Olivier Award winner Katie Brayben returns to the London stage this month in Joanna Murray-Smith’s tale of a marriage in crisis, Honour. The former star of Beautiful – The Carole King Musical tells us why she’s so excited about this new production and performing at the intimate Park Theatre. Read what she has to say, then get booking!
Katie Brayben hit the headlines in 2015 when she collected the Olivier for her incredible performance as Carole King. A regular on the London stage, she’d previously played Sophie in Mamma Mia! and appeared in productions including King Charles III, American Psycho (both Almeida Theatre), A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Ragtime (both Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre) and 13 (National Theatre). In 2016, she starred in The Spoils at Trafalgar Studios, opposite Jessie Eisenberg, Kunal Nayyar and Alfie Allen, and in My Mother Said I Never Should, a piece staged by producers Tiny Fires and directed by Paul Robinson.
She reunites with Robinson and Tiny Fires this autumn for Honour , a play that paints an unflinching portrait of what happens when a secure marriage suddenly stalls, when the opportunity arises for one life to be revived at the expense of another.
For Honor and George, the arrival of the self-assured Claudia threatens to wreck a 32-year marriage. But as the power balance starts to shift, the husband, wife, daughter and lover together must face the fundamental question – what is love?
Brayben plays Claudia in Tiny Fires‘ new production of Honour. Henry Goodman, who has twice won an Olivier Award, stars alongside her as George. He collected his Oliviers for performances in Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins at the Donmar Warehouse and The Merchant of Venice at the National Theatre.
Imogen Stubbs, whose long list of stage credits include Things I Know To Be True and Strangers On A Train, plays Honor, while Ian Charleson Award winner Natalie Simpson takes the role of Sophie.
Honour premiered at Melbourne’s Playbox Theatre in 1995. Three years later it opened on Broadway at the Belasco Theatre with a cast featuring Laura Linney.
In 2003, it premiered in London at the National Theatre, before making its West End in debut in 2006, when Diana Rigg led the cast.
Joanna Murray-Smith is an Australian playwright whose work has often been staged in London. Songs For Nobodies, her one-woman show featuring five iconic singers, played at Wilton’s Music Hall in spring 2018, where it was received so well that it earned a West End transfer. It will open at the Ambassadors Theatre in January 2019.
Directed by Paul Robinson, who is also artistic director of the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Tiny Fires’ new production of Honour will be staged in-the-round.
Katie Brayben stars in Beautiful – The Carole King Musical
What drew you to Honour?
I thought it was one of the best plays I’d read in a while. It offers a real insight into the decimation of a relationship and the painful, joyful and revealing ripples of the aftermath. It’s a dissection of what we all may think of the word “love”.
The play is more than 20 years old. How has it stood the test of time?
It’s about how relevant it still is. The themes in Joanna’s play are timeless and get straight to the heart of human relationships. The battle of the head and the heart, desires, identity, loss, fear of death and of fading away, what we sacrifice and why… And to who, in the end, do we belong.
How would you describe your character, Claudia?
Claudia comes across as someone who is clear and clever, someone who can read others well. She interrogates people with a smile, highlighting their mistakes, and gives advice easily according to her worldview. The truth is she struggles hugely with her own identity and with confidence in her own abilities. She’s a real contradiction. I’ve just played a wife who has an affair in A Walk on the Moon in San Francisco, so it’s illuminating to now be in the position of having no husband to feel guilty about.
How do you feel about staging the show in the round?
I love working in the round. With this play, it feels a little like a boxing ring, where insights are thrown like punches. A space so intimate will give the subtlety a chance to shine. It’s very freeing to have the agency to go anywhere and do anything on stage. It also means you get to do a bit of back acting… or ‘bacting’ for those with the lingo!
What’s it like working with Henry Goodman, Imogen Stubbs and Natalie Simpson?
The whole cast is amazing. When I’m not in a scene I just sit, watching and learning. It’s a real joy.
Katie Brayben in Tiny Fires’ previous production My Mother Said I Never Should
How have you found working with producers Tiny Fires again?
Tiny Fires are great to work for. They just care about the work. It’s clear they are passionate about projects they work on, and their energy is infectious.
How do you feel about performing at Park Theatre?
I’m excited about how close everyone will be. There’s nowhere to hide. It’s scary and challenging.
What can audiences expect?
I think audiences won’t fail to be impressed by Joanna’s quick wit and clever dialogue. It’s a slick four-hander that won’t give you a second for breath.
