New Real

The New Real

by David Edgar
Originally produced at Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford-Upon-Avon, UK
Presented in association with Headlong
October 13, 2024 - November 2, 2024

Synopsis: It’s the 2000s. We’re in a faraway country. Rachel, a stellar American political strategist, and Caro, her British data whizz, have been hired to fight a ferocious election, in a place where it’s hard to tell what’s real and what’s fake.

They think they’re here to teach the Eastern Europeans how to do democracy, but it turns out they’re here to learn. And when Rachel’s former political partner Larry rocks up on the rival side, their showdown threatens to change global politics, from Warsaw to Wisconsin. Forever.

At a time of epoch-changing elections on both sides of the Atlantic, Holly Race Roughan (Artistic Director of Headlong) directs The New Real, David Edgar’s epic, panoramic play about how the political fault-line was redrawn. An origin story, for right now.


Artistic Statement: The Royal Shakespeare Company has a long history of commissioning and nurturing original work to sit alongside Shakespeare’s plays. Our first season at the RSC continues this important tradition, with European and world premieres across all our stages from some of our most exciting contemporary storytellers. Within this raft of new work, we were tremendously proud to premiere David Edgar’s latest political thriller The New Real in The Other Place in Stratford-upon-Avon, presented in association with Headlong.

We are committed to developing and producing plays that respond to the most urgent questions of our time. 2024 has been a year of growing political divisions and tensions on both sides of the Atlantic. David Edgar’s epic, panoramic play explored these political fault-lines and their impact on the current state of democracy.

Bringing a new play to the stage for the first time is an exciting and complex challenge. The generous support of the Edgerton Foundation provided playwright David Edgar, director Holly Race Roughan and the wider New Real company with the additional time and freedom they needed to fully realise their collective creative vision. Early workshops and the extended rehearsal process also gave the actors the time and space to immerse themselves in the characters, themes and context of the play (supported by access to experts). Staged in the lead up to the US election, the play continued to develop in the rehearsal room and during previews in response to real life events, which further highlighted the play’s relevance to our current political landscape.

 - Daniel Evans and Tamara Harvey, Co-Artistic Directors of the Royal Shakespeare Company

Creative team:

Playwright: David Edgar

Director: Holly Race Roughan

Set & Costume Designer: Alex Lowde

Lighting Designer: Joshie Harriette

Composer: Monika Dalach Sayers

Sound Designer: Max Perryment

Movement Director: Michela Meazza

Video Designer: Luke Halls

Dramaturg: Chris Campbell

Casting Director: Matthew Dewsbury CDG

Dialect Coach: Aundrea Fudge

Associate Video Designer: Zakk Hein

Assistant Director: Masha Kevinovna