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The House of Bernarda Alba

by Alice Birch
after Federico García Lorca
a co-production with Playful Productions

A woman with swept-back short, dark, wavy hair, looking stern and pointing at the viewer.

Booking and details

You bring such scandal to my house

In the domain of Bernarda Alba, a daughter who disobeys is no longer a daughter.

Forced to live under their mother’s tight grip as they mourn their father’s death, can five sisters survive when young Adela dares for passion and freedom?

Olivier Award-winner Harriet Walter (Succession) plays the formidable matriarch, guarding her reputation against the rising tide of her family’s desires in this pitch-black drama exploring the consequences of oppressing women.

Following Olivier Award-winning revivals of Cabaret and A Streetcar Named Desire, Rebecca Frecknall makes her directorial debut at the National Theatre with Alice Birch’s (Normal People) radical version of Federico García Lorca’s modern masterpiece.

Performed 16 November 2023 — 6 January 2024 in the Lyttelton Theatre.

Suitability

Please note: This production features strong language, nudity and some scenes of a sexual nature, gunshots, and depictions of violence. It contains graphic depictions of death and suicide that some may find distressing.
More advice and guidance

Supporters

This production is supported by the Red Butterfly Foundation.

Gallery

Video

four women stand against a blue background of a living, two women are holding fans and all are dressed in black
Play Video

Watch the trailer

Cast

The role of Young Girl is played by:

Esma Akar

Livia Court

Sicily Rose De Bernardini

Production team

Playwright

Alice Birch

Alice Birch

Director

Rebecca Frecknall

Rebecca Frecknall

Set and Costume Designer

Merle Hensel

Merle Hensel

Lighting Designer

Lee Curran

Lee Curran

Composer

Isobel Waller-Bridge

Isobel Waller-Bridge

Sound Designer

Peter Rice

Peter Rice

Fight Director

Owain Gwynn

Owain Gwynn

Intimacy Coordinator

Ingrid Mackinnon

Ingrid Mackinnon

Dramatherapist

Patricia Ojehonmon

Patricia Ojehonmon

Casting Director

Alastair Coomer CDG

Alastair Coomer CDG

Casting Director

Naomi Downham

Naomi Downham

Company Voice Work

Cathleen McCarron

Cathleen McCarron

Company Voice Work

Tamsin Newlands

Tamsin Newlands

Staff Director

Lilac Yosiphon

Lilac Yosiphon

 

 

Photography (Harriet Walter) by Charlie Clift.