In 2013 Branagh will star in the title role of Macbeth, which will be directed by Tony winner Rob Ashford.
Seventeen performances of the Shakespeare classic will be staged in a deconsecrated church. Additional casting and creative team members will be announced at a later time.
The upcoming festival will also include performances by the British young band The xx and The Biospheric Project, which will see a prototype urban farm created in a disused city center mill on the River Irwell.
For more information visit mif.co.uk.