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Feature: Tale of two knights comes to London stage

Xinhua, March 12, 2016 Adjust font size:

Two famous theatrical knights Sir Ian McKellen and Sir Patrick Stewart are to take to the boards in London for the first time together in seven years, it was announced Friday.

The two acting knights are to appear in Harold Pinter's play "No Man's Land" at the Wyndham's Theater in London's West End for 14 weeks, starting in early September.

McKellen and Stewart made their reputation together as actors at the Royal Shakespeare Company in the 1970s, and both have gone on to enjoy careers in Hollywood and on television.

McKellen rose to worldwide fame with his portrayal of the wizard Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings trilogy of films during the 1990s, and Stewart became a familiar face globally with his portrayal of Captain Jean-Luc Picard in the TV series Star Trek. Both actors starred in the X-Men series of films during the 2000s.

Before the 14-week run in London's West End, the play will go on tour across Britain.

This is the first time the pair have acted together in London since 2007 when they starred in Samuel Beckett's "Waiting for Godot." But "No Man's Land" is a revival of a production that the two appeared in on New York's Broadway during 2013 and 2014.

"No Man's Land" is seen as a classic of post-Second World War theater and tells the tale of two aging writers, Hirst and Spooner, who meet in a Hampstead pub and continue their drinking at Hirst's large home nearby.

As the pair gets more drunk their stories become more unbelievable and the conversation turns into a revealing power game.

The play was first performed in the West End in 1975 at the same theater that will host McKellen and Stewart's collaboration.

Stewart, who plays Hirst, said: "I saw the original production of 'No Man's Land' three times in one week at Wyndham's Theater and would have seen it more if I could have afforded the tickets."

"I made a promise to myself that one day I would play Spooner or Hirst but to be doing it back at Wyndham's with Ian McKellen was a fantasy I never entertained," said Stewart.

McKellen, who plays Spooner, said: "Playing Spooner to Patrick's Hirst on Broadway was a constant joy, which is why I am delighted to be back with him in the West End." Endit