I nominate Henry Sherrington for Jon's role. Like me, Dom saw Henry play the Second Tempter/Knight in Murder in the Cathedral last month. He's a terrific actor and when I spoke to him a few weeks ago about Abbey Shakes he was very interested. I'll look for his e mail.
Great to have to script and concept — thanks!
Also, may have a translator for you (in the next room 🙂 ). Ann aka Valeria ________________________________ From: Dominic Hargreaves dom@earth.li Sent: Friday, May 22, 2026 6:06 AM To: coriolanus-2026@lists.abbeyshakespeare.co.uk coriolanus-2026@lists.abbeyshakespeare.co.uk Subject: Fwd: Whole Company Email
Begin forwarded message:
From: Directors ASP measureasp@gmail.com Subject: Whole Company Email Date: 22 May 2026 at 10:49:18 BST To: Dominic Hargreaves dom@earth.li
Hello All,
Well my deadline is here and I have things to show you, as well as news. First of all, a request: can anyone translate English into Latin? Penny is making ‘wax’ tablets for the information campaign against Coriolanus and I’d like some Latin phrases on them, lines from the play etc. I know I can use Google Translate but I don’t know how good it is for Latin and honestly asking around seemed more fun. Secondly, Jon Preece is no longer available to play Aufidius Tullus. For us this means we lose a talented player; it also means that the cast list needs to be reshuffled.
So, an offer: if you would like to play Aufidius (Aufidia?) then please get in touch and we can discuss. I have a few possibilities in mind of castmembers, principle and chorus, but I would like to hear from anyone who wants to put their name forward, sooner rather than later if you please (my apologies). Depending on who takes the role it will change the chorus casting so, I’m very sorry Chorus members but I still don’t have all of your exact roles.
That being said, please see the attached copies of Act 1 of the script. Act 1 will be the most heavily edited of the play, in that I have cut out about half of it. This may seem alarming, but my aim is to flow through the opening food riot, the battle of Corioles, and the Roman victory quite quickly using the on-stage chorus as citizens/soldiers. I know what that looks like in my mind’s eye but I appreciate that for anyone reading the words, it might look rather mad, so read on and I will do my best to communicate my ideas.
As the audience arrives, the Chorus, potentially with other principle players with less heavy parts, will mingle in, talking with each other or with audience members about the cost of living crisis: the price of eggs, nappies, petrol, bread. The wars are increasing the price of everything, the inequality is so stark, and it just doesn’t feel like there is any care for the people from the establishment. A musical sting at the advertised time the play begins brings the Chorus to their places around the stage, and up the middle aisle walks a Citizen (Asher) and the Aedile (Jane). Asher shouts ‘Bread’, and one by one the rest of the Chorus pick up that cry, reaching a fever pitch, until the Aedile calls out Menenius’s name, who takes centre stage, and begins to engage with the people of Rome with the line ‘Let me tell you a tale…’
Moving forward, as the battle of Corioles approaches, the Chorus take their places again. Caius Martius, not yet Coriolanus, takes the stage and engages with Volscian senators on the walls. Aufidius takes the stage, they threaten each other, and there is a musical crescendo, followed by a silence, when Asher and Tom take the stage, stickfighting, unaware of the danger they are in. Once they notice the combatants, they flee. Then, the Chorus scream war cries of anger, terror, delight, while Coriolanus and Aufidius wound themselves while ‘fighting’. The Volscian senators come down from the walls and take Aufidius off, protesting, leaving Martius on the stage. Cominius then joins, exalting his victory, and we go on from there.
I’ve attached two versions of Act 1, one with all the cuts still in so it can be compared with other editions of the text, the other with the biggest cuts taken out so you can see how it flows.
Though the whole play isn’t yet finished, there should be enough here for everyone to sink their teeth into with regards to line learning for the principles, and for the Chorus, I invite you to start thinking about those set pieces: engaging with audience members as they arrive with regards to the cost of living; where you would like to stand in the Abbey; the tenor of your war cry and how you can move your body and features to convey the horror of the Battle of Corioles.
Thank you for bearing with me, everyone, Best wishes, Oscar