Sheffield Theatres has revealed the full cast and creative teams for its autumn Shakespeare season at the Crucible Theatre, featuring a rare repertory approach with one ensemble performing both King Lear and Twelfth Night. Notable names include Ian McDiarmid as Lear and Mathew Horne as Malvolio.

The autumn season at Sheffield Crucible will present new productions of King Lear and Twelfth Night, with a single ensemble cast performing multiple roles across both plays. Ian McDiarmid returns as Lear, while Mathew Horne plays Malvolio, a role in Twelfth Night.

The cast includes David Birrell as Gloucester and Feste, Justina Kehinde as Regan and Olivia, Harry Redding as Edgar and Sebastian, and Bebe Sanders as Cordelia and Viola, among others. The company demonstrates versatility by taking on diverse characters across the two productions.

King Lear, directed by Titas Halder, runs from 29 August to 19 September 2026. The creative team features set and costume designer Richard Kent, lighting designer Ryan Day, composer Sarah Angliss, and multiple specialists such as fight and intimacy directors Yarit Dor and Enric Ortuño.

Twelfth Night is directed by Jamie Glover and will be staged from 10 to 31 October 2026. Its creative team includes set and costume designer Amanda Stoodley, lighting designer Richard Howell, and composer and musical director Genevieve Dawson.

This King Lear production is presented in association with Michael Grandage Company, marking a reunion between Sheffield Theatres and its former artistic director Michael Grandage. Both productions share several creative collaborators, including casting director Matilda James and voice coach Barbara Houseman.

The repertory arrangement, with one company performing both Shakespeare plays in the same season, offers audiences a distinctive theatrical experience, highlighting the performers’ range and the creative teams’ cohesion.