Production history[edit]

The play premiered at the Noël Coward Theatre in London's West End on 22 July 2014. It was produced by Disney Theatrical Productions and Sonia Friedman Productions and directed by Declan Donnellan, with design by Nick Ormerod and music by Paddy Cunneen.^[1] The original cast included David Oakes appearing as Marlowe, Tom Bateman as Will, and Lucy Briggs-Owen as the heroine Viola De Lesseps.^[2] The production closed on 18 April 2015.^[3]


The production played to sold-out audiences during the 2016 Stratford (Ontario, Canada) Festival season. The director of the production was Declan Donnellan, with the rest of the original creative team from London show returning for the Canadian production.


The first U.S. production of the play occurred on 18 February 2017, at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.^[4] The play was produced at the Burbage Theater of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, as the first presentation of its 2018–2019 season.^[5]


In 2017, the first South African production of the play took place at The Fugard Theatre (Cape Town, South Africa). It was directed by Greg Karvellas, produced by Eric Abraham and starred Dylan Edy as William Shakespeare alongside Roxane Hayward as Viola De Lesseps.^[6] It played to sold-out audiences and, due to its success, was brought back in 2018 with Hayward reprising her role, opposite Daniel Mpilo Richard stepping in as Shakespeare.^[7]


In 2018, the Japanese version of the play was produced by Shiki Theatre Company.^[8] The script was translated by Matsuoka Kazuko, and the production was directed by Aoki Go.^[8] It was staged in Tokyo, Kyoto, and Fukuoka.^[9]


In 2023, a Korean version of the play was produced by Shownotw. The production was directed by Kim Dong-yeon and translated by Lee In-Soo. It was staged at CJ Towol Theater in Seoul.^[10] Shakespeare In Love became the first South Korean play of which ticket price exceeded 100,000 won.^[11] The production company said that the price hike was inevitable, stating "The play is having its first run in Korea, so we had to create everything from scratch ― the set, lighting, costume and others. We had to bring most of the set props from outside of Korea because the play is set in the 16th-century Renaissance period, characterized by its extravagance and glamor. Due to inflation, labor costs have also gone up."^[12]