"ER" Star Kingston to Join Slater for London Cuckoo | Playbill

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News "ER" Star Kingston to Join Slater for London Cuckoo Hollywood actor Christian Slater will be joined by Alex Kingston from television’s “ER” when Slater reprises his performance in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.

The revival of Dale Wasserman’s adaptation of the Ken Kesey novel will begin previews at the Garrick Theatre March 21, with an official opening night on March 28.

For the run, which is booking until June 3, Slater will once again take on the lead role of McMurphy, a small-time crook who is sent to a psychiatric hospital. The part was played by Jack Nicholson in the Oscar-winning 1975 Milos Forman movie.

Kingston will play the role of Nurse Ratched, portrayed by Frances Barber during the show's 2004-05 run at the Gielgud.

In the run up to the production’s premiere at the 2004 Edinburgh Festival, the show was hit by a series of crises, starting with an outbreak of chicken pox which Slater caught from fellow cast member Felix Dexter. Prior to that, Terry Johnson stepped in as a last-minute replacement director after Guy Masterston quit the show citing personal reasons.

During rehearsals there were also reports of friction between Slater and other members of the cast with Barber quoted as saying, “I have never been involved in any rehearsal process quite like this. And, being diplomatic, that is all I am going to say.” The problems, however, were overcome and the production opened to critical acclaim running from Sept. 3 to Jan. 1, 2005.

 
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