (Duke Frederick / Duke Senior), Simon Lipkin (Touchstone), Dominic Gerrard (Oliver de Bois / Jaques), Joanna Hickman (Phebe), Richard Albrecht (Adam / Corin), Samuel Townsend (Le Beau / Silvius) and Minal Patel (Charles the Wrestler / Amiens).