Pioneering theatre company Headlong have today released production images for their brand new production of August Wilson’s Fences, which is currently playing at HOME Manchester (Tue 3 – Sat 7 Nov), and Nottingham Playhouse (Tue 10 – Sat 14 Nov).
The cast includes Ray Fearon (Othello – RSC, Fleabag – BBC, Coronation Street – ITV) as Troy, Madeline Appiah (In the Long Run – Sky, The Winter’s Tale – RSC, Tina Turner The Musical – West End) as Rose, Michael Ahomka-Lindsay (Choir Boy – Theatre Royal Stratford East & Bristol Old Vic, Cabaret – Kit Kat Club, Playhouse Theatre) as Lyons, Josh Tedeku (Boarders – BBC, Supacell – Netflix) as Cory,
Simon-Anthony Rhoden (Gone – ITV, The Harder They Come – Stratford East) as Gabriel and Everal A Walsh (Small Island – UK tour, Through It All Together – Leeds Playhouse) as Jim Bono. A cast of young performers will alternate the role of Raynell across the tour – they include Aita Mushuku, Daphne Muli, Eliana Musongole, Kaiya Tomlinson, Kezia Alanna-Ama and Pelo Thithi.
Fences is directed by award-winning director Daniel Bailey (Red Pitch). It is a co-production with Leeds Playhouse, Lyric Hammersmith Theatre and HOME Manchester, marking the first major revival in over a decade of this American blockbuster. The creative team for Fences includes Set & Costume Designer Lily Arnold, Composer and Sound Designer Khalil Madovi, Lighting Designer Jai Morjaria, Movement Director Shelley Maxwell,
Fight Director Kev McCurdy, Design Associate Emily King, WHAM Designer and Supervisor Dominique Hamilton, Props Manager Nathan Rose, Casting Director Heather Basten CDG, Voice and Dialect Aundrea Fudge and Associate Director Amber Ruby. Headlong and Leeds Playhouse have forged a highly successful Associate Partnership during Holly Race Roughan’s tenure, collaborating on a string of critically acclaimed productions including Henry V, The House Party, A Raisin in the Sun, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and August Wilson’s Jitney.
This production also sees Headlong and Leeds Playhouse reuniting with long-term collaborators the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre after their joint success in 2024 of A Raisin in the Sun, and with HOME in Manchester after their hit The House Party. Headlong will also be returning to their Associate Partner Oxford Playhouse, with their third major touring show at Oxford Playhouse since Headlong relocated to the city.
From August Wilson, one of one of America’s most influential 20th century writers, this landmark play is a story of ambition for our time, exploring ever-present themes including masculinity, motherhood, music and the abiding hope for a different future. Troy Maxson has cheated death once, but the past keeps closing in. On Pittsburgh’s streets, he cracks jokes and spins stories, yet at home, the pressure is building.
His wife, Rose holds the family together. She sees a changing world and hopes their son Cory might step into it with more freedom than Troy ever had. But when dreams collide, and tempers flare, the Maxson’s edge towards a reckoning that could reshape everything they know. This production is generously supported by Charles Holloway OBE
For more information and tickets, visit headlong.co.uk.
Production photography (c) Tyler Fayose below (1) Everal A Walsh as Bono & (2) Madeline Appiah as Rose Maxson
