Broadway World, 8 November 2012
By BWW News Desk

According to the Daily Mail, Sir Kenneth Branagh will play MacBeth [sic] in Shakespeare's tragedy at the Manchester International Festival next summer, which runs July 4-21, 2013. Rob Ashford is set to direct.

The Mail reports that a member of the artistic team at the Royal Exchange in Manchester said it will be "unusual" to stage a Shakespeare play at the festival but that "perhaps Branagh has a revolutionary take on it."

Director Ashford is known for his work on productions such as 'A Streetcar Named Desire' at Donmar Warehouse and 'Anna Christie', starring Jude Law and Ruth Wilson.

Branagh, who was just knighted at Buckingham Palace today for his services to drama and the Northern Ireland community, was nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal of Laurence Olivier in 'My Week With Marilyn'.

Celebrated Shakespeare actor, Branagh appeared in Renaissance Theatre Company's 'Hamlet' in 1988, played opposite Emma Thompson in Renaissance's 'Look Back in Anger', and later as Richard III in a Sheffield production. He starred in the Royal National Theatre's 'Edmond' and directed 'The Play What I Wrote' for Broadway in 2003. In 2008, Branagh appeared in the West End's 'Ivanov' revival. Branagh has also appeared on television in the series 'Wallander', and in many film adaptations of Shakespeare's plays.