Transcript
Instacart Advertiser (0:00)
We all prefer things a certain way, like groceries. If you want groceries just how you like them, you gotta try Instacart. They have a new preference picker that lets you pick how ripe or unripe you want your bananas. Shoppers can see your preferences upfront, helping guide their choices. Because when it comes to groceries, the details matter. Instacart get groceries just how you like.
Acast Ads Academy Promoter (0:23)
Want to upskill on one of the most effective ad channels out there? With Acast Ads Academy, you can learn everything you need to plan and run podcast advertising campaigns completely free. Whether you're new to audio or ready to sharpen your skills, our self paced courses fit your schedule and finish with an industry recognized certification. So if you want to grow your expertise and stand out in a competitive industry, head to go.acast.com forward/academy.
Micky Jo (0:56)
Yes, you heard me correctly. Game of Thrones is coming to the stage with a full theatrical adaptation heading to the Royal Shakespeare Company this year. In a couple of months, in fact, years after it was first teased, the production is finally real and I'm about to bring you all of the industry insights I can about what we can expect, whether or not I imagine it will be successful, whether it is likely to transfer elsewhere beyond its regional world premiere. All the while, I would like you to know that what I'm really wondering is are there going to be dragons? So much for us to talk about as we break down this news. But first, an introduction. Oh my God. Hey. Welcome back to my theatre themed YouTube channel. Or hello to those of you listening on podcast platforms if you are meeting me for the very first time. My name is Micky Jo and I am obsessed with all things theatre. I am a critic, a content creator and a pundit here on social media. And earlier today the theatre Internet was sent into a frenzy when it was announced that a new play based on the world of Game of Thrones by George R.R. martin was in fact coming to the Royal Shakespeare Company later this year, a fact which I had begun to predict in recent months. I even suspected that the announcement was going to be coming imminently. If you don't believe me, roll footage A Game of Thrones inspired stage show. I believe that we are going to be finding out a little bit more about that soon. I have a suspicion, yes, the thought had occurred to me a couple of months ago that the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford Upon Avon might be the perfect home for the Game of Thrones stage production if it were to ever see the light of day. After all, this was initially talked about a Good few years ago we found out at that time the creatives who were going to be working on the show, playwright and adapter Duncan McMillan and director Dominic Cook. And for a while Asset was getting talked about alongside the upcoming Hunger Games stage production, with which of course there are obvious similarities. Not just the idea of taking well known stories and intellectual property and putting them on stage in order to capitalize on their massive fan bases, but also the entire idea of how you show conflict and battle on stage. But as these were both getting talked about, neither of them seemed to be making significant Pacey progress towards an actual stage. Finally, the Hunger Games is open at the Troubadour Theatre, Canary Wharf, and we know where Game of Thrones is going. So today I will share with you all of the information that we currently know, everything that I can predict as somebody who has watched a lot of Game of Thrones in my lifetime, and I do feel that if you're familiar even with the first season, you've heard the title of this new play, then you can kind of gather what it's going to be about and when it's going to be set. But beyond that conversation, I'm sure you're curious about whether or not I think this is going to be successful. Because stage productions based on or expanding beyond worlds and works like this, with Stranger Things, the First Shadow being another currently still running on either side of the Atlantic, have enjoyed a certain amount of mixed success. They are often popular with their own pre built fan bases. But exactly how finite is that popularity today? I will let you know if I think Game of Thrones is a show worth seeing and a show worth staging. But before I do, I would love to know your opinions as well. Let me know all of your thoughts and feelings about Game of Thrones finally making its way to the British stage. And if there are any Song of Ice and Fire scholars watching, then feel free to help me out if I make any mistakes when talking about the lore of George R.R. martin's creations. In the meantime though, here is everything that we already know about Game of Thrones on stage. So there is already a show listing page on the RSC's website. That is what I am reading from here. And we already have a title for this play, George R.R. martin's Game of Thrones colon the Mad King. And it's being called a new play based on the novels by George R.R. martin, adapted by Duncan McMillan and directed by Dominic Cook. It's going to be in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, which is the largest space at the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford Upon Avon. For anyone outside of the uk, this is not in London. It's going to take you a couple of train journeys to get there if you plan to, but it's a lovely day out. Can recommend go to the rooftop restaurant, try the chicken and like I said, those of you already familiar with the world of Game of Thrones can probably understand immediately what story is being told based on the title the Mad King. But if you don't know, I can confirm that this is not an adaptation of a Game of Thrones story. We have already a scene. This is a prequel. This is going to depict events taking place in the immediate run up to the first televised series of Game of Thrones. An immediate prequel that's going to sort of set the stage for how everything began. Unlike, I believe, the two recent HBO spin off series, House of the Dragon and Knight of the Seven Realms, I think, which take place multiple generations and around a century before respectively, I think this is going to be much, much closer, which means it may contain some very familiar characters. More on that in just a moment. Here is the full description on the show listing page. Enter the world before Read Prologue A long winter thaws in Harrenhal and spring is promised at a lavish banquet on the eve of a jousting tournament. Lovers meet and revellers speculate about who will contend. But in the shadows, as there always are, amid growing unease at the bloodthirsty actions of the realm's merciless mad king, we know who that is. Dissenters from his inner circle anxiously advance a treasonous plot far away, the drums of battle sound immediately I'm going to talk a little bit more about why it makes sense. This is going to the rsc, but it sounds so inherently Shakespearean, doesn't it? It sounds like King Lear in a sense, but it also sounds like Richard II and Richard iii. This treasonous plot to overthrow a mad king on the eve of a jousting tournament. I mean, come on now. You also have all of these different factions, these different households, these allegiances, but these relationships that transcend those households carrying on family bonds, ancient prophecies and the sacred line of succession will be tested in a dangerous campaign for power. Who will survive? Who will rise? With a little quote here, wars aren't won by those with most cause, but whose stories best told Game of Thrones the Mad King, they go on to tell us is a sweeping new stage epic from the World of George R.R. martin, written by Duncan Macmillan and directed by Dominic Cook, spanning the final years before the events of the novels interesting final years. That plot synopsis makes it sound like it's all one wild weekend. This powerful drama reveals a legendary chapter of Westerosi history come face to face with familiar characters There you go from the Houses Targaryen, Stark, Lannister, Baratheon and Martell and witness the events that set the stage for the world's most critically acclaimed series. Join as an RSC supporter to access Priority booking from April playing in summer 2026. This is going to be exceedingly popular. If it's vitally important to you that you get there, then I might recommend joining as an RSC supporter. Due to expected high demand, tickets are limited to full 4 per person. Sucks to be you people with 3 kids. Also unclear at this point what the age recommendation is even going to be. Game of Thrones the series had its own fairly grisly and sexual moments. Priority booking for those interested is from 14th April 2026. Public booking to be announced in April and you can become an RSC member to hear about information first and to access priority booking. Tickets will be available via the website rsc.org.uk per the reporting of this news on playbill.com, we do also have a couple of statements, one here from Game of Thrones author George R.R. martin. He said, when I first wrote Game of Thrones, I never imagined that it would be anything other than a book. It was a place for my imagination to exist without limits. To my great surprise, it was adapted for a series and viewers have been able to enter the world of my imagination through the medium of television. For my work to now be adapted for the stage is something I did not expect, but welcome with great enthusiasm and excitement. Theatre offers something unique, a place for mine and the audience's imagination to meet and hopefully create something magical. They write that Martin will also serve as executive producer on the play. He continues, for me, the RSC was the obvious choice when thinking about putting a Game of Thrones story on the stage. Shakespeare is the greatest name in English literature and his plays have been a constant source of inspiration to me and my writing. Not only that, he faced similar challenges in how to put a battle on stage, so we are in good company. It will be thrilling to watch the events of this new play unfold in a live environment. Duncan's masterful script, Here We Go honours the world completely and I am so excited for both fans of the series and perhaps people who have never picked up one of my books to experience this new story in a theatre Meanwhile, Duncan macmillan and Dominic Cook said in a joint statement, this play is a prequel taking place over a decade before the events of Game of Thrones. Interesting. A long winter has started to thaw and for the first time in years, all the great houses come together for a tournament destined to be the greatest of the age. It feels like a new dawn, full of hope and opportunity, but tournaments always have a darker purpose. George's storytelling is Shakespearean in its scale and its themes. Dynastic struggle, ambition, rebellion, madness, prophecy, ill fated love. From the beginning, Shakespeare's histories and tragedies have been our primary reference for the ambition of this production, so the RSC feels like a natural home. It will be thrilling for us to share this new play with audiences, both those that know and love George's books and HBO's series, but also audiences who know nothing and want to come and experience something both beautifully intimate and truly epic. What they're trying to convey there in both of those statements is that you don't have to Game of Thrones in order to attend. If anyone's hearing this and thinking, oh, I better read all these vast books or watch this TV series, I dare say that they may nod to things that they are sort of the precursor to, but they seem eager to reassure audiences that you don't have to do any homework. And currently that is all of the information available here online. But I can expand on that a little bit for you and tell you about some of the creative