Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson are set to star in the Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles’ production of “Henry IV.”
Hanks will play the comedic role of Sir John Falstaff. The 24 performances will run between June 5 and July 1 at the Japanese Garden on the West Los Angeles Veterans Affairs campus.
Tony Award-winning Daniel Sullivan, who will combine Parts 1 and 2 of “Henry IV” into a single evening of theater, will serve as director for the show, and 2,000 tickets will be reserved for active and retired members of the military. Tom Ware is the executive producer.
The history play follows the reign of King Henry IV, with Sullivan’s edit focused on the story of Falstaff and his protege, Prince Hal, the young man who will become Henry V.
Hanks and Wilson were honored this year at the Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles’s 25th Annual Simply Shakespeare benefit. Both Hanks and Wilson have been sponsors and participants of the Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles for 26 years, and they have also hosted “Simply Shakespeare,” a reading of the author’s work.
Hanks’ most recent major stage credit was the 2013 Broadway production of Nora Ephron’s “Lucky Guy,” for which he was nominated for a Tony Award.
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Hanks is currently starring in Steven Spielberg’s Oscar-nominated “The Post” with Meryl Streep. Wilson is set to appear in the upcoming romantic comedy “Simple Wedding,” and the husband and wife duo starred together the drama “Larry Crowne” which Hanks also directed.
