
Live from the National Theatre: 50 Years on Stage features a cast of 100, including such luminaries as Roger Allam, Simon Russell Beale, Benedict Cumberbatch, Frances de la Tour, Judi Dench, Christopher Eccleston, Ralph Fiennes, Michael Gambon, Derek Jacobi, Alex Jennings, Rory Kinnear, Adrian Lester, Anna Maxwell Martin, Helen Mirren, Andrew Scott, Maggie Smith, Penelope Wilton and more, plus rare glimpses from the archive. Extracts range from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead to The History Boys, from Antony and Cleopatra to Angels in America, and from Guys and Dolls to London Road.
"Arena: The National Theatre" is a two-part documentary that tells the story of the National Theatre from the appointment of Laurence Olivier as its first director and the great period of legendary productions at the Old Vic, to the move to the controversial and now iconic building on the South Bank. It goes inside the workings of the theatre and looks at recent hit productions, including Othello, Frankenstein and War Horse, in the making. In so doing it also tells the story of our times. Contributors include Alan Bennett, Judi Dench, Peter Hall, Derek Jacobi, Adrian Lester, Ian McKellen, Joan Plowright, Lucy Prebble and Maggie Smith.
To order online, visit shop.nationaltheatre.org.uk; the DVD can also be bought in person at the National Theatre Bookshop and Shopping and E*ting, the NT’s pop-up shop, café and bar on the South Bank.