Hamnet

'She’s like no one I’ve ever met... She’s like fire and water all at once'

Warwickshire, 1582

Agnes Hathaway, a natural healer, meets the Latin tutor, William Shakespeare

Drawn together by powerful but hidden impulses, they create a life together and make a family

As William moves to London to discover his place in the world of theatre, Agnes stays at home to raise their three children but she is the constant presence and purpose of his life

When the plague steals 11-year-old Hamnet from his loving parents, they must each confront their loss alone

And yet, out of the greatest suffering, something of extraordinary wonder is born

This new play based on Maggie O'Farrell's best-selling novel, adapted by award-winning playwright Lolita Chakrabarti (Life of Pi, Red Velvet, Hymn), pulls back a curtain on the imagined family life of the greatest writer in the English language

Hamnet is a love letter to passion, birth, grief and the magic of nature

This edition was published to coincide with the world premiere at the Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, in April, 2023