Stephen Fry leads an all-star cast including Olly Alexander and Hugh Dennis in Oscar Wilde’s beloved comedy at the Noël Coward Theatre from September to January 2026.
The full cast of the National Theatre’s West End production of Oscar Wilde’s classic play will feature Stephen Fry as Lady Bracknell, Hugh Dennis as Rev. Canon Chasuble and Nathan Stewart-Jarrett as Jack Worthing.
The recently announced cast will join singer, songwriter, actor and producer Olly Alexander in his previously announced role of Algernon Moncrieff.
The cast also includes Shobna Gulati as Miss Prism, Kitty Hawthorne as Gwendolen Fairfax, Jessica Whitehurst as Cecily Cardew and Hayley Carmichael as Merriman/Lane.
Performance details ansd schedule
Directed by Max Webster, performances of The Importance of Being Earnest will open at the Noël Coward Theatre on 18th September and run until 10th January 2026.
Olly Alexander will not be performing on 20th September and from 7th to 13th November. Hugh Dennis will not be performing on 23rd October, 12th November and the evening of 20th November. Shobna Gulati will not be performing from 5th to 10th January.
About The Importance of Being Earnest
Being sensible can be excessively boring - at least Jack thinks so. While assuming the role of dutiful guardian in the country, he lets loose in town under a false identity. Meanwhile, his friend Algy takes on a similar facade.
Unfortunately, living a double life has its drawbacks, especially when it comes to love. Hoping to impress two eligible ladies, the gentlemen find themselves caught in a web of lies they must carefully navigate.
Originally published in 1895 by Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest has been performed on stage on numerous occasions, including at the National Theatre, UK tours and at the Perth Theatre, Scotland.
Ticket information and group bookings
Evening performances will take place from Mondays to Saturdays at 7pm. Matinees will be performed at 2pm Thursdays to Saturdays.
Groups of ten or more can book group tickets for seats in the stalls and dress circle at a reduced rate for Monday to Thursday evenings and matinee performances.
For more information about The Importance of Being Earnest go to earnestonstage.com.
