Mark Rylance to star in Tartuffe with youth charity actors
Sir Mark Rylance returns to the London stage in a new Tartuffe, performing alongside graduates of the Intermission Youth charity.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
Sir Mark Rylance is returning to the London stage in a new version of Moliere's classic comedy Tartuffe, performing alongside actors who have come through the theatre programme at the charity Intermission Youth. The production will run at the 200-seater Marleybone Theatre, a far more intimate setting than the grand stages and screens where Rylance has won Oscars, BAFTAs, Oliviers and Tony Awards.
The charity, founded by Darren Raymond with Rylance as a trustee, aims to transform the lives of young people through drama, many of whom might otherwise be overlooked by the industry. Raymond himself met Rylance in prison in 2004, where Rylance was doing outreach work. Raymond later founded Intermission Youth, which has worked with thousands of young people through internal programmes, schools, pupil referral units and prisons.
The new version of Tartuffe, written by Raymond, is set in a Jamaican Nigerian household, shifting the action from the French court to a contemporary family home. The play's central theme, an imposter using charisma to blindside a prominent family, is given fresh resonance. Some of the performers are graduates of the youth programme, and the production embodies the charity's mission statement: to turn judgment into curiosity.
Rylance spoke about the importance of the arts beyond economic measurement, saying, "You can't measure the soul, the psyche of a person, you can't measure their imagination." The collaboration brings an actor of his calibre into an intimate setting, which the charity hopes will draw audiences and highlight the value of drama in changing young lives.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, mapped by channel. Ordered by how many channels carried each claim.
| Claim | Channel 4 |
|---|---|
| Darren Raymond founded Intermission Youth with Mark Rylance as a trustee, and first met Rylance in prison in 2004. | |
| Mark Rylance is to return to the London stage in a new production of Tartuffe at the Marleybone Theatre. | |
| The play is set in a Jamaican Nigerian household. |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
Channel 4 focused on the social impact of the production, highlighting the charity's work with disadvantaged young people and the personal story of founder Darren Raymond. The report gave significant time to Raymond's own journey from prison to running the charity, and to Rylance's reflections on the arts being undervalued. It also noted the play's setting in a Jamaican Nigerian household, which was a unique angle.
- “I remember him coming back and saying, if we don't reach some of these young people before they're 16 and can join our cohort, they'll be lost.”
- “Their mission statement is to turn judgment into curiosity, and that's something that has stayed with me.”
- “You can't measure the soul, the psyche of a person, you can't measure their imagination.”
Broadcast Timeline
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