McAvoy as Macbeth at Trafalgar Studios

February 05, 2013, 2:10 pm -- /EPR NETWORK/ -- BAFTA winner and Golden Globe-nominated actor James McAvoy is to star in William Shakespeare's ‘Macbeth' as part of a new season at Trafalgar Studios. The actor, who has starred in a string of successful Hollywood movies including ‘Atonement' and ‘X-Men', will play the title role during an initial ten-week run, which starts on February 9 th and finishes on April 27th.

The production is part of director Jamie Lloyd's Trafalgar Transformed season, and marks a reunion for Lloyd and McAvoy, who worked together on the actor's last stage appearance in 2009 on the Olivier-nominated ‘Three Days of Rain' at the Apollo Theatre. The full cast for ‘Macbeth' is yet to be announced.

According to press notes, the production will see “Shakespeare's darkest tale play out in a dystopian Scotland brutalised by war. Under a toxic fog, Macbeth begins his tormented struggle for power fuelled by ambition and paranoia.”

Of his upcoming season, Jamie Lloyd said it will be "a season of politically-charged power plays on the doorstep of Whitehall, accompanied by a festival of platform events, discussions and readings.” The season will also feature a series bespoke workshops and masterclasses from professionals, and Lloyd hopes to engage with schools and other institutions throughout the year. Production design for all the plays in Trafalgar Transformed is by Soutra Gilmour, who won the 2012 Evening Standard Award for Best Design.

‘Macbeth' will be performed at 7.30pm Mon-Sat, with matinees on Thursdays and Saturdays.All tickets will be £15 on Mondays, with half being made available through a special outreach scheme, targeting schools and first-time theatregoers. The other half will be available to the general public on the first day of each month, starting from Feb 1st. Tickets for all other nights of the week will range from £24.50-£54.50, with premium seats available for £65.

To help travelling theatre fans keep their accommodation costs down, HotelMap is offering reduced rates on hotels near Charing Cross, just minutes walk from Trafalgar Studios. A map of London, with hotels and their discounted rates clearly marked, is available at HotelMap.com. Visit the site for more information on ‘Macbeth', Trafalgar Transformed, and to browse discounted hotels near Charing Cross. http://www.LondonTown.com